Extraction and Analysis of Coral Reef Core Samples from Broward County, Florida.

The reefs off Broward County exist as three shore-parallel, sequentially deeper terraces named the inner , middle , and outer reefs and also a shallower, nearshore ridge complex. These structures span the continental coast of southeast Florida from Palm Beach County to southern Miami-Dade County and were characterized as relict, early Holocene shelf-edge and mid-shelf reefs along with limestone ridges. Presently, the reefs are colonized by a fauna characteristic of West Atlantic/Caribbean reef systems. Scleractinian coral cover is low except for a few dense patches of Acropora cervicornis, while Acropora palmata is absent except for a few individual living colonies. Coral reef core-drilling is a useful analytical tool to extract observable and datable geological samples from within reefs. This technique was employed to retrieve 4 cores from the inner reef off Broward County to better understand its age, composition, and Holocene growth history. Sub-samples from corals in cores provided 7 new radiocarbon ages ranging from 7,860-5,560 cal BP, and reef accumulation rates of l.7-2.45 m/1,000 yrs were calculated from these ages. In addition, coral species composition and taphonomic characteristics were analyzed to identify former reef environments/reef zonation, and signals for inner reef termination. Reef zonation was detectable but no clear taphonomic signal for inner reef termination was evident. Current data and radiocarbon ages from all three Broward County reefs suggest that the outer reef accumulated from ~10.6-8 ka cal BP, the middle reef from at least ~5.8-3.7 ka cal BP, and the inner reef from ~7.8-5.5 ka cal BP. A lack of significant age overlaps between the three reefs has led to the assertion that they represent backstepping reefs in response to Holocene sea-level rise. This study has provided the oldest and youngest ages from the inner reef thus far, and confirms that reef backstepping from the outer reef to the inner reef occurred within just a few hundred years after the termination of the outer reef. The middle reef remains poorly understood and thus a definitive Holocene growth history and ultimately an understanding of their formation are still largely unknown

Presence of Juvenile Blackfin Snapper, Lutjanus buccanella, and Snowy Grouper, Epinephelus niveatus, on Shallow-water Artificial Reefs

The inshore environment of Broward County, Florida consists of three reef tracts, each separated by sand substrate, running parallel to the coastline in sequentially deeper water. A wide variety of artificial reef designs have been deployed in Broward County, many lying in sand flats between the reeftracts. From 1995 through 2002, over 1,100 visual fish censuses (predominantly point-counts) were completed on the three natural reeftracts in water depths from 3 m to 30 m and over 1,100 censuses were done on artificial reefs at depths of 7 m to 23 m. Curiously, the juvenile stages of two deeper-water species of the snapper/grouper complex, the blackfin snapper (Lutjanus buccanella) and the snowy grouper (Epinephelus niveatus), appear to prefer artificial reefs located in the sand flat separating the second and third reeftracts to nearby natural reef areas. Five hundred and forty blackfin snapper have been recorded in 64 visual censuses and nine snowy grouper have been observed in seven counts on artificial reefs. Despite the large volume of visual census data collected thus far, these two species have never been recorded on nearby natural reef tracts. The reasons for this unanticipated observation is unclear but it provides an excellent launch-point for an examination of juvenile habitat requirements, natural availability of these requirements, and the potential for artificial substrate to be used in managing these species

Sea Turtle Conservation Program, Broward County, FL 2006 Report

Since 1978, the Broward County Environmental Protection Department (BCEPD) has provided for the conservation of endangered and threatened sea turtle species within its area of responsibility. Broward County is within the normal nesting areas of three species of sea turtles: the loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta), the green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) and the leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea). The loggerhead is listed as a threatened species, while the green and leatherback are listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, 1973, and Chapter 370, F.S. Since these statutes strictly forbid any disturbance of sea turtles and their nests, conservation activities involving the relocation of nests from hazardous locations (especially necessary along heavily developed coasts) require permitting by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). In Florida, this permit is issued to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FFWCC) , Bureau of Protected Species Management, Tallahassee, Florida. This project was administered by the BCEPD and conducted by the Nova Southeastern University Oceanographic Center under Marine Turtle Permit # 108, issued to the BCEPD by the FWCC. The BCEPD is especially concerned with any environmental effects of intermittent beach nourishment projects on shorelines and the offshore reefs. As part of this concern, the BCEPD has maintained the sea turtle conservation program in non-nourishment years to provide a continuous database and for monitoring of completed nourishment projects. Nova Southeastern University received the contract to conduct the 2006 program. In addition to fulfilling statutory requirements, the purposes of the project were: to relocate eggs from nests deposited in sites threatened by natural processes or human activities and thus maximize hatchling survival, to accurately survey sea turtle nesting patterns to document historical trends and assess natural and anthropogenic factors affecting nesting patterns and densities, to assess the success of sea turtle recruitment and of hatchery operations in terms of nesting success, hatching success and total hatchlings released, to dispose of turtle carcasses, respond to strandings and other emergencies and maintain a 24-hour emergency cell phone for reporting of turtle incidents, and to inform and educate the public about sea turtles and their conservation

Endangered by Sprawl: How Runaway Development Threatens America's Wildlife

Estimates the growth of land consumption in metropolitan areas over the next 25 years, investigates locally implemented strategies to protect natural lands from overdevelopment, and offers "smart growth" as an option for reducing suburban sprawl

Big Data, Accessibility, and Urban House Prices

Acknowledgements: The authors thank Andrew VanValin, Estefania Mayorga, and Jessica Kluttz for helpful research assistance. We also thank the reviewers and editors for helping us to improve the paper. Funding: The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the Land Economics Foundation.Peer reviewedPostprin

Visionary Spring 2012

https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_opt_visionary/1008/thumbnail.jp

2006-2007 NSU Sharks Women\u27s Basketball Media Guide

https://nsuworks.nova.edu/athletics_mediaguides/1040/thumbnail.jp

Emergence of Secondary Airports and Dynamics of Regional Airport Systems in the United States

With the growing demand for air transportation and limited capacity at major airports, there is a need to increase the capacity of airport systems at the metropolitan area level. The increased use of secondary airports has been and is expected to be one of the key mechanisms by which future demand is met in congested metropolitan areas. This thesis provides an analysis of the factors influencing the emergence of secondary airports and the dynamics of multi-airport systems. The congestion of the core airport, the distribution of population at the regional level, the existence and the proximity of a secondary basin of population close to secondary airports were identified as major factors. Ground access and airport infrastructure, the low level of connecting passengers at the core airport were also identified as a contributing factors. The entry of an air carrier –generally a low-cost carrier- was determined to be an essential stimulus in the emergence phenomenon impacting fares and airport competition levels resulting in market stimulation. But the emergence of secondary airports imposes new constraints that need to be taken into account in the national air transportation system improvements. By providing an identification of the factors that influence the emergence of secondary airports and an understanding of the dynamics of regional airport systems this research provides useful support for the planning and the future development of multi-airport systems.NASA Langley, NAG-1-203