Developing an Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Framework for Evaluating Ecosystem Service Outcomes from Seagrass Restoration in the Gulf of Mexico

Description: Long-term degradation of seagrass habitat by human impacts and a growing understanding of the ecosystem services benefits that healthy seagrass beds provide have made seagrass restoration a major priority for the Gulf of Mexico. However, ecosystem services benefits are rarely tracked by restoration monitoring efforts due to a lack of standardized approaches for measuring them. This project intends to address this gap by using existing datasets on seagrass along the Florida Gulf Coast to develop models and metrics that can be used to link and quantify the relationship between seagrass restoration and ecosystem services. The project outputs will assist practitioners with seagrass management and restoration planning and prioritization both in the Gulf of Mexico and beyond.

Biodiversity enhancement value of seagrass beds and potential recovery areas under contemporary environmental conditions (1997 - 2017) and two sea-level rise scenarios within the Florida Gulf Coast

Model predictions of the total canopy cover and species composition of seagrass beds (including potential recovery areas) within the Florida Gulf Coast under contemporary environmental conditions (1997-2017) and two sea-level rise (SLR) scenarios (+50cm and +100cm above current)

The ecosystem service enhancment value of seagrass beds within the Florida Gulf Coast under contemporary environmental conditions (1997-2017).

Model predictions of the sedimentary organic carbon stocks associated with seagrass beds on the Florida Gulf Coast