Dr. Mark Fonseca of CSA Ocean Sciences Inc. (CSA) will help host an Association of State Wetland Managers (ASWM) webinar entitled “Temperate and Tropical/Subtropical Seagrass Restoration: Challenges for the 21^st Century” on January 20, 2015.  This presentation will review the status of status of the science for seagrass restoration and mitigation with a worldwide perspective. The presentation will include review of current challenges, such as understanding the importance of disturbance in site selection and stability, applying economic evaluation, applying landscape principles and management of species with diverse life histories. Strategies for the future engagement will be outlined including the need for more site specific training and the addressing the current general lack of appreciation and application of the historical science base.

The ASWM is a nonprofit membership organization established in 1983 to promote and enhance protection and management of wetland resources, to promote application of sound science to wetland management efforts and to provide training and education for our members and the public. ASWM's members and partners include states and tribes, federal agencies, nonprofit partners, wetland professionals, educators, wetland enthusiasts and many others. The main common goal between these groups is a better understanding of wetlands and how to protect the resources throughout the Nation.

Dr. Fonseca is the Science Director for CSA headquartered in Stuart, Florida with numerous overseas branch offices. Besides ensuring scientific quality for CSA, he conducts applied research with a focus on ecosystem restoration and management, especially with seagrasses. In 2012 he retired from NOAA where he spent over 30 years as a research ecologist and research branch chief. He has authored or co-authored over 80 peer-reviewed papers and dozens of technical reports on the ecology, conservation and mitigation of seagrass ecosystems. In 1998 he also senior authored “Guidelines for the conservation and restoration of seagrasses in the United States and Adjacent Waters”, which remains a leading national and international treatise on the subject.  He holds a B.Sc. in Resource Development from the University of Rhode Island, a M.Sc. in Environmental Sciences from the University of Virginia and a Ph.D. in Integrative Biology from the University of California, Berkeley.

Register for the Live Webinar