 When an oil spill or hazardous waste release occurs, NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) steps in to study the damage and quantify the resulting loss of natural resources and public recreation. To determine these impacts, they analyze how people use outdoor spaces, from local parks to coastal beaches.
Traditionally, researchers measured outdoor recreation by counting vehicles, taking aerial photos, and distributing surveys to visitors. While helpful, these methods are expensive and only capture snapshots of behavior. To provide a more complete picture and potentially offer a scalable alternative to fieldwork for Natural Resource Damage Assessments, OR&R is exploring the use of mobility data. This information is derived from mobile devices and shows general movement patterns without identifying individuals. Mobility data can augment existing visitor metrics with a level of detail that is often difficult to achieve through intermittent surveys, all while maintaining strict user privacy. Because mobility data is collected passively, it allows researchers to look back in time and analyze recreation trends they might have missed with traditional surveys, providing a valuable additional layer of information alongside traditional methods. [...] Continue Reading
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The NOAA Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) serves coastal communities, their economies, and the environment by helping to ensure they are clean and healthy to the impacts of hazards like oil, chemicals, and marine debris.
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