NE CASC News

A new study by NE CASC researchers Brian Yellen and Jon Woodruff reveals that man-made dams built in the Lower Hudson watershed do not trap as much sediment from riverways as previously believed. These findings are particularly important for the many Hudson River communities seeking to remove existing man-made dams that are no longer needed for industrial use and may negatively impact wetlands or interfere with local river restoration efforts.

NE CASC University Director Richard Palmer has organized a Spring Environmental & Water Resources Engineering webinar Series for Spring Semester 2021. All members of the NE CASC community are enthusiastically invited to participate!

A new spring course hosted by the Northeast Climate Adaptation Science Center (NE CASC) will highlight Tribal speakers to discuss climate adaptation science. The course, Geology 497K: Indigenous Knowledge on Climate Adaptation Science, will be held virtually on Thursdays from 4:00 - 5:15 PM and is open to undergraduate and graduate students within the Five College Consortium.

160 members of the NE CASC community recently participated in our “Biological Thresholds in the Context of Climate Change” workshop. Designed to identify management priorities in addressing the potential climate change-induced crossing of biological thresholds, the workshop attracted staff from 50 federal or state agencies. 

While black ash wetlands are prevalent in the Great Lakes region, their future is threatened due to impending spread of the invasive emerald ash borer (EAB) and its potential to cause ecohydrologic shifts to wetter, non-forested conditions.  In a new article published by Hydrological Processes, NE CASC PI Anthony D'Amato and his collaborators identify the factors determining vulnerability to such shifts and provide a potential tool to target relevant areas for active management efforts. 

NE CASC recently concluded a highly successful Fall Webinar Series, which witnessed a record number of participants log on to hear four outstanding presentations from Hilary Dugan, Jordan Read, Beth Larry, and Peter McIntyre & Rob Mooney. If you missed these talks the first time around, now is a great time to catch up!

The Climate Adaptation Science Community is invited to participate in Shifting Seasons Summit 3, which will take place online from April 19-21, 2021.

Massachusetts has witnessed numerous major floods and droughts over the past several decades. But what will the future hold for the state in terms of these hydrological extremes? A team including NE CASC researchers Ridwan Siddique, Ambarish Karmalkar, and Richard Palmer answers this question in their new article published in the Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies. 

A team led by Adrian Jordaan, Daniel Pendleton, Chris Sutherland and Michelle Staudinger has completed its final report for the project, "How and why is the timing and occurrence of seasonal migrants in the Gulf of Maine changing due to climate?"  This study sought to advance understanding of the responses of large migratory whales and other marine wildlife to climate change by examining species-specific shifts in timing of migration and habitat use.

A team led by NE CASC principal investigators Thomas Bonnot and Frank Thompson has conducted the first comprehensive study seeking to analyze a massive, 26-year dataset generated by the Migrant and Landbird Conservation Strategy monitoring program of the USDA Forest Service's Sourthern Region. Its results, which have been assembled in a new report, will help inform conservation and management efforts across the South.

NE CASC Tribal Climate Science Liaison Casey Thornbrugh recently received a 2020 Climate Adaptation Leadership Award. This marks the second consecutive year that an NE CASC representative has claimed this prestigious honor.

NE CASC Research Ecologist Toni Lyn Morelli and colleagues from the Refugia Research Coalition organized a session on "Innovative Approaches for Identifying and Managing Climate Change Refugia" at the recently held 2020 North American Congress for Conservation Biology Symposium. Presentations for the session were recorded and are available for viewing.