Science Advisory Report 2015/053
Development of risk-based indicators for Endeavour Hydrothermal Vents Marine Protected Area using the ecological risk assessment framework
Summary
- A framework to select and prioritize risk-based ecological indicators, using the outputs of an application of the ecological risk assessment framework (ERAF; O et al. 2014), and a proposed suite of risk-based indicators for the Endeavour Hydrothermal Vents Marine Protected Area (EHV MPA), were reviewed.
- Risk-based indicators monitor the risk of harm to significant ecosystem components (SECs) from anthropogenic activities and associated stressors and can provide information that is specific to SEC-stressor interactions and to the SECs most at risk. These indicators may be SEC-specific, stressor-specific, or specific to a SEC-stressor interaction.
- The suites of risk-based indicators proposed for current snapshot stressors (predictable, and occurring most years) and potential stressors (unpredictable, and occurring infrequently) are suitable to support the development of strategies and plans to monitor human impacts in the EHV MPA. It is recommended that indicators for both categories of stressor (potential and current snapshot) be considered as each represents different types of risk, states of knowledge and management needs for effective monitoring.
- The framework for risk-based indicator selection clearly describes the procedures that are followed to prioritize and select indicators, and the process for decision-making in applying the framework. These elements of the framework support the achievement of comparable outcomes among users and when applied to other MPAs or management units.
- Indicators related to measures of abundance are proposed in most indicator suites, highlighting a key information gap in the EHV MPA: the need to establish baseline data (e.g., biological, habitat) for all SECs. It is recommended that the appropriate baseline information be collected going forward and that the availability of retrospective information from past research activities dating to 1984 be investigated/catalogued and evaluated for their utility in establishing temporal changes to the present.
- Monitoring a combination of SEC-stressor interactions, SEC, and stressor indicators simultaneously is recommended because there is a need to establish SEC baseline data and measure disturbance impacts concurrently in order to separate natural variation from human induced variation. Monitoring of SEC and stressor-specific indicators provides baseline data and monitoring of SEC-stressor interaction indicators provides information on disturbances.
- Current snapshot indicator suites measure the SEC-stressor interaction directly. The most informative indicators for current snapshot activities/stressors are SEC-stressor interaction indicators, followed by SEC and stressor indicators. For example, for the Ridgeia piscesae (high flux tubeworm) (SEC) exposed to removal of organisms (stressor) from sampling (activity), biomass of removed organisms is an indicator of the SEC-stressor interaction, abundance is proposed as a SEC specific indicator, and areal coverage of removed organisms on a chimney is a proposed stressor-specific indicator.
- Indicators for potential SEC-stressor interactions are generally less specific to the SEC-stressor interaction than those for current snapshot stressors. Potential stressors are unpredictable in their occurrence and there is high uncertainty concerning exposure to and the consequences of such interactions when they occur. It is recommended that a two step process for monitoring of potential stressor indicator suites be considered:
- establish baseline data on population abundance and possible exposure to a stressor using SEC and stressor-specific indicators prior to the occurrence of a stressor; and,
- when the potential stressor occurs, use SEC-stressor interaction indicators and compare these values with established baseline data to measure the disturbance.
- The effectiveness of the proposed indicators in measuring changes to SECs resulting from interactions with stressors will not be fully realized until after monitoring has commenced. It is recommended that the performance of the proposed indicators be assessed in terms of their ability to track properties of interest (in this case, impacts from stressors, and establish population baseline data for SECs) and their ability to detect or predict trends in attributes.
- Many of the proposed indicators can be measured and monitored simultaneously during the same operational period because of the overlapping distribution of several SECs within the EHV MPA.
- It is recommended that indicator sampling protocols in the EHV MPA focus on non-destructive sampling methods, including remote tools such as cabled observations, and that vent fields be considered the sample unit for data collection (following current practice). A tiered approach is recommended to minimize the frequency and extent of destructive monitoring, e.g., to estimate SEC biomass, to those periods/places identified by ongoing visual monitoring.
- It is recommended that an iterative approach be used to develop operational conservation objectives, to further refine the list of proposed risk-based indicators, and to select ecosystem indicators in the EHV MPA.
This Science Advisory Report is from the May 20-21, 2015 Development of Risk-based Indicators for SGaan Kinghlas-Bowie Seamount and Endeavour Hydrothermal Vents Marine Protected Areas Using the Ecological Risk Assessment Framework. Additional publications from this meeting will be posted on the Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Science Advisory Schedule as they become available.
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