Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
collection methodology provides a systematic framework for collecting data
describing the presence or absence and amounts of oil on the water or stranded on a
shoreline.
As part of the protection strategy development process, crews who may be
responsible for performing SCAT surveys in the event of a spill should collect
data on shorelines as they exist before an incident occurs. Pre-incident data collec-
tion not only documents the condition of the shorelines before a spill event, it
serves to supplement existing protection strategy data and can alert planners and
responders to potential hazards to cleanup crews, both in the foreshore and
backshore. For example, low cliffs are common along the shores of the Lake Erie
Islands and Catawba Island, limiting backshore access and restricting cleanup
activity to boats along the shoreline. The presence of cliffs and backshore access
restrictions presented by them should be noted in the appropriate protection strategy
and consideration given as response strategies for shorelines in the area are devel-
oped. The pre-incident shoreline assessment process also helps managers determine
where and when to deploy crews to execute protection strategies, recover oil from
the water, remove oil from shorelines and determine when a shoreline is considered
clean. It has the added benefit of familiarizing SCAT crews with the shorelines that
may be affected in the event of a spill. NOAA has several shoreline assessment
forms available for assessment teams to standardize data collection activities.
Data collected during pre-spill shoreline assessments should be included in
layers provided in the protection strategies. This not only provides data for before
- after spill comparison, but the data collection activity using the shoreline assess-
ment forms provides practice for personnel who will eventually be responsible for
shoreline assessment in the event of a spill. Data collected and incorporated into
layers using the shoreline and wetland assessment forms from NOAA (or other
appropriate source) can be important for processing and making a comparison of
before and after conditions easier and quicker. NOAA and Environment Canada
have developed protocols for completion of SCAT forms. The forms contents and
protocols for data collection are outlined in the NOAA Shoreline Assessment
Manual (NOAA
2000
) and Environment Canada's The SCAT Manual (Owens
and Sergy
2000
).
A geospatially enabled version of the SCAT forms are being developed by
NOAA's Office of Response and Restoration in Seattle and the University of
New Hampshire's Coastal Research Response Center (Zelo
2007
). Properly designed
data entry forms will allow the use of either data collection methodology, depen-
ding on the availability of the handheld GPS computers. SCAT crews equipped
with GPS enabled PDAs or ruggedized handheld GPS receiver/computers allow
for faster, more accurate data collection, better consistency between crews collecting
data and easier, quicker integration of the data into the planning and response
database (Zelo
2007
). An important element in developing a set of geospatially
enabled protection strategies is relating tables to each other using key fields found
in separate tables. The shoreline is broken into segments based on natural breaks
in shoreline type, access, proximity to staging or response assets or other criteria
as determined by planning personnel. Each segment is assigned a name or number.
