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Strategic science plan for marine monument in the works
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Posted on Mar 14 2012
»Stakeholders meeting on Tinian today and on Saipan tomorrow
Eric Breuer, the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center Monument science coordinator for the National Marine Fisheries Service, is visiting the islands of Saipan, Tinian, and Guam over the next two weeks to gain input from fishermen, scientists, natural resource agency officials, and the general public toward the development of a Strategic Science Plan that will guide future scientific research in the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument.
Breuer leads science coordination in the Pacific Remote, Rose Atoll, and Marianas Trench Marine National Monuments. Stationed in Honolulu, Hawaii, he works closely with local NMFS PIFSC staff Michael Trianni, who works out of the CNMI NOAA Field Office in south Garapan, as well as Eric Cruz from the NMFS PIFSC Field Office in Guam.
The objective of the Strategic Science Plan is to address national, local, and regional science needs in the marine monument, toward the goal of fulfilling the aspirations of the presidential proclamation that created it.
By identifying and including scientific research needs in the early stages of development, the Strategic Science Plan will prioritize projects for currently available and potentially future available project funding.
A major element to the effort is to be as transparent as possible. Likewise the team has a goal to include all potential parties who may have an interest in the science plan’s development to be involved with its development.
In addition to scheduling a series of meetings with agencies and individuals, Breuer will conduct two public stakeholder forums, one today, March 14, at the Fleming Hotel function room on Tinian. The second is on Thursday, March 15, at the American Memorial Park auditorium on Saipan. Both events begin at 6pm. Due to flight difficulties, a planned visit to Rota had to be postponed. A follow up visit by science plan officials will be scheduled for Rota shortly.
The consultations and work efforts of Trianni, Cruz, and Breuer represent important milestones in the overall plans of this national marine monument’s overall management plan. For more information, contact Trianni at (670) 285-0014, or via email at michael.trianni@noaa.gov and Cruz at (671) 737-0801, or via email at eric.cruz@noaa.gov. (PR)
