Potential Offshore Sand Resource Areas for Further Investigation, 2015 Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan

Metadata also available as

Metadata:


Identification_Information:
Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Publication_Date: 20150106
Title:
Potential Offshore Sand Resource Areas for Further Investigation, 2015 Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data
Online_Linkage: <http://www.mass.gov/eea/mop>
Online_Linkage: <http://www.mass.gov/czm/mapping/index.htm>
Larger_Work_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator:
Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
Publication_Date: 20150106
Title: 2015 Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan
Online_Linkage: <http://www.mass.gov/eea/mop>
Description:
Abstract:
These data show potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation mapped in the 2015 Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan. The 2015 ocean plan advances the planning for and siting of potential sand resource areas for beach nourishment by conducting a preliminary compatibility and screening assessment. To implement this approach, a preliminary map of sand resources that encompasses state waters and extends seven nautical miles seaward of the planning area was developed. First, deposits composed primarily of sand, formed by reworking of glacial deposits, were identified based on geologic mapping by USGS and other published geologic maps, and were then refined using available surficial sediment data, seismic sub-bottom profiles, and sediment cores characterizing the deposits as medium- to coarse-grained sand. Next, areas to avoid for siting of potential offshore sand areas were identified and mapped based on potential biological and physical environmental impacts, incompatibilities with existing uses and sites, and limitations of potential dredging operations. Finally, the sand resource areas outside of the areas to avoid were extracted and smoothed. This initial planning and siting work was conducted in order to identify potentially appropriate areas for further investigation. An Offshore Sand Task Force will be convened to provide guidance and advice to the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, the Ocean Advisory Commission, the Ocean Science Advisory Council, and the Coastal Erosion Commission on important aspects of this issue. Among its charges, the task force will review the preliminary compatibility and screening assessment and make recommendations for any revisions.
Purpose:
These data were used in the development of the 2015 Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan.
Supplemental_Information:
The Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan protects critical marine habitat and important water-dependent uses and sets standards for new ocean-based development. In response to the Oceans Act of 2008, the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) issued the original ocean plan in December 2009. The Oceans Act requires EEA to review and update the ocean plan at least once every five years. The 2015 Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan, released on January 6, 2015, is the first formal amendment to the 2009 ocean plan. These data were produced to support the development of the 2015 ocean plan.
Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Single_Date/Time:
Calendar_Date: 20150106
Currentness_Reference: publication date
Status:
Progress: Complete
Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency: As needed
Spatial_Domain:
Bounding_Coordinates:
West_Bounding_Coordinate: -71.119004
East_Bounding_Coordinate: -69.921727
North_Bounding_Coordinate: 42.872750
South_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.328277
Keywords:
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: ISO 19115 Topic Category
Theme_Keyword: oceans
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: None
Theme_Keyword: coastal zone management
Theme_Keyword: CZM
Theme_Keyword: EBM
Theme_Keyword: ecosystem-based management
Theme_Keyword: EEA
Theme_Keyword: EOEEA
Theme_Keyword: Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
Theme_Keyword: marine spatial planning
Theme_Keyword: Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan
Theme_Keyword: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Theme_Keyword: MSP
Theme_Keyword: ocean management
Theme_Keyword: ocean plan
Theme_Keyword: Oceans Act of 2008
Theme_Keyword: sand
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus:
NASA/Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Earth Science Keywords. Version 8.0.0.0.0
Place_Keyword:
CONTINENT > NORTH AMERICA > UNITED STATES OF AMERICA > MASSACHUSETTS
Place_Keyword: OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN
Place_Keyword: OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > GULF OF MAINE
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: U.S. Board on Geographic Names
Place_Keyword: Atlantic Ocean
Place_Keyword: Bigelow Bight
Place_Keyword: Buzzards Bay
Place_Keyword: Cape Cod Bay
Place_Keyword: Gulf of Maine
Place_Keyword: Massachusetts
Place_Keyword: Massachusetts Bay
Place_Keyword: Nantucket Sound
Place_Keyword: North America
Place_Keyword: United States
Place_Keyword: Vineyard Sound
Access_Constraints:
None. These data are in the public domain. GIS files are freely available for download.
Use_Constraints:
Public domain data from the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM), an agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA), are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. Please recognize the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management as the source of these data. You are not permitted to use CZM's name or to suggest that CZM endorses your project or product, without its express written consent. While efforts have been made to ensure that these data are accurate and reliable within the state of the art, CZM cannot assume liability for any damages or misrepresentation caused by any inaccuracies in the data or as a result of changes to the data caused by system transfers. The user must be aware of data conditions and bear responsibility for the appropriate use of these data with respect to possible errors, original map scale, collection methodology, currency of data, and other conditions specific to these data. NOAA mandated language per federal Data Quality Act (DQA): These environmental data and related items of information have not been formally disseminated by NOAA and do not represent and should not be construed to represent any agency determination, view, or policy.
Point_of_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Contact_Position: CZM Data Manager
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: 251 Causeway Street, Suite 800
City: Boston
State_or_Province: MA
Postal_Code: 02114-2138
Country: US
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 617-626-1200
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 617-626-1240
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: czm@state.ma.us
Hours_of_Service: 0900 hrs to 1600 hrs EST
Data_Set_Credit:
These spatial data were created by the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM) for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA).
Native_Data_Set_Environment:
Microsoft Windows 7 Version 6.1 (Build 7601) Service Pack 1; Esri ArcGIS 10.2.2.3552

Data_Quality_Information:
Attribute_Accuracy:
Attribute_Accuracy_Report: The attribute data were checked for valid values.
Logical_Consistency_Report:
All vector data are presumed to be topologically clean based on a validation of relevant topology rule(s) and visual inspection. No duplicate features exist. The data were visually inspected for missing features and misplaced features.
Completeness_Report:
This dataset contains the entire spatial extent of the potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation mapped in the 2015 ocean plan.
Positional_Accuracy:
Horizontal_Positional_Accuracy:
Horizontal_Positional_Accuracy_Report: A positional accuracy report was not conducted for these data.
Lineage:
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Publication_Date: 20150106
Title:
Potential Sand Resources in Massachusetts Waters and Adjacent Federal Waters
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data
Other_Citation_Details:
The dataset of potential sand resources in Massachusetts waters and adjacent federal waters was mapped in the 2015 Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan and derived from a number of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) publications spanning 1987 to the present with one dataset originating from the Massachusetts Geological Survey. Using these maps, geologic units (a volume of rock or sediment of identifiable origin and age) representing deposits composed primarily of sand, formed by reworking of glacial deposits, were identified. These areas were then refined based on available surficial sediment data, seismic sub-bottom profiles, and sediment cores characterizing the deposits as medium- to coarse-grained sand. The age of the data are roughly equivalent to the confidence or assumed accuracy of the resource mapping (i.e., older work was reliant on acoustic data collection techniques that have now been superseded in both resolution and areal coverage).
Online_Linkage: <http://www.mass.gov/eea/mop>
Type_of_Source_Media: None
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Single_Date/Time:
Calendar_Date: 20150106
Source_Currentness_Reference: publication date
Source_Citation_Abbreviation: Potential sand resources
Source_Contribution:
Source information used in support of the development of the dataset.
Process_Step:
Process_Description:
To create the potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation in the planning area and federal waters, did the following process steps: 1. Erased the areas to avoid from the potential sand resources in ArcGIS. 2. Dissolved and converted the remaining sand resource areas from multipart to singlepart. 3. Removed the following: a) areas <0.125 sq km; and b) areas <1 sq km and farther than 0.75 mi from large (>1 sq km) resources. 4. Identified largest resource(s) in each region and removed additional resources depending on the following varying size cutoffs: a) ID 1 - Merrimack: Kept largest area and removed areas <5 sq km; b) ID 2 - Off Hull: Kept all areas since limited resources available; c) Federal waters off Marshfield: Removed area since it was approximately 1 sq km and not near other resources; d) ID 3 - State waters off Marshfield: Kept two largest areas and removed areas <5 sq km; e) ID 4 - Bourne/Sandwich: Kept two largest areas and removed areas <4 sq km; f) Southern central Cape Cod Bay: Removed all areas because cores do not show potential resources; g) ID 5 - Eastern Cape Cod Bay: Kept largest area and removed areas <5 sq km; h) ID 6 - Eastern Nantucket Sound: Kept six largest areas (three largest areas in state/federal waters and three largest areas in state waters south of Cape Cod) and removed areas <2.5 sq km; i) Southeastern Nantucket Sound: Removed all areas because larger resources available in eastern Nantucket Sound (ID 6); j) ID 7 - Western Nantucket Sound: Removed areas adjacent to shoals, then kept two largest areas and removed areas <5 sq km; k) ID 8 - Vineyard Sound: Kept two largest areas and removed areas <4 sq km; l) Mouth of Vineyard Sound: Removed all areas because other resources closer to shore are available; m) Northern Buzzards Bay: Removed all areas because cores do not show potential resources; and n) ID 9 - Mouth of Buzzards Bay: Kept two largest areas and removed areas <5 sq km. 5. Added the Cape Cod Canal disposal site as a potential offshore sand resource area in the planning area (ID 6). 6. Smoothed and simplified the potential offshore sand resource areas in the planning area and federal waters using the following steps: a) Ran the Smooth Polygon tool with the PAEK smoothing algorithm and a smoothing tolerance of 500 m; b) Selected by Location to select fishnet cells that intersect the smoothed resource areas; c) Selected by Location to remove the currently selected fishnet features that have their centroid in the important fish resources SSU area; d) Dissolved the selected fishnet cells; e) Ran the Polygon to Raster tool on the dissolved fishnet with the cell center cell assignment type and 250 m cellsize; f) Ran the Raster to Polygon tool with the simplify polygons option checked; g) Ran the Smooth Polygon tool with the PAEK smoothing algorithm and a smoothing tolerance of 500 m; h) Ran the Union tool with the gaps allowed option unchecked to fill in the donut holes; i) Ran the Spatial Join tool with the join features set to the original preliminary shapefile and the match option set to closest; j) Calculated the area in sq km; k) Selected by Location to select features from the spatial join output that are identical to the smoothed polygon output used in the union tool, then switched the selection (the selected features are the donut holes filled in using the Union tool); l) Deleted donut holes bigger than 0.5 sq km; and m) Dissolved the features based on the ID field with the create multipart features option unchecked. 7. Ran the Union tool with the smoothed resources areas and the planning area to divide the resource areas into state and federal waters. 8. Made the following edits to the output: a) Deleted the planning area without sand resource areas; b) Deleted any features outside the planning area in nearshore state waters (IDs 3, 8); c) Deleted a small area in federal waters (ID 9); d) Deleted an area in Rhode Island state waters (ID 9); e) Edited the Merrimack state waters feature (ID 1) to remove a sliver polygon; f) Edited the geometry of the Cape Cod Canal disposal site (ID 4) to match the original data; g) Edited the geometry of the eastern Nantucket Sound feature (ID 6) to remove the buffered cables; and h) Edited the eastern Nantucket Sound state waters feature (ID 6) to remove a sliver polygon.
Process_Date: 20140910
Process_Step:
Process_Description:
To create the potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation within important fish resources special, sensitive, or unique (SSU) areas, did the following process steps: 1. Erased the areas to avoid (not including important fish resource areas) from the potential sand resources in ArcGIS. 2. Dissolved the remaining sand resource areas. 3. Erased the preliminary sand resource areas (these preliminary areas are from step 1 in the planning area and federal waters process steps above). 4. Converted the remaining sand resource areas from multipart to singlepart features. 5. Identified potential resource areas and removed additional resources: a) Removed all areas south of Cape Cod since there are other large resources available in the region; b) Removed areas <0.125 sq km north of Cape Cod; c) Kept the largest resource area off the Merrimack; and d) Kept three resource areas off Hull. 4. Smoothed and simplified the remaining sand resource areas using the following steps: a) Ran the Smooth Polygon tool with the PAEK smoothing algorithm and a smoothing tolerance of 500 m; b) Selected by Location to select fishnet cells that intersect the smoothed resource areas; c) Selected by Location to remove the currently selected fishnet features that have their centroid in the final potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation in the planning area and federal waters; d) Dissolved the selected fishnet cells; e) Ran the Polygon to Raster tool on the dissolved fishnet with the cell center cell assignment type and 250 m cellsize; f) Ran the Raster to Polygon tool with the simplify polygons option checked; and g) Ran the Smooth Polygon tool with the PAEK smoothing algorithm and a smoothing tolerance of 500 m. 5. Made the following edits to the smoothed output: a) Deleted the donut holes in the area off the Merrimack (ID 1); b) Edited the eastern boundary of the area off the Merrimack (ID 1) to be coincident with the planning area boundary and the final potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation in the planning area; and c) Edited the northern polygon off Hull (ID 2) to be coincident with the final potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation in the planning area.
Process_Date: 20140910
Process_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Contact_Position: CZM Data Manager
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: 251 Causeway Street, Suite 800
City: Boston
State_or_Province: MA
Postal_Code: 02114-2138
Country: US
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 617-626-1200
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 617-626-1240
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: czm@state.ma.us
Hours_of_Service: 0900 hrs to 1600 hrs EST
Process_Step:
Process_Description:
Merged the potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation in the planning area, in federal waters, and within important fish resources SSU areas.
Process_Date: 20140910
Process_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Contact_Position: CZM Data Manager
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: 251 Causeway Street, Suite 800
City: Boston
State_or_Province: MA
Postal_Code: 02114-2138
Country: US
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 617-626-1200
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 617-626-1240
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: czm@state.ma.us
Hours_of_Service: 0900 hrs to 1600 hrs EST
Process_Step:
Process_Description:
After the smoothing, some areas to avoid intersected the potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation. Edited the potential offshore sand resource areas to remove some of the intersecting areas to avoid: 1. Erased cables (buffered by 250 m). 2. Erased the pilot boarding area from potential sand resource area ID 9. 3. Erased aquaculture sites. 4. Erased the Cape Cod Ocean Sanctuary. 5. Erased the Winter Cod Conservation Zone. 6. Edited the Nantucket Sound area in federal waters (ID 6) to remove an area that intersects water depth <30 ft. 7. Erased the Cape Wind lease area. 8. Ran the Smooth Polygon tool on the edited sites with the PAEK smoothing algorithm and a smoothing tolerance of 500 m. Traced the output from this tool to smooth the edited potential sand resource areas.
Process_Date: 20141222
Process_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Contact_Position: CZM Data Manager
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: 251 Causeway Street, Suite 800
City: Boston
State_or_Province: MA
Postal_Code: 02114-2138
Country: US
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 617-626-1200
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 617-626-1240
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: czm@state.ma.us
Hours_of_Service: 0900 hrs to 1600 hrs EST

Spatial_Data_Organization_Information:
Direct_Spatial_Reference_Method: Vector
Point_and_Vector_Object_Information:
SDTS_Terms_Description:
SDTS_Point_and_Vector_Object_Type: GT-polygon composed of chains
Point_and_Vector_Object_Count: 14

Spatial_Reference_Information:
Horizontal_Coordinate_System_Definition:
Planar:
Map_Projection:
Map_Projection_Name: NAD 1983 StatePlane Massachusetts Mainland FIPS 2001
Lambert_Conformal_Conic:
Standard_Parallel: 41.71666666666667
Standard_Parallel: 42.68333333333333
Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -71.5
Latitude_of_Projection_Origin: 41.0
False_Easting: 200000.0
False_Northing: 750000.0
Planar_Coordinate_Information:
Planar_Coordinate_Encoding_Method: coordinate pair
Coordinate_Representation:
Abscissa_Resolution: 0.000000008155898179040834
Ordinate_Resolution: 0.000000008155898179040834
Planar_Distance_Units: meter
Geodetic_Model:
Horizontal_Datum_Name: D North American 1983
Ellipsoid_Name: GRS 1980
Semi-major_Axis: 6378137.0
Denominator_of_Flattening_Ratio: 298.257222101

Entity_and_Attribute_Information:
Detailed_Description:
Entity_Type:
Entity_Type_Label: Attribute Table
Entity_Type_Definition:
Table containing attribute information associated with the dataset.
Entity_Type_Definition_Source: CZM
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: FID
Attribute_Definition: Internal feature number.
Attribute_Definition_Source: Esri
Attribute_Domain_Values:
Unrepresentable_Domain:
Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: Shape
Attribute_Definition: Feature geometry.
Attribute_Definition_Source: Esri
Attribute_Domain_Values:
Unrepresentable_Domain: Coordinates defining the features.
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: ID
Attribute_Definition:
Number assigned to each region's potential sand resource polygon(s).
Attribute_Definition_Source: CZM
Attribute_Domain_Values:
Range_Domain:
Range_Domain_Minimum: 1
Range_Domain_Maximum: 9
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: DESCRIP
Attribute_Definition:
Description of potential offshore sand resource areas for further investigation.
Attribute_Definition_Source: CZM
Attribute_Domain_Values:
Enumerated_Domain:
Enumerated_Domain_Value:
Potential Offshore Sand Resource Areas for Further Investigation in Federal Waters
Enumerated_Domain_Value_Definition_Source: CZM
Enumerated_Domain_Value_Definition:
Potential deposits of medium- to coarse-grained sand in federal waters identified for further investigation through a preliminary compatibility assessment and screening analysis.
Attribute_Domain_Values:
Enumerated_Domain:
Enumerated_Domain_Value:
Potential Offshore Sand Resource Areas for Further Investigation in the Planning Area
Enumerated_Domain_Value_Definition_Source: CZM
Enumerated_Domain_Value_Definition:
Potential deposits of medium- to coarse-grained sand in the planning area identified for further investigation through a preliminary compatibility assessment and screening analysis.
Attribute_Domain_Values:
Enumerated_Domain:
Enumerated_Domain_Value:
Potential Offshore Sand Resource Areas for Further Investigation within Important Fish Resources Special, Sensitive, or Unique Areas in the Planning Area
Enumerated_Domain_Value_Definition_Source: CZM
Enumerated_Domain_Value_Definition:
Potential deposits of medium- to coarse-grained sand within important fish resources special, sensitive, or unique areas in the planning area identified for further investigation through a preliminary compatibility assessment and screening analysis.

Distribution_Information:
Distributor:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Contact_Position: CZM Data Manager
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: 251 Causeway Street, Suite 800
City: Boston
State_or_Province: MA
Postal_Code: 02114-2138
Country: US
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 617-626-1200
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 617-626-1240
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: czm@state.ma.us
Hours_of_Service: 0900 hrs to 1600 hrs EST
Distribution_Liability:
Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of these data, errors and conditions originating from physical sources used to develop these data may be reflected in the data supplied. The client must be aware of data conditions and bear responsibility for the appropriate use of the information with respect to possible errors, original map scale, collection methodology, currency of data, and other conditions specific to certain data. In no event shall CZM be liable for any damages, whether general, special, incidental or consequential damages, arising out of your use of these data. Your sole remedy for damages is to stop using the data. You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless CZM and its employees against any claim, loss, liability or expense, including attorneys' fees, resulting from loss of or damage to property or the injury to or death of any person arising out of the use of the data. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the CZM.
Standard_Order_Process:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Format_Name: Esri Shapefile (.shp)
Format_Version_Number: ArcGIS 8.x, 9.x, and 10.x
Digital_Transfer_Option:
Online_Option:
Computer_Contact_Information:
Network_Address:
Network_Resource_Name: <http://www.mass.gov/czm/mapping/index.htm>
Online_Option:
Computer_Contact_Information:
Network_Address:
Network_Resource_Name: <http://maps.massgis.state.ma.us/map_ol/mass_ocean_plan.php>
Fees:
GIS and coordinate files may be downloaded at no charge by following links on the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management website (<http://www.mass.gov/czm/>).

Metadata_Reference_Information:
Metadata_Date: 20150331
Metadata_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Contact_Position: CZM Data Manager
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: 251 Causeway Street, Suite 800
City: Boston
State_or_Province: MA
Postal_Code: 02114-2138
Country: US
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 617-626-1200
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 617-626-1240
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: czm@state.ma.us
Hours_of_Service: 0900 hrs to 1600 hrs EST
Metadata_Standard_Name: FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata
Metadata_Standard_Version: FGDC-STD-001-1998
Metadata_Time_Convention: local time

Generated by mp version 2.9.12 on Tue Mar 31 10:01:14 2015