HSRP Strategic Effectiveness Sub-Committee Proposed Focus and Scope

1. HSRP Strategic Effectiveness Sub-Committee Proposed Focus and Scope Members: Dr. David Jay, Portland State University Dr. Michelle Dionne, Wells National Estuarine Reserve Center Captain Sherri Hickman, Galveston/Houston Pilots Mr. William Hanson, Great Lakes Dredging Dr. Gary Jeffress, Texas A&M University

2. Four Topic Areas – • Improving and supporting the PORTS system • Responding to changing water levels and inundation threats • Improving NOAA's products and services • Improving outreach and branding

3. PORTS Issues – PORTS is critical for safe navigation and important to diverse management activities and agencies PORTS considerations: The 21 PORTS systems are diverse in instrumentation and models, They are inconsistently funded and not fully supported by NOAA Many lack needed components and upgrades Models are often locally chosen and/or incomplete

4. Suggestions for PORTS – Clarify funding mechanism – with user fees, or??? Upgrade PORTS instrumentation to a standard minimum level, augment as needed Expand PORTS to other seaports where cost/ benefit analysis suggests this makes sense Improve modeling for navigation, ecosystem mgt and other needs; e.g., sediment transport Better connect PORTS to diverse US and international observing system efforts Data exchange Innovation

5. Water Levels and Inundation Issues – Changing MSL, tides, waves and surge and tsunamis pose challenges to safety, coastal infrastructure, transportation and ecosystems The long US coastline is diverse, needs are variable Historic NOAA data are inaccessible and poorly cataloged Coupling diverse models is a huge challenge; e.g., PORTS Tsunami Storm surge and wave Sediment transport Coastal and open ocean

6. Water Levels and Inundation Suggestions – Improve data delivery and model coupling for: Mapping, planning and management For crisis response (real time) Prioritize coastal areas in need of improved mapping Incorporate geodetic information: Install GPS units routinely on gauges Update epoch semi-continuously, not every ~20 years Recover historic NOAA data: Data recovery is cheaper than data collection Long records are of great value

7. Products and Service Issues – Demand for products and services is rising more rapidly than ability to deliver: Larger ships and more traffic More coastal planning is needed for more people Diverse coastal inundation threats in many areas Katrina emphasizes the need for coordination of datum levels and models Coastal erosion due to diverse causes threaten public safety, ecosystems and infrastructure Specific needs in remote areas: Arctic Pacific Islands

8. Products and Service Suggestions – Better use of NOAA fleet via public-private partnerships Improve dissemination of datum levels and integrated coastal mapping Integrate of real-time GPS into surveys Improve coordination with other agencies that have tide gauges and bathymetric data Improve mapping of areas outside of navigation channels Prioritize specific apps and services that will bring broader recognition

9. Outreach Issues – • NOAA is poorly known by the public • NOAA products are often not “user friendly” • Many people use NOAA services and products without knowing their source

10. Outreach Suggestions – • Define (new) users: what are their needs? • Each tide gauge and PORTS instrument should have a Facebook page • Provide apps for Google maps, Iphone, etc. • Logo: can NOAA require that its logo appear with any use of its products? • Use media opportunities: e.g., TV weather clips • Mascot: is there a NOAA “Smokey”? • User fees: • From GPS units • “Subscriptions” for superior access