GEOHAB Core Research Project: HABs in Stratified Environment

Abstract

The Global Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms (GEOHAB) programme was initiated in 1999 by the Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO, to develop a research programme on the ecological and oceanographic mechanisms underlying the population dynamics of harmful algal blooms (HABs). The ultimate goal of this research is to allow the development of observation systems and models that will enable prediction of HABs, thereby reducing their impact on the health of humans and marine organisms, as well as their economic impact on society. The GEOHAB Implementation Plan (GEOHAB, 2003) specifies the formation of Core Research Projects (CRPs) related to four ecosystems types: upwelling systems, fjords and coastal embayments, eutrophic systems and stratified systems. These CRPs are initiated through small, focused open science meetings. The first Open Science Meeting (OSM)—HABs in Upwelling Systems, Lisbon, Portugal, 17–20 November 2003—focused on meso-scale hydrodynamic features (coastal upwelling zones). The second OSM— HABs in Fjords and Coastal Embayments, Viña del Mar, Chile, 26-30 April 2004—dealt with HAB events and their monitoring in semi-enclosed coastal systems, particularly non-eutrophied systems. The third OSM-HABs and Eutrophication, Maryland, USA, 7-10 March 2005—focused on high biomass HABs and their potential link with anthropogenic inputs. The fourth and last OSM—HABs in Stratified Systems, Paris, France, 5-8 December 2005—concentrated on small scale hydrographic features which may be encountered in any of the above mentioned environments. The present report outlines the justification and research priorities for the study of relationships between HABs and stratification, as well as some of the new approaches and advanced instrumentation that may be considered