Hurricane Ian

Our thoughts are with our friends, colleagues, and partners affected by Hurricane Ian. Please support recovery efforts where you can so that the Gulf Coast’s people and communities can come back stronger.

News

Gulfwide oyster map now in GOMOD

Oyster data for each of the five Gulf states are now available in a single distribution map on the Gulf of Mexico Open Data Platform (GOMOD). These data represent a comprehensive collection of publicly available data from state agencies across the region; data will be further refined in the coming months and more data will be added as it becomes available.

Gulf of Mexico Open Data Platform

Every bottle counts

Sixteen water bottle refill stations will be placed in south Louisiana schools this fall and early next year in an effort to reduce single-use plastics while teaching students about the effects of marine debris. This is an expansion a project conducted by of our Education and Engagement Team. The team has already provided 13 stations to south Louisiana schools in partnership with the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. More than 49,000 water bottles have been saved so far.

This project is funded by Gulf Star partner Hess. Picture taken at Southdown Elementary School in Houma, LA.

Education and Engagement Team

Building diversity in coastal management

Thanks to our Gulf Star partners Equinor and NOAA, we are proud to have launched a new internship program that provides undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds hands-on experience in coastal management at state agencies across the region. The current interns and their hosts are:

Takya Millender (bottom left), MS Department of Marine Resources Public Relations Office
Anastasia Canu (right), TX Parks and Wildlife Department Coastal Fish Hatchery Program
Tyler Barron (top left), FL Department of Environmental Protection Office of Resilience & Coastal Protection

Additional internships in Alabama and Louisiana will begin in 2023.

GOMA on the radio

GOMA’s communication manager, Amanda Nalley, was featured on the Louisiana Radio Network recently talking about the Osprey Initiative's Litter Gitter that collected more than 31 pounds of trash this summer from a canal in Metarie.

We are so thankful to project lead Pontchartrain Conservancy and Gulf Star partner Hess for all they have done to make this project a reality.

Listen to clip

Check out our new Homeowner's Handbook video

Tool of the Month

Tool of the Month: GRIIDC

The Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative Information and Data Cooperative (GRIIDC) is a data management system for Gulf of Mexico researchers to store and share their scientific data. The GRIIDC database currently includes over 3,200 datasets to explore and download. These shared data can be used by anyone to explore innovate research questions, assess policies and programs, and for education.

Check out GRIIDC

Partner News

Nurdle Patrol expanding to Mexico

The Nurdle Patrol, a citizen science project led by the Mission-Aransas NERR, is expanding to Mexico with funding from the NOAA Marine Debris Program. The project will also create Spanish versions of the website, app, and training materials. Learn more.

Gulf Research Program launches initiative to improve sea level rise predictions

The National Academies' Gulf Research Program recently announced $4.6 million in awards to support three project teams that will conduct research on improving the forecasting of sea level rise along the Gulf Coast. Learn more.

Attention educators - help NOAA identify multimedia resource needs

NOAA Education wants to know more about what types of learning tools you want and use. Take the NOAA Multimedia Needs Assessment.

Bays and Bayous Symposium call for abstracts open

The symposium will be January 24-25, 2023, at the Mobile Convention Center. Abstracts must be submitted by 5 p.m. October 19. Learn more.

New Gulf-wide maps of high marsh a habitat now available

USGS and Mississippi State University have recently published maps of high marsh and salt panne habitat for the entire Gulf coast from Texas to Florida and irregularly flooded wetland habitat from Louisiana to the Florida Big Bend. The maps are a part of the Firebird Project, funded by the NOAA RESTORE Science Program.

Office of Management and Budget seeks public comment on plan for natural capital accounting

Public comment on the "National Strategy to Develop Statistics for Environmental-Economic Decisions: A U.S. System of Natural Capital Accounting and Associated Environmental-Economic Statistics" is open through October 21, 2022. More information here.