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ABUS34 KSFO 062354
PNSSFO
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN FRANCISCO CA
445 PM PDT THU APR 6 1995
NOAA 95-R219
Contact: (Norm Hoffmann) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(408) 656-1710 April 6, 1995
Marilu Trainor
(801) 524-5693
WEST COAST BUOYS RECEIVE TEMPORARY FUNDING
Buoys off the coasts of California and Oregon have
been temporarily funded to keep them operational through
September, although funding for continuation of the program
remains unknown.
The National Weather Service headquarters in Silver Spring,
Md., today announced that three buoys off California and one
buoy off central Oregon have continued to be funded through the
end of the current fiscal year.
The four buoys operate off central Oregon near Stonewall
Bank (46050), near Santa Cruz, Calif. (46012), off southern
California near Catalina Ridge (Santa Monica Basin) (46025), and
offshore near Redondo Beach, Calif. (46045).
According to NWS officials, funding for future years has not
been determined. The NWS wants to emphasize that the earlier
planned removal of these data buoys was not a cost-cutting
decision, but, rather, the result of the conclusion of projects
funded by other agencies for which these buoys were originally
established. The NWS recognizes that data buoys are important to
the weather observing and warning system; however, continuation
of these buoys beyond Oct. 1, 1995, and expansion of the national
data buoy network thereafter will depend on the federal budget
situation in the months and years ahead.
The National Weather Service, through its National Data
Buoy Center at Stennis Space Center, Miss., operates 21
moored data buoys off the West Coast of the United States. Many
of these buoys are operated for, and funded by, other federal
agencies such as the Army Corps of Engineers (COE) and the
Interior Department's Minerals Management Service (MMS) to
support special offshore data collection projects unrelated to
weather forecasting. NWS capitalized on these observing systems
by receiving hourly weather data used by the NWS forecasters to
monitor weather conditions and issue warnings and forecasts. The
buoy observations are also included in the summary of current
weather conditions broadcast on NOAA Weather Radio.
The special projects involving the four buoys listed above
have reached their planned conclusion. As a result, the COE and
MMS have ended their funding for the buoys. The buoys were
scheduled to be removed after Oct. 1, 1994, because operating
funds were unavailable in the NWS. The funding reprieve allows
for continued operation through Oct. 1, 1995. Funding beyond
that date is uncertain at this time. Other data buoys affected
by this uncertainty (all off the California coast) are 46023 (Pt.
Conception), and 46053 and 46054 (both in the Santa Barbara
Channel), as the MMS concludes other studies. Buoy 46042
(Monterey Bay) will continue to be supported by the COE in the
foreseeable future.
Data buoys are one component of a weather observing system
composed of many sources. Weather observations from buoys,
ships, fishing boats, offshore platforms, coastal airports and
Coast Guard Stations, and data from weather surveillance radars
and satellites form an integrated observing system for monitoring
severe weather, issuing warnings and updating forecasts.
New Doppler weather surveillance radars (WSR-88D) are being
installed at NWS offices around the country, including seven
offices along the West Coast. These radars and new weather
satellites will improve the detection of severe weather
conditions for earlier issuance of warnings to protect life and
property. The use of the WSR-88D radars for marine warnings
along the West Coast is being evaluated.
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