SECAS brings together public and private organizations around a bold vision for the future of our region. We're connecting the lands and waters of the Southeast and Caribbean to support healthy ecosystems, thriving fish and wildlife populations, and vibrant communities. With a data-driven spatial plan and an ambitious regional goal, SECAS helps accelerate conservation action in the places where it will make the biggest impact.
From the blog
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Same old Blueprint Explorer, shiny new data and web address! Check it out at https://apps.fws.gov/southeastblueprint/. Blueprint Explorer updated with 2024 data and new web address
The Southeast Conservation Blueprint Explorer has been updated to the latest Blueprint–version 2024! Please note that the web address for the Explorer has changed to: https://apps.fws.gov/southeastblueprint/. The links from the SECAS website have obviously been updated, but if you have the Explorer bookmarked locally, please update that as well! To smooth the transition, the old url will redirect to the new one for awhile, but not indefinitely.
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We know the Southeast is growing--but where, how much, and by when? Urban growth models can help us answer those questions. Photo of the city of Asheville, NC skyline by Ken Lane/Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. FUTURES urban growth models now have map services in the SECAS Atlas
New probability of urbanization map services available
For the last 1.5 years, the Southeast Blueprint Explorer has used the new FUTURES v2 urban growth projections for the continental United States developed by NC State University’s Center for Geospatial Analytics. We use this dataset to assess the likelihood of urbanization across the Southeast for every decade from 2020 to 2100. This important work was led by Dr. Anna Petrasova and Dr. Georgina Sanchez, and funded by the Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center (CASC). The CASC’s blog about the data release is a great resource. Having this land use change layer available in our viewers and automated reporting helps Blueprint users understand how the places where they live, work, and play are predicted to be impacted by urban growth.
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The Gulf coral and hardbottom indicator captures important areas of under-sea diversity like Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, pictured here. Photo by NOAA. The dynamic journey of Blueprint updates in the Gulf of Mexico
When it comes to Blueprint updates, expect the unexpected. These updates are the result of a complex interplay of many different factors, including data availability, staff capacity, partner input, and much more, which eventually culminate in the Southeast Conservation Blueprint. Today I would like to give some insight on the initial stages of our annual revision cycle, where we truly begin to see the heart of the process: the indicators.
In 2023, we proudly extended the Blueprint into the Gulf of Mexico’s offshore marine environment. As we usher in the 2024 Blueprint update, we’re excited to share that updates in this area have already begun.
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Visit the SECAS blog for a full archive of posts.