Welcome to the development portal for Ecotrust's Ocean Toolkit
Introduction
Spatial planning is gaining momentum as an effective means to protect sensitive marine ecosystems around the world. Ecotrust brings years of analytical experience to the design and implementation of spatial planning frameworks. Our methods, analyses and tools illuminate the human dimensions of ecosystem management.
Ecotrust's award-winning OCEAN toolkit builds transparency into the marine spatial planning process. We incorporate fishermen's knowledge about the economic importance of fishing grounds — effectively bringing these expert voices to the table and ensuring that the best available information is utilized. We help scientists, managers and communities to understand the ecosystem in a social context and to implement management decisions at appropriate scales.
Open OceanMap
Open OceanMap is a data collection tool used to effectively collect local expert knowledge in support of marine spatial planning. Using open source technologies, Ecotrust has developed Open OceanMap as a cross platform and transferable tool, published under the GNU General Public License. Data collected from resource users like commercial and recreational fishermen is invaluable for informing fisheries management and marine habitat protection.
Learn more about Open OceanMap
Maps produced from Open OceanMap surveys can be used in a number of ways. By themselves they provide a lot of information to decision makers (see the video below) but they can be used in further quantitative analysis as well. In the California MLPA process, maps fishing value are being used within the MarineMap? decision support tool, which allows stakeholders to draw proposed marine protected areas and calculate the potential socioeconomic impacts in real-time. For more information, visit the Marinemap website.
Videos:
Status:
- Summer 2009 - The OOM web-based survey tool is being revamped to be much more customizeable in terms of survey flow and questions. It will be rolling out for the MLPA North Coast and Oregon Central Coast efforts soon.
- Summer/Fall 2009 - OOM is being used in the California North Coast region for the MLPA initiative.
- Spring 2009 - OOM is being used in Southern Oregon to assess commercial, charter and sport boat activities in Southern Oregon, particularly Coos Bay.
- Spring 2009 - OOM Loreto Bay has been released and is being used by Comunidad y Biodiversidad (COBI) in Loreto Bay National Park, Mexico. It is geared towards assessing not only fishing but ecotourism activities, conservation efforts and scientific research. Information will be used to measure the potential benefits and impacts of proposed marine reserves on these communities.
- 12/8/08 - OOM receives a 2008 Mellon Award for technology collaboration. Articles: OPB, BYM Marine Environment News.
- Summer/Fall 2008 - OOM is being used in the California MLPA initiative process in the South Coast region. Specifically to interview commercial fisherman and charter boat captains (CPFV).
- Summer/Fall 2007 - OOM is being used in the California MLPA initiative process in the North Central Coast region. Specifically to interview commercial fisherman.
- Summer 2007 - Open OceanMap is first created.
License
All source code is licensed under the GPL
Development
- Tim Welch (Maintainer), twelch at ecotrust.org
- Aaron Racicot (Original creator)
- Dane Springmeyer
- Ken Vollmer
If you are interested in using this software, customizing it for your own planning processes or contributing directly in the form of funding, code development, bug fixes, documentation etc. please contact Tim Welch at the address above. We welcome collaboration with other groups and our sincere hope is that you will find this tool useful and want to use it for your own purposes.
Source Code
Commercial Fishing - OOM Desktop
Commercial Fishing - OOM Web
Downloads
Oregon
Southern Oregon (2009)
Commercial Fishing - Download Windows Installer
Charter Fishing - Download Windows Installer
Sport Fishing - Download Windows Installer
California Marine Life Protection Act
North Coast Region 2009
Commercial Fishing - Download Windows Installer
Commercial Private Fishing Vessels - Download Windows installer
Recreational Fishing - Download Windows installer
South Coast Region (2008)
Commercial Fishing - Download Windows Installer
Commercial Private Fishing Vessels - Download Windows installer
South Coast Base Maps (GeoTiff - included with installation) - Download Zip
South Coast Nautical Charts (GeoTiff - included with installation) - Download Zip
Loreto Bay National Park, Mexico (2008)
Supports collection of fishing, ecotourism and conservations activities. Developed in partnership with Comunidad y Biodiversidad
Download Windows Installer
Loreto Bay Base Layers (Shapefiles, GeoTiff) - Bathymetry, shoreline, protected areas, seamounts, etc.) - Download Zip
North Central Coast Region (2007)
User Guide (3Mb)
Recreational Fishing - Windows Installer
