Marine Assessment, Decision, and Planning Tool for Protected Species (MADPT PS)

The ultimate objective of this SBIR project is the development of a software-based tool that provides environmental planners, synthetic trainers, and scientific researchers with access to scientific data on marine species. Ready access to pertinent information about a marine species, such as distribution, density, and behavior, is vital for making informed science-based decisions concerning the marine environment. Yet, there is currently no central, comprehensive database that integrates such knowledge on marine species. In Phase I of the Marine Assessment, Decision and Planning Tool (MADPT) for Protected Species project, MAI researched the development of such a central data repository. MAI concluded that development of MADPT was feasible and a conceptual structure for the MADPT database structure, population and user access was developed. MAI proposes in Phase II of MADPT, to develop a prototype database tool that focuses on limited taxa of marine species and geographic area. To accomplish this goal, MAI will identify viable selected external databases for population of the MADPT prototype. In this initial development stage, the MADPT prototype will be highly adaptable and designed to accommodate future input including updated biological data and analysis tools needed for both environmental assessment and bioclutter applications.