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For the latest forecasts and critical weather information, visit weather.gov.

Projects Explorer

The NCCOS Project Explorer provides a snapshot of our official, discrete lines of research.
Filter by research category, region, and/or contact.

A 2015 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern in Chesapeake Bay and Charleston Harbor

Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, mary.rider@noaa.gov, Maryland, National Mussel Watch, South Carolina, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2015–2016 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern in the Gulf of Maine

Atlantic Ocean, Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Gulf of Maine, Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, Maine, Massachusetts, National Mussel Watch, New Hampshire, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2017 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern on the Gulf Coast

Alabama, Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Florida, Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, Louisiana, Mississippi, National Mussel Watch, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, Texas, U.S. States and Territories
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2018 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern in the Southern California Bight

Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, California, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, National Mussel Watch, Pacific Ocean, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2019 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern in the Pacific Northwest

Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, National Mussel Watch, Oregon, Pacific Ocean, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Washington, Waterbodies
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2020 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern on the South Atlantic Coast

Atlantic Ocean, Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Florida, Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, National Mussel Watch, South Carolina, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and currently for trace metals, legacy contaminants, and contaminants of ...
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A 2021 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern on the Mid-Atlantic Coast

Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, Maryland, Massachusetts, National Mussel Watch, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Virginia
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2022 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern in the Great Lakes

Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Great Lakes, Illinois, Indiana, Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, Michigan, Minnesota, National Mussel Watch, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies, Wisconsin
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2023 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern on the Gulf Coast

Alabama, Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Florida, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, Louisiana, Mississippi, National Mussel Watch, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, Texas, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2024 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern on the Pacific Coast, Alaska, and Hawaii

Alaska, Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, California, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Hawaii, Lauren.Swam@noaa.gov, National Mussel Watch, Oregon, Pacific Ocean, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Washington, Waterbodies
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and in recent decades has expanded its monitoring to include ...
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A 2025 Assessment of Metals, Legacy Contaminants, and Contaminants of Emerging Concern on the North Atlantic Coast

Atlantic Ocean, Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, Connecticut, Delaware, dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Gulf of Maine, Long Island Sound, Maine, Massachusetts, National Mussel Watch, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, phillip.tanabe@noaa.gov, Rhode Island, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, Waterbodies
The Mussel Watch Program has monitored the nation’s coastal waters for chemical contaminants since 1986 and currently for trace metals, legacy contaminants, and contaminants of ...
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A Baseline Chemical Contaminants Study of Marine Sediments in Nu’uuli Pala Lagoon, American Samoa

American Samoa, andrew.mason@noaa.gov, Pacific Ocean, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
We are assessing the scope and extent of land-based sources of chemical contaminants in the marine sediments of Nu’uuli Pala Lagoon in American Samoa. Currently, ...
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A Chemical Contaminant Characterization of Waters Surrounding Cocos Island, Guam, using Polyethylene Devices

andrew.mason@noaa.gov, Guam, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories
We are assessing the scope and extent of land-based sources of chemical contaminants in the marine waters surrounding Cocos Island, Guam. Previous NCCOS studies identified ...
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A Cost-benefit Analysis of Green-gray Infrastructure for Sea Level Rise Adaptation in the Pacific Northwest, Incorporating Externalities and Ecosystem Co-benefits

Coastal Change, Natural and Nature-based Features, Oregon, Sea Level Rise, trevor.meckley@noaa.gov, U.S. States and Territories, Washington
We are evaluating the tradeoffs between gray and green infrastructure approaches for flood risk reduction by applying a cost-benefit analysis framework to two estuaries in ...
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A Geospatial Assessment of U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico Essential Fish Habitat in Relation to Offshore Sand Features

Atlantic Ocean, chris.taylor@noaa.gov, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Habitat Mapping, Marine Spatial Ecology, Waterbodies
Offshore sand resources, e.g., sand shoals, are increasingly being used for beach renourishment, barrier island restoration, and other uses to enhance resiliency of shorelines. However, ...
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A Global Review of Protected Species Interactions with Marine Aquaculture

Assessing Human Use, Assessing Vulnerability and Resilience, Coastal Aquaculture Siting and Sustainability, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, gretchen.bath@noaa.gov, james.morris@noaa.gov, Marine Spatial Ecology, Social Science
As marine aquaculture expands to the open ocean in the United States Exclusive Economic Zone, there is increased concern about how protected species may be ...
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A Management Tool to Reduce Sea Turtle Bycatch in the U.S. Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico Fisheries

Alabama, Atlantic Ocean, bycatch, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, gis, Habitat Mapping, john.christensen@noaa.gov, ken.buja@noaa.gov, Louisiana, Maine, Marine Spatial Ecology, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Protected Species, Rhode Island, sea turtle, South Carolina, Texas, U.S. States and Territories, Virginia, Waterbodies
Along with our partners, we developed a geographic information system (GIS) tool to help coastal managers work toward reducing the bycatch of sea turtles in ...
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A Marine Biogeographic Assessment of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

Coral, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Hawaii, Invasive species, john.christensen@noaa.gov, marine biogeographic assessment, Marine Spatial Ecology, mark.monaco@noaa.gov, nwhi, Pacific Ocean, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
We conducted a biogeographic assessment of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, the second largest marine protected area in the world. The effort was the most comprehensive ...
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A Mechanism Based Intervention for Brevetoxin Induced Oxidative Stress

Atlantic Ocean, brevetoxicosis, Florida, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), harmful algal bloom, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, Karenia brevis, maggie.broadwater@noaa.gov, manatee, marine health, marine mammal health, Other Topics, Sponsored Research, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The Florida manatee inhabits environments in which blooms of the toxic dinoflagellate, Karenia brevis, frequently occur. K. brevis produces brevetoxins, that result in fish kills, ...
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A Multidisciplinary, Integrative Approach to Valuing Ecosystem Services from Natural Infrastructure

Coastal Change, Ecosystem Services Valuation, felix.martinez@noaa.gov, Natural and Nature-based Features, natural and nature-based infrastructure, natural capital, Oregon, sea level rise, Social Science, Sponsored Research, U.S. States and Territories, Washington
We are estimating the economic value from natural and nature-based infrastructure investments to stabilize coastline. Using hazard risks along the U.S. Pacific Northwest coast, we ...
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A Novel Approach to Combat Nuisance Flooding at Battleship Park, North Carolina

Atlantic Ocean, Coastal Change, Coastal Change, flooding, jenny.davis@noaa.gov, living shoreline, Natural and Nature-based Features, NNBF, North Carolina, quentin.walker@noaa.gov, Restoration, Sea Level Rise, sea level rise, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
In response to repeated nuisance flooding events that have impacted operations and visitor access at the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA Park, NCCOS scientists are supporting park ...
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