Terms of Reference

Zonal Advisory Meeting

Eleventh Annual Meeting of the Atlantic Zone Monitoring Program (AZMP)

24-26 March 2009

Montreal, QC

Chairperson: Michel Mitchell

Background

The Atlantic Zone Monitoring Program (AZMP) was implemented in 1998 with the aim of collecting and analyzing the biological, chemical, and physical field data that are necessary to (1) characterize and understand the causes of oceanic variability at the seasonal, interannual, and decadal scales, (2) provide multidisciplinary data sets that can be used to establish relationships among the biological, chemical, and physical variables, and (3) provide adequate data to support the sound development of ocean activities.

The program sampling strategy is based on (1) seasonal and opportunistic sampling along sections to quantify the oceanographic variability in the Canadian NW Atlantic shelf region, (2) higher-frequency temporal sampling at more accessible fixed sites to monitor the shorter time scale dynamics in representative areas, (3) fish survey and remote sensing data to provide broader spatial coverage and a context to interpret other data, and (4) data from other existing monitoring programs such as CPR (Continuous Plankton Recorder) lines, Sea Level Network, nearshore Long-Term Temperature Monitoring, Toxic Algae monitoring, or from other external organizations (e.g., winds and air temperatures from Environment Canada) to complement AZMP data.

The collected data are edited and archived in databases managed by DFO’s Integrated Science Data Management (ISDM) Branch. A state of the ocean report is completed annually for each region of the Atlantic coast based on this information.

Objectives

1. Review the activities of the Atlantic Zone Monitoring Program during 2008 and assess business, operational and logistic issues that need regional/zonal intervention, or that need to be brought to the attention of the DFO National Science Directors Committee.
2. Review biological, chemical and physical oceanographic conditions in the Atlantic Zone, identify trends or changes if they occur, and provide a critical assessment of the information available.
3. Prepare a series of Science Advisory Reports summarizing the results of the Ecosystem Assessments reviewed.

Outputs

Science peer reviewed products generated from this meeting include a series of pertinent Science Advisory Reports, associated Research Documents, and a Proceedings.
All reports will be published on the Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) website:
http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/csas-sccs/index-eng.htm

Participants

Participants will include DFO Science staff and collaborators as well as representatives from the Canadian Wildlife Service of Environment Canada.