Summer 2019 Newsletter
Summer 2019 Newsletter
Welcome to the Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center’s Summer 2019 Newsletter.
For news and upcoming events related to the Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center, subscribe to our monthly newsletter.
Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center News
Our website has changed but our mission hasn’t! Head over to dev.ucomm.ncsu.edu/secasc to explore our new site.
Save the Date for the first SE CASC Regional Science Symposium, which will take place from November 13-15 in New Orleans, LA. View event details. If you haven’t yet received our Save the Date announcements, subscribe here to get updates.
SE CASC Research Ecologist, Adam Terando, presented the May 16th Third Thursday Web Forum for the South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative. The topic of his webinar was “Shifting opportunities for prescribed fire in the Southeast in a changing climate.” Watch his presentation here.
SE CASC researcher and USGS ecologist, Jennifer Cartwright has a new publication in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, “Ecological islands: conserving biodiversity hotspots in a changing climate”. Read about this research here.
Spring 2018 Global Change Fellow, Devon Gaydos, is the lead author on a new publication, “Forecasting and control of emerging infectious forest disease through participatory modelling”. Learn more about this research.
2013-14 Global Change Fellow, Tyson Wepprich published, Butterfly abundance declines over 20 years of systematic monitoring in Ohio, USA, summarizing analysis of population trends for 81 butterfly species. Total abundance declined 2% per year, resulting in a cumulative 33% reduction in butterfly abundance; three times as many species have negative population trends compared to positive trends. Read more.
SE CASC Research Ecologist, Mitch Eaton is lead author on “Spatial conservation planning under uncertainty: adapting to climate change risks using modern portfolio theory,” which details a scientific approach to address climate change and urban growth impacts on habitats, species and ecosystem services by considering the tradeoffs between expected benefits and risks when designing conservation reserves for the future.
Faculty Affiliate, Jared Bowden, SE CASC Research Ecologist, Adam Terando, and others collaborated to publish “Perspective: Developing Flow Policies to Balance the Water Needs of Humans and Wetlands Requires a Landscape Scale Approach Inclusive of Future Scenarios and Multiple Timescales.” They describe downscaled climate model projections for Puerto Rico and anticipated changes in streamflow regimes that result in impacts to ecosystems and influence water management for human use; a multi-watershed perspective is recommended along with supporting science to inform sustainability goals in water flow policies.
2015-2016 Global Change Fellow, Gabriella Pardee, published research in Journal of Ecology, “The individual and combined effects of snowmelt timing and frost exposure on the reproductive success of montane forbs,” demonstrating the potential of climate change to reshape flowering communities because of the relative disadvantage to early blooming species and benefit to later blooming species when exposed to early snowmelt. Read more.
The Climate Adaptation Science Centers Annual Report for 2018 has been released. Read the report here.
Latest from Conservation Corridor: Review: connectivity modeling for climate change.
Resources
FEATURED RESOURCE
EPA Storm Surge Inundation Map
June 1st marked the beginning of the Atlantic hurricane season, which does not conclude until November 30th. It is important to be aware of your location’s risk and potential impacts from hurricanes and related flooding. The EPA has designed a Story Map that graphically displays historical hurricane tracks, strike frequency, and potential areas of coastal flooding and inundation from storms.
This information is compiled from the National Hurricane Center’s (NHC’s) hurricane strike dataset, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) Sea, Lake, and Overland Surge from Hurricanes (SLOSH) model results, and Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA’s) 100-year and 500-year flood zones. View the Story Map here.
NCA Education Resources for the Southeast and Caribbean. This page provides information that will help educators and students gain a deeper understanding of climate science and the implications of climate variability and climate change for the Southeast and Caribbean regions based on findings from the NCA4. Learn more.
United States Drought Monitor. This online resource releases a map every Thursday that shows the areas of the U.S. that are in drought. Importantly, data for the U.S. Virgin Islands is now included in the drought monitor maps. Learn more.
Consortium of Appalachian Fire Managers & Scientists (CAFMS). This organization promotes communication among fire managers and scientists in the Appalachian Mountains region through workshops, web-based seminars, summaries of research publications, social media, and face-to-face meetings with CAFMS members. Learn more.
The 2018 State of High Tide Flooding and 2019 Outlook. Each year since 2014, NOAA has evaluated tide gauges across the country to assess the frequency of high tide flooding. 2018 data are summarized; increasing high tide flooding trends are expected to persist throughout 2019 due to el Nino conditions. Learn more.
In the Media
High-Tide Flooding On The Rise, Especially Along The East Coast, Forecasters Warn. NPR
Climate Change Fills Storms With More Rain, Analysis Shows. NY Times
NOAA predicts near-normal 2019 Atlantic hurricane season. NOAA
Forgotten Landscapes: Bringing Back the Rich Grasslands of the Southeast. Yale Environment 360
Louisiana tribe protects historic sites with oyster shells. NOLA
What Conservation Efforts Can Learn from Indigenous Communities. Scientific American
Notable Publications
Aquaculture and the displacement of fisheries captures. Production technology can be used to increase aquatic food sources in modern aquaculture resulting in a shift in the dependence on wild stocks and aquatic ecosystems due to the reduction of fishing activities, which may advance marine conservation goals. Authors employed panel regression techniques in the analysis of time‐series data from 1970 through 2014 to assess the extent to which aquaculture production displaced fisheries captures for all nations for which data were available. Of 9 models, only 1 predicted significant suppression of fisheries captures associated with aquaculture systems over time. These results suggest that global aquaculture production does not substantially displace fisheries capture; instead, aquaculture production largely supplements fisheries capture. Link to article.
Nitrogen enrichment, altered stoichiometry, and coral reef decline at Looe Key, Florida Keys, USA: a 3-decade study. This study utilized 3 decades of data on nitrogen and phosphorus in seawater and microalgae from Looe Key reef, located offshore the lower Florida Keys. Combining this with remote sensing and nutrient monitoring information, researchers showed a significant increase in dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) at Looe Key coinciding with increased runoff from the Everglades which drains urban and agricultural areas. Three mass coral bleaching events each corresponded with increased DIN:soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) ratios associated with heavy rainfall. They conclude that Everglades discharges, in conjunction with local nutrient sources, contributed to DIN enrichment, eutrophication, and increased N:P ratios at Looe Key, exacerbating P limitation, coral stress and decline. Link to article.
Scientists’ warning to humanity: microorganisms and climate change. Journal Abstract: In the Anthropocene, in which we now live, climate change is impacting most life on Earth. Microorganisms support the existence of all higher trophic life forms. To understand how humans and other life forms on Earth (including those we are yet to discover) can withstand anthropogenic climate change, it is vital to incorporate knowledge of the microbial ‘unseen majority’. We must learn not just how microorganisms affect climate change (including production and consumption of greenhouse gases) but also how they will be affected by climate change and other human activities. This Consensus Statement documents the central role and global importance of microorganisms in climate change biology. It also puts humanity on notice that the impact of climate change will depend heavily on responses of microorganisms, which are essential for achieving an environmentally sustainable future. Link to article.
A Limited Role for Unforced Internal Variability in Twentieth-Century Warming. The early twentieth-century warming (EW; 1910–45) and the mid-twentieth-century cooling (MC; 1950–80) trends have both been linked to internal variability of the climate system and external radiative forcing. However, it has not been determined to what degree that either of these factors contributed to EW and MC, or both. Using a two-box impulse response model, researchers demonstrated that multidecadal ocean variability was unlikely to be the driver of observed changes in the global mean surface temperature. Their results suggest that 97-98% of the global low-frequency variability can be explained by external forcing. This is also true for variance in interhemispheric and land–ocean temperature evolution. Three key aspects are identified that underpin the conclusion of this new study: inhomogeneous anthropogenic aerosol forcing (AER), biases in the instrumental sea surface temperature (SST) datasets, and inadequate representation of the response to varying forcing factors. Future research should consider these factors investigating attribution among externally forced and internally generated influences on climate. Link to article.
Effects of Future Sea Level Rise on Coastal Habitat. Coastal habitats are vulnerable to sea level rise (SLR) and increased storm activity, as these events remove habitat and inundate nests during incubation. Researchers updated the USGS Coastal Vulnerability Index, which provides a qualitative and relative assessment of a coastal area’s vulnerability to erosion and shoreline retreat as a function of SLR and other factors, for the South Atlantic Bight. Long‐term survey data for 3 sea turtle species, 3 shorebird species, and 5 seabird species was linked to a SLR projection of 14cm by 2030 to understand the effects of future SLR on nesting habitats. Results indicated that over 43% of the South Atlantic Bight coastline is vulnerable to an increase in coastal erosion vulnerability by the 2030s. The vulnerability of SLR‐induced erosion along the South Atlantic Bight is spatially variable, as is the coastal vulnerability to SLR of the 11 study species. Link to article.
Applying Climate Change Risk Management Tools to Integrate Streamflow Projections and Social Vulnerability. Climate and land use change can cause shifts in streamflow which poses severe risks to nearby human communities. Some biophysical models such as the Soil and Water Assessment Tool can project distributions of hydrologic risk but do not take into account socio economic factors that influence a community’s capacity to adapt. Researchers developed a risk matrix to classify subbasins in a large river basin in the Southeast based on (1) percent increase in simulated 10-year and extreme high flows due to climate and land use change between baseline (1982–2002) and projected (2050–2070) periods and (2) degree of community vulnerability according to a Social Vulnerability Index. They identified high-risk subbasins and vulnerable communities that are projected to experience future increases in streamflow due to climate and land use change, enhancing future adaptation efforts. Link to article.
Tribal News
Keeping History Above Water – St. Augustine, Cultural Heritage and Sea Level Rise. This episode of the America Adapts podcast provides insight into the vulnerable cultural resources that are threatened by sea level rise. In this 90 minute podcast, Doug Parsons, interviews 14 experts in the field and presents some examples of innovative adaptation planning occurring in local communities in an effort to preserve valuable cultural resources. Listen to the podcast.
United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. Democratic senators from the Indian Affairs Committee and the Special Committee on the Climate Crisis have requested input from American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Community leaders about potential solutions and adaptive responses to climate change. The deadline for Tribal leaders to respond is September 13. Learn more.
Swinomish Indian Tribal Community Releases Open-Access Learning Modules to Help Tribes Assess Health and Adapt to Climate Change. The Swinomish Tribe has worked with the National Indian Health Board to alter the CDC Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (BRACE) health assessment framework to better reflect indigenous health definitions and priorities. The Tribe developed two free, online modules that describe why and how the Swinomish people modified BRACE and how to apply the framework. The Swinomish Tribe hopes that other Tribes may adopt the process and framework for application in their own communities. View module 1 or view module 2.
Tribal Resilience Across the Country: From Guidebook to Action webinar. This 90-minute webinar recording introduces the Tribal Climate Adaptation Guidebook produced by the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute and Adaptation International and highlights the experiences of two practitioners advancing climate adaptation and resilience within their Tribes. View the webinar here.
Tribal-Focused Environmental Risk and Sustainability Tool (Tribal-FERST). Developed from a partnership between USET and the EPA, this GIS mapping tool provides Tribes with easy access to the best available human health and ecological science. Tribal-FERST is intended to empower tribes by providing access to relevant science that can be used to develop sustainable, cost-effective solutions for reducing environmental exposures and health risks. Learn more.
“Taking Stock of a Changing World, Indigenous experts and the National Climate Assessment”. This article, by Debra Utacia Krol, was featured in the 2019 spring issue of the AISES magazine, Winds of Change. The piece discusses key findings from the “Tribes and Indigenous Peoples” chapter of the Fourth National Climate Assessment and explores ways to empower change in Tribal communities. Read here.
Regional Partner News
Tall Timbers: Using LANDSAT Burned Area Products to Map Fires Across Florida.
A recording of the SERPPAS 101 webinar that was held on May 20 is now available; it focuses on educating participants about the partnership’s history, current efforts, and future direction.
CISA: 2018 – 2019 Annual Report Now Available.
National Adaptation Forum: Presentations from 2019 NAF are now available to view.
Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies: Save the Date for AFWA Annual Meeting.
South Atlantic LCC: Southeast Blueprint improvements in the works this year.
Webinars
July 25 | 3PM – 4PM | Climate Projections as a Way to Illustrate Future Possibilities
July 30 | 12PM – 1PM | Air Quality and Human Health in a Changing Climate: Findings from the Fourth National Climate Assessment
July 30 | 2PM – PM | Summer Rewind Series Part 1: “A Rapid Vulnerability Assessment Tool”
July 31 | 12PM – 1PM | The Effects of Urbanization on Populations of Freshwater Fish in North Carolina
Aug 1 | 2 PM – 3PM | Interpreting the IPBES Global Assessment
Aug 8 | 12PM – 1PM | 2018 State of U.S. High Tide Flooding with a 2019 Outlook
Upcoming Events
Find more upcoming events in our calendar.
Aug 1-2 | Florida Climate Fundamentals Academies | Orlando, FL
The Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO) is offering a series of 2-day training academies, enabling attendees to earn the Certified Climate Change Professional® (CC-P®) credential.
Aug 27-29 | USET Climate Resilience Summit | Verona, NY
This event is intended for Tribal experts and partners to come together to share knowledge and best practices in building climate change resilience within South and Eastern Tribal Nations.
Oct 8-9 | Living Shorelines Tech Transfer Workshop | Beaufort, NC
This workshop is a premier nationwide gathering of the living shorelines community of practice. Participants will be introduced to emerging techniques, regulation, engaging the community, and more at this two day event.
Opportunities
Student Announcements
Climate Change and Society Graduate Certificate Program at NC State is still accepting applications. This program provides students with an appropriate background in climate change science and its implications for society to support the development of informed policy and business decisions. The program offers a 1-year Master’s Degree or a 4-class Climate Adaptation Certificate option. The application period for the Master’s Program has closed and the deadline for the certificate program is July 31. More information.
Managing for a Changing Climate short course, offered by the South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center at the University of Oklahoma offers a free four course program that provides an integrative understanding of the components of the climate system. Participants will receive a personalized certificate upon their completion of the course. Learn more.
Hiring Announcements
Washington Sea Grant has an opening for a Community Engagement Specialist who will work on furthering coastal resilience work. The application period will remain open until the position is filled. Apply here.
Washington Sea Grant is hiring a Program Specialist that will support their Leadership Team with event planning, project management, administrative support, etc. This position is hosted at the Seattle office. Applications are due by July 29. Apply here.
National Wildlife Federation is hiring a coastal Resilience Program Manager. The selected candidate will be responsible for providing expert technical and scientific advice, locating and analyzing data, preparing reports and other written products, and disseminating key findings to professional and general audiences. The position is based in Annapolis, MD. Apply here.
Research Grants
DOI FWS Multistate Conservation Grant Program. This grant is available annually under the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program (WSFR) to fund multistate conservation project grants with a goal of addressing regional or national conservation priority needs. Applications are due by July 26, 2019. Apply here.
DOI FWS State Wildlife Grant Program. Grant funds are intended to support the development and implementation of programs for the benefit of wildlife and their habitats, including species that are not hunted or fished. Both conservation planning and implementation activities are eligible for funding. Applications are due by August 30, 2020. Apply here.
Miscellaneous
Lenfest Ocean Program is hosting a three-day Ideas Lab workshop, bringing together scientists, managers, stakeholders, and investors for a collaborative discussion about the future of fisheries in the face of climate change. Applications to attend this interactive workshop are due by August 22, 2019. More Information.
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