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(Tampa Bay Estuary Program)
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==Tampa Bay Estuary Program==
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==Sea ice ecosystems==
  
 
[[Image:The Social Network for Tampa Bay.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Figure 1: The Social Network for Tampa Bay <ref>http://www.buzzardsbay.org/download/nep-networks-paper.pdf</ref>]]
 
[[Image:The Social Network for Tampa Bay.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Figure 1: The Social Network for Tampa Bay <ref>http://www.buzzardsbay.org/download/nep-networks-paper.pdf</ref>]]
  
In 1990, Tampa Bay was designated an "estuary of national significance" by the US Congress, and joined the ranks of the [http://www.epa.gov/nep/| National Estuary Program] (which currently contains 28 estuaries) in 1991. As an urban watershed confronted with pollution, habitat loss and increasing development, the [http://www.tbep.org/| Tampa Bay Estuary Program (TBEP)] faced significant challenges. Over fifteen years later, TBEP stands as a model for collaborative partnerships, innovative agreements and approaches for habitat restoration and addressing [[nitrogen| atmospheric nitrogen]] deposition as a contributor to [[eutrophication]].
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Sea ice covers some 3-7% of the total surface of our planet depending on the season of the year <ref >Comiso J. C., 2003, Large scale characteristics and variability of the global sea ice cover. In: Thomas, D. N., Dieckmann, G. S., Sea ice. An introduction to its physics, chemistry, biology and geology. Blackwell Science, pp 112-142</ref>.  Apart from being  one of the most important climatic variables and key indicator of climate change, sea ice also  provides an extreme and changeable habitat for diverse sympagic organisms, which play an important role in the ecosystems of the polar seas <ref name=Dieckmann>Dieckmann, G. S., Hellmer, H. H., 2003, The importance of sea ice: an overwiew. In: Thomas, D. N., Dieckmann, G. S., Sea ice. An introduction to its physics, chemistry, biology and geology. Blackwell Science, pp 1-21</ref>.
  
Tampa Bay is Florida’s largest open-water estuary, spanning 400 square miles, with a drainage area nearly six times that size. While the Bay contains rich [[biodiversity]], it is impacted by a rapidly growing human population and the second largest metropolitan area in the state. As of 2008, more than 2.3 million people lived in the watershed, and that number is expected to grow by nearly 20 percent by the year 2015.
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Sea ice cover occurs primarily in the polar regions, but in the northern hemisphere it may be also found at lower latitudes (eg. in the [[Baltic Sea|Baltic]], Caspian and Okhotsk seas, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Scandinavian fjords) <ref name=Horner>Horner, R., Ackley, S. F., Dieckmann, G. S., Gulliksen, B., Hoshiai, T., Legendre, L., Melnikov, I. A., Reeburgh, W. S., Spindler, M., Sullivan, C. W., 1992, Ecology of sea ice biota. I. Habitat, terminology, and methodology. Polar Biol 12:417-427</ref>.  Land-fast ice forms and remains fast along the coast, attached to the shore or grounded to a shallow sea bottom. Pack ice refers to any area of floating sea ice that is not land-fast.

Revision as of 13:30, 5 May 2009

Sea ice ecosystems

Figure 1: The Social Network for Tampa Bay [1]

Sea ice covers some 3-7% of the total surface of our planet depending on the season of the year [2]. Apart from being one of the most important climatic variables and key indicator of climate change, sea ice also provides an extreme and changeable habitat for diverse sympagic organisms, which play an important role in the ecosystems of the polar seas [3].


Sea ice cover occurs primarily in the polar regions, but in the northern hemisphere it may be also found at lower latitudes (eg. in the Baltic, Caspian and Okhotsk seas, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Scandinavian fjords) [4]. Land-fast ice forms and remains fast along the coast, attached to the shore or grounded to a shallow sea bottom. Pack ice refers to any area of floating sea ice that is not land-fast.
  1. http://www.buzzardsbay.org/download/nep-networks-paper.pdf
  2. Comiso J. C., 2003, Large scale characteristics and variability of the global sea ice cover. In: Thomas, D. N., Dieckmann, G. S., Sea ice. An introduction to its physics, chemistry, biology and geology. Blackwell Science, pp 112-142
  3. Dieckmann, G. S., Hellmer, H. H., 2003, The importance of sea ice: an overwiew. In: Thomas, D. N., Dieckmann, G. S., Sea ice. An introduction to its physics, chemistry, biology and geology. Blackwell Science, pp 1-21
  4. Horner, R., Ackley, S. F., Dieckmann, G. S., Gulliksen, B., Hoshiai, T., Legendre, L., Melnikov, I. A., Reeburgh, W. S., Spindler, M., Sullivan, C. W., 1992, Ecology of sea ice biota. I. Habitat, terminology, and methodology. Polar Biol 12:417-427