New study estimates 765 grizzly bears reside in northwest Montana
Climate change and sea level rise are threatening wetlands and impacting nearby species habitat, water quality, recreation sites and more. Effective wetland conservation programs are needed that consider climate change. U.S. Geological Survey scientists are studying related impacts to wetlands and will discuss their research and collaborative conservation projects at this meeting.
Tuesday, May 27
Global Change and the Function and Distribution of Wetlands - Symposium
Impacts of Sea level Rise on Coastal Wetlands:
Will Elevated Carbon Dioxide Make a Difference?
Global changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide and climate
are expected to affect coastal wetlands and their ability to keep up with
rising sea level. Multiple factors may interact to alter the vertical accretion
of coastal marshes under different global change scenarios, and new data has
been acquired showing how carbon dioxide enrichment may increase soil expansion
by stimulating plant production. (Karen McKee, USGS)
Wetlands as Sentinels of Climate Change: Effects on Goods and Services - Symposium
Coastal
Wetlands as Sentinels of Climate Change
Coastal
wetlands are critical habitat for many species and perform important ecosystem services.
These services include providing an avenue for human recreation, improving
water quality by filtering of sediments and nutrients, dissipating the energy
and reducing the erosive effects of coastal storms, and recycling and
exchanging nutrients within and among estuarine habitats. As sea level rise is
now accelerating above historic rates due to global warming, coastal wetlands
will become increasingly vulnerable to submergence if wetland vertical
development can not keep pace. (Donald R. Cahoon, USGS)
Vulnerability of Central North American Wetlands
to Climate Change
The Prairie Pothole Region of
North America contains 5 - 8 million wetlands, provides critical habitat for
continental waterfowl populations, and provides valuable ecosystem services for
the region and nation. The USGS developed computer simulation models, which use
the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change projections for future
temperature and precipitation change in this region over the next century.
These models suggest that many of the wetlands in this region will be drier and
lose their ability to provide critical ecosystem services. These scenarios also
suggest that the future best landscapes for maintaining biodiversity, critical
ecosystem services and habitat for waterfowl populations will shift eastward from
the east central Dakotas and Canadian prairies to the wetter climates of
western Minnesota and Iowa, areas where most wetlands have been lost because of
agricultural activities. (Glenn Guntenspergen, USGS)
Potential
Effects of Climate Change on Forested Wetlands in the Lower Mississippi
Valley
The
Lower Mississippi
Valley is the nation's largest
floodplain and the forest and wetland ecosystems of the Lower Mississippi
Valley provide critically
important ecosystem services. Climate is a large-scale agent of change
controlling dominant drivers of ecosystem structure, processes, and services.
The effects of predicted climate change on hydrology and land cover and the
cascading impacts on ecosystem services in the Lower Mississippi
Valley are largely
unknown. This is a significant gap in our knowledge base directly affecting
resource management, conservation, and ecosystem restoration programs of federal,
state and local governments. (Stephen Faulkner, USGS)
Wednesday, May 28
** Fieldtrip: Restored Tidal Freshwater Wetlands of the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C.
During the first half of the 20th century, most of the freshwater tidal marshes along the Anacostia River were removed by mandated dredging, filling, erosional scour, etc. Over the past 15 years, efforts to restore the Anacostia wetlands have taken place through seven separate projects. This tour is designed to visit five of the Anacostia's most prominent freshwater tidal marsh reconstruction sites. Ordinary field footwear will suffice. (Dick Hammerschlag and Cairn Krafft, USGS)
Disassembly of Coastal Ecosystems in the Face of Global Change - Symposium
Effects of Climate Change
on Wetland Sustainability and Restoration
As
sea levels rise and human alterations of the world's coasts continue, further understanding
of coastal ecosystems and responses to sea level rise is needed to better
manage and restore these critical coastal habitats. Wetlands differ in their
vulnerability to sea level rise because of regional and local controls on
wetland surface elevation. Wetlands build vertically through the accumulation
of both mineral and organic matter. Should sea level rise exceed the threshold
for vertical soil development, vegetation will become stressed and eventually
die and the wetland will convert to open water. (Donald R. Calhoon, USGS)
Wetland Associations
of Coastal Marsh Birds throughout North America:
Implications for Climate Change Impacts
Although
present throughout the world, coastal marshes occupy a very small amount of the
surface area of the globe. The number and size of coastal marshes in North America have declined over the past 200 years and
continue to decline due to coastal development. Many of the species that depend
on these coastal marshes are already uncommon and projected increases in sea
level may increase the probability of eradication. Two shorebirds, which are
most likely to be negatively affected by rising sea levels, were examined in
coastal ecosystems in North America. (Courtney
Conway, USGS)
Thursday, May 29
** Wetlands Policy in a Changing Environment - Plenary Session
Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior Lynn Scarlett and USGS Chief Scientist for Global Change Research Virginia Burkett are among the speakers during this session. Scarlett will present on the topics of federal lands, water and climate change and Burkett will present on wetlands and climate change.
The USDA Conservation Effects Assessment Program: Wetlands Component - Symposium
Conservation Practice
Effects on Wetland Ecosystem Services in the Lower Mississippi
Valley
The
forest, wetland and aquatic ecosystems that dominated the Lower Mississippi
Valley prior to European
colonization provided an array of ecosystem services. The conversion of these
natural areas to row-crop agriculture has resulted in landscape-scale
alteration of water, biologic and chemical interactions that are unprecedented in
both scale and scope. The objective of conservation programs, such as the
Wetlands Reserve Program and Conservation Reserve Program, is to restore and
protect the functions and values of wetlands. The goal of the Conservation
Effects Assessment Project Wetlands program is to develop a scientific
methodology to assess the effects of conservation practices on ecosystem
services provided by wetlands. (Stephen Faulkner, USGS)
Characterization of Prairie
Pothole Catchment Soils: Implications for Delivery of Ecosystem Services
Implementation
of USDA conservation programs has resulted in the restoration of more than 5
million acres of wetland and grassland habitats in the U.S. portion of the Prairie Pothole
Region. Two apparent benefits of conservation programs are a reduction in soil
erosion and an overall improvement in soil quality. However, little work has
been conducted to document changes in soil characteristics that occur when
catchments (uplands and wetlands) of Prairie Pothole wetlands in agricultural production
are restored as part of conservation programs. To address this need, the USGS
and the USDA collaboratively conducted a survey of 270 wetland catchments in
the Prairie Pothole Region. Comparisons were made about soil characteristics
among restored, agricultural (cropped) and native grassland catchments. (Raymond Finocchiaro, USGS)
The Prairie Pothole
Regional Assessment: Results of a Survey to Estimate Ecosystem Services Derived
from USDA Conservation Reserve and Wetlands
Reserve Program
Lands
Restoration of wetland habitats through
these conservation programs is perceived to provide various ecosystem services
such as increasing plant diversity, providing wildlife habitat, improving soil
and water quality, and sequestering carbon. To help quantify and evaluate
environmental benefits achieved by these programs, the USDA initiated the
National Assessment component of the Conservation Effects Assessment Project.
The goal of the Prairie Pothole Region assessment by the USGS was to develop
approaches to estimate ecological services provided by conservation practices and
to use these approaches to quantify changes from USDA funded conservation
programs. (Robert
Gleason, USGS)
Effects
of Conservation Programs on Amphibian Species Richness of Seasonal Wetlands in
the Prairie Pothole Region
The
Prairie Pothole Region of the United
States has been subjected to extensive
anthropogenic land-use change that has altered habits from their natural state.
In order to minimize environmental degradation while promoting sustainable
agriculture, the USDA has implemented various conservation programs throughout
the Prairie Pothole Region. Surveys of amphibians were conducted in an effort
to quantify the effects of conservation programs on biodiversity. Similar numbers
of amphibian species were found using restored and natural wetlands across the
region. However, farmed wetlands consistently displayed lower species richness,
especially in the southeastern portion of the Prairie Pothole Region. Findings
suggest that restoration efforts are providing suitable habitat for most
amphibian species using seasonal wetlands. (Caleb Balas, USGS)
Advancing Floristic Quality Assessment in Wetland Plant Assemblages - Symposium
The
Effects of Natural Climate Variation on Floristic Quality Assessments of
Wetland Plant Communities
Wetland
plant communities in the Glaciated Plains of North America
undergo species composition fluctuations as the region's dynamic climate cycles
between periods of drought and heavy rain. The dynamic environmental conditions
of prairie wetlands have made development of biotic indicators of wetland
integrity problematic. Long-term monitoring was conducted on wetland plant
communities at the Cottonwood Lake Study Area, a prairie wetland complex on the
Missouri Coteau in east-central North
Dakota. (David Mushet, USGS)
Friday, May 30
** Coastal Habitat Restoration and Climate Change: Priorities for the Future - Panel
This panel aims to broaden the restoration community's and policymakers' understanding of climate change impacts on coastal habitat restoration and protection. As coastal impacts related to climate change increase, agencies and organizations that restore habitat must take into account a range of future scenarios, such as higher sea level and warmer ocean temperatures, and be strategic about funding and locating new projects. In addition, a dialogue on restoration techniques and methodologies, taking into account resiliency and the effects of climate change on habitat restoration projects, needs to occur. Panelists will provide insight into the prioritization of coastal habitat restoration in the face of climate change. Panelists will discuss current knowledge, research gaps and needs, and ideas for new criteria for planning and monitoring coastal habitat restoration projects that take climate change into account. The discussion will also help inform Estuary Restoration Act agencies on how best to prioritize habitat restoration of estuaries nationwide. (Virginia Burkett, USGS)
For more information about USGS presentations visit the Society of Wetland Scientists conference web site.