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Great Marsh Symposium 2013
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Adam Whelchel, Ph.D. Director of Science Connecticut Chapter The Nature Conservancy awhelchel@tnc.org (860) 970-‐8442
Great Marsh Coalition 2013 Symposium
• Natural Disasters reafEirm to the public that Natural Resources are beneEicial…
• Highlights protection & defense provided by Natural Resources…
• More relevant to more people • Property and life vs. “nice place to walk”
• Natural Disasters are funding opportunities to execute your project bucket list…
Main Points
Architecture
• Context: Region & Sandy Impacts • Post-‐Sandy: Rebuild and Recovery • “Resilient Conservation”
Awareness Relevance Urgency
Northeast & Mid-‐Atlantic “Megaregion”
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Stats: • 48 Million people • 15% of US population • 2% of the land mass • 20% gross domestic product • $2 Trillion economy • 18 Million more people by 2050
Highest population concentration, economic prosperity and urbanized landscapes in North America
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Stats: • 8,128 miles of coastline • 1,000s miles beaches/barrier islands • 7 National Estuary Programs • 24 National Wildlife Refuges • 4 National Estuary Research Reserves • 3 National Seashores • Extensive network of protected lands
Northeast & Mid-‐Atlantic “Megaregion”
NASA
Sandy – October 2012
Stats: • Largest Atlantic Hurricane on Record • 1,100 miles wide • 24 states and 7 nations (Florida to Maine) • $60B – 286 lives Whitehouse
Goggle
Impacts to Natural Resources
American Littoral Society Assessment (Dec. 2012) • Commissioned by National Fish and Wildlife Foundation • Input from resource managers across primary footprint
Coordinated Regional Assessment • Evaluate environmental impacts from storm • Coastal habitats emphasis • Special focus on National Wildlife Refuges
h1p://www.li1oralsociety.org/index.php/a;er-‐sandy/assessing-‐the-‐damage
Impacts to Natural Resources
The American Littoral Society – Dec 2012
Reshaped the Coast Habitat Loss and Conversion • Salt water intrusion-‐ fresh/brackish/salt
• Sedimentation • Beach/Dune erosion and Elattening • Seagrass buried by eroding dunes
Tidal inlets blocked New breeches in barrier island complexes Household refuge, debris, contamination WWT discharge – 11B gallons (3.45B)
Impacts to Natural Resources
The American Littoral Society – Dec 2012 2500’ x 2500’ image tiles to dominant habitat
Impacts to Natural Resources
Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
USFWS
DOI: $19,805,000 Coastal Tidal Marsh/Barrier Beach Restoration
Impacts to Natural Resources
DOI: $15,000,000 Restoring Coastal Marshes NJ NWR
Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey
ALS Active overwash channels and landward migration (200’ +)
Impacts to Natural Resources
DOI: $4,150,000
Rhode Island, MA, and Maine – National Wildlife Refuges • Protecting Property and Helping Coastal Wildlife: Enhancing Salt
marsh and Estuarine Function and Resiliency for Key Habitats on Impacted Wildlife Refuges for Rhode Island (400-‐acres), Massachusetts (50-‐acres), and Maine (50-‐acres).
Massachusetts – Round Hill Salt Marsh Restoration Project
• Restore 11.6-‐acres, 75,000 cubic yards, and culvert replacement.
DOI: $2,277,000
Impacts to Natural Resources
Massachusetts – Muddy Creek Wetland Restoration Project
• Culvert replacement with bridge and open channel.
DOI: $3,762,000
Massachusetts – Parkers Tidal Restoration Project
• Bridge replacement, Eish passage improvement at 2 locations.
DOI: $3,718,000
Percentage Change in Very Heavy Precipitation
“Very Heavy “= deEined as the heaviest 1% of all daily events – 1958-‐2011
US NCA 2013
Rainfall Totals: • August and September 2011 • 20-‐25 inches • 3x normal 2 month total • Exceeded 500 year storm (NY & VT)
Hurricane Irene
TS Lee – 2 day totals
Source: US NCA 2013
Architecture
• Context: Region & Sandy Impacts • Post-‐Sandy: Rebuild and Recovery • “Resilient Conservation”
Awareness Relevance Urgency
“More than ever, it is critical that when we build for the future, we do so in a way that makes communities more resilient to emerging challenges such as rising sea levels, extreme heat, and more frequent and intense storms.”
21st century solutions to the 21st century challenges facing our Nation
Shaun Donovan Chair, Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force Secretary, U.S. Department of HUD
August 2013 HUD
http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/sandyrebuilding
Post-‐Sandy Response in New York ü NYS 2100 Commission ü 9 Major Recommended Actions
Ø Encourage the use of green and natural infrastructure.
§ Expanded Investment § “Soft” Infrastructure
http://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/news/publications/nys-‐2100-‐commission-‐report-‐building
Guiding Principles for Design
• Value, protect, and utilize natural infrastructure as an effective long-‐term solution to make people, infrastructure and natural systems less vulnerable.
Awareness Relevance Urgency
• Department of Interior – $160M (internal) – $100M (external) for “resilient” conservation
http://www.nfwf.org/hurricanesandy/Pages/2013rfp.aspx
• Natural Resource Conservation Service – $125M for Emergency Watershed Program • Floodplain Easements
Funding Opportunities
• Department of Interior • $100M (external) for “resilient” conservation http://www.nfwf.org/hurricanesandy/Pages/2013rfp.aspx
• Massachusetts
– Project Planning and Design – Coastal Resiliency Assessments – Restoration and Resiliency Projects – Green Infrastructure – Community Coastal Resilience Planning
Funding Opportunities
Architecture
• Context: Region & Sandy Impacts • Post-‐Sandy: Rebuild and Recovery • “Resilient Conservation”
Awareness Relevance Urgency
Considerations of Future Conditions – Extreme weather events – Sea level rise
Considerations for Future Management – Loss, Conversion, Tradeoff – Acquisition/easement priorities – Restoration, enhancement, creation – People’s responses – risk reduction
“Resilient Conservation”
Coastal Resilience Network
CRN aims to provide science, tools, and process to better inform decision-‐making and enable adaptative solutions, emphasizing the important role of ecosystems in risk reduction and resilience.
www.coastalresilience.org
Additional Defense: Natural Infrastructure
Tidal Marsh – Existing and Future Advancement
www.coastalresilience.org
Proactive Risk Reduction through Land Protection…
Southold , New York – NOAA CELCP: 37-‐acres
Proactive Risk Reduction through Land Protection…
Southold , New York – NOAA CELCP: 37-‐acres
2080 High SLR & CAT-‐3
www.coastalresilience.org
2010 CAT-‐2
South Cape May Meadows Preserve
Before Restoration
During Restoration
• Two miles of dunes and beach • Islands to serve as resting and
feeding areas • Plover ponds behind the dunes • Invasive species control • Restoration of old stream channel • Visitor amenities
After Restoration
After Super Storm Sandy
After Super Storm Sandy
ü Natural Disasters reafEirm to the public that Natural Resources are beneEicial…
ü Highlights protection & defense provided by Natural Resources…
• More relevant to more people • Property and life vs. “nice place to walk”
ü Natural Disasters are funding opportunities to execute your project bucket list…
Main Points
Sincere Thanks
Adam Whelchel, Ph.D. awhelchel@tnc.org (860) 970-‐8442
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