Award Abstract #1050500
RAPID: Quantifying the Impact of the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill on the Health and Productivity of Louisiana Salt Marshes

NSF Org:	DEB Division of Environmental Biology
Initial Amendment Date:	August 16, 2010
Latest Amendment Date:	August 16, 2010
Award Number:	1050500
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Henry L. Gholz DEB Division of Environmental Biology BIO Directorate for Biological Sciences
Start Date:	August 15, 2010
Expires:	October 31, 2012 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$199,703.00
Investigator(s):	Deepak Mishra dmishra@uga.edu (Principal Investigator) Hyun Jung Cho (Co-Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	Mississippi State University PO Box 6156 MISSISSIPPI STATE, MS 39762-9662 (662)325-7404
NSF Program(s):	Global Systems Science
Program Reference Code(s):	5987, 7914, 9150, 9169, EGCH
Program Element Code(s):	7978

ABSTRACT

Assessment of marsh health is essential to the evaluation of the short-term impact of the BP Deepwater Horizon spill and for the prioritization of future restoration actions. This study will allow the identification of hotspots of marsh degradation by evaluating marsh biophysical characteristics including distribution of chlorophyll content, green leaf area, and green marsh canopy cover. These characteristics are the primary indicators of photosynthetic capacity and physiological status of marsh vegetation. NASA's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite images will be used to retrieve and map these characteristics across the coastal Louisiana salt marshes before and after the spill. Pre and post spill weekly composite maps of salt marsh biophysical characteristics for the entire Louisiana coast will be generated showing the extent of damage and recovery. By examining the satellite images, the overall health and productivity of coastal salt marsh can be inferred and the ecological impact of the oil and oil/dispersant on health and productivity of these sensitive ecosystem can be effectively analyzed.

The maps and tools produced by this study will be helpful to coastal managers across Louisiana as they evaluate and prioritize the massive marsh restoration effort that is going to take place because of the spill. For the first time, tangible map products will be generated that can quantitatively assess the effect of the restoration activities and speed of marsh ecosystem recovery. The proposal also directly addresses the Gulf of Mexico Alliance's (GOMA) long term goal to enhance monitoring for the conservation and restoration of coastal wetlands throughout the Gulf of Mexico.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

Mishra, DR; Cho, HJ; Ghosh, S; Fox, A; Downs, C; Merani, PBT; Kirui, P; Jackson, N; Mishra, S. "Post-spill state of the marsh: Remote estimation of the ecological impact of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill on Louisiana Salt Marshes," REMOTE SENSING OF ENVIRONMENT, v.118, 2012, p. 176.