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The modeled shoals feature class is a collection of sediment resource features that were modeled by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for the Shoal Map Assessment Tool for EFH (ShoalMATE) as well as known sand resources from the Marine Minerals Inventory System (MMIS). Information relating to the process used for modeling can be found in Pickens BA, Finkbeiner M., Taylor JC. 2019. Chapter 2: Shoal Identification and a New Classification System for Sand Resources. In: Pickens, BA, Taylor JC (eds.). Regional Essential Fish Habitat Geospatial Assessment and Framework for Offshore Sand Features. Sterling (VA): US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. OCS Study BOEM 20xx-xxx and NCCOS Technical Memorandum XX-XXXX. xx p. The sediment resourcs modeled for this feature class fall within the ShoalMATE area of interest, which includes U.S. federal waters seaward of the U.S. Submerged Lands Act Boundary to a depth of 50m in the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean. Much of the attribution comes from the Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS, https://www.cmecscatalog.org/cmecs/). Information held in the attribution relates to the ShoalEnvVariables table and includes state, year feature was discovered or created, sediment grain size, Munsell color, percent sand, percent carbonate, percent carbonate sand, sediment area ID (from MMIS), OCSStudyAreaID (from MMIS), evaluation state (from MMIS, whether the sediment resource is potential, unverified, unusable, or proven), sand unit thickness, area of the feature (ft), volume of the feature (cubic yards), any comments on the sediment feature, percent fines, minimum depth (depth from the ocean surface), maximum depth (depth from the ocean surface), orientation (compass direction related to the orientation of the feature), minimum slope, maximum slope, benthic position index, rugosity, Geoform Component (GC) Origin (CMECS), GC Geoform (CMECS), GC Type (CMECS), GC Level (CMECS), Substrate Component (SC) Origin (CMECS) SC Class (CMECS), SC Subclass (CMECS), SC Group (CMECS), SC Subgroup (CMECS), percent clay, percent silt, Biotic Component (BC) Class (CMECS), BC Setting (CMECS), anthropogenic impact (CMECS), shelf position (CMECS), temporal persistence (CMECS), distance regime (CMECS), substrate description (CMECS), sediment transport rate, a categorical description of accretion (accreting, neutral, or eroding), categorical descriptions of the sediment resource spatial extent, and surface pattern (CMECS). A list of the input data used in the modeling process can be found in the lineage section of this metadata file (dataqual > lineage > srcinfo > srccite > srccontr). This feature class is updated on an as needed basis. |