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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Life Cycle Cost Assessment: A Win-Win For Virginia Wetlands, Austen Kelso
Life Cycle Cost Assessment: A Win-Win For Virginia Wetlands, Austen Kelso
Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects
Virginia shorelines are facing some of the highest rates of sea level rise seen over the last 5 millennia and are among the most vulnerable coastlines in the country to the effects of sea level rise such as flooding and storm surge (Down et al. 1994). In the face of these rising sea levels, coastal wetland habitats will be forced to migrate inland to avoid inundation (Akumu et al. 2011). However, increased development on the Virginia coast threatens these critical wetland habitats by blocking their inland movement as the try to avoid rapidly rising sea levels. Without a clear migratory …
Changes To Shoreline Hardening Process In The Face Of Climate Change, George Appling
Changes To Shoreline Hardening Process In The Face Of Climate Change, George Appling
Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects
As a result of global climate change, sea level has risen and will continue to rise throughout the 21st century. Sea level rise has been higher in Virginia than any other state over the past 100 years (US Climate Change Science Program 2009). Varied projections show that sea level could rise 1.2 to 5.5 feet above 1992 levels by 2100 (Boon et al. 2010; Ezer and Corlette 2012; Sallengar et al. 2012). Sea level rise threatens to drown intertidal wetlands (Craft et al. 2009; FitzGerald et al. 2010; Kirwan and Guntenspergen 2010; Menon et al. 2010). Wetlands are key biodiversity …
The Adopt-A-Wetland Program, Lindsey Hines
The Adopt-A-Wetland Program, Lindsey Hines
Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects
Wetlands are a “biological super system” hosting a vital reservoir of biodiversity potential. Conserving wetlands and protecting their biodiversity is instrumental in upholding the ecosystem services wetlands provide. These ecosystem services of flood control, food supply, clean water, recreational areas and more are major elements in Virginia’s economy and cultural society. Current models projecting climate change impacts on the Virginian coastline predict sea-level rise to be incompatible with rate of migration and adaptation needed for wetlands. Existing wetland conservation efforts are lacking the required action to combat these imminent problems. Land acquisition is essential to accommodate wetland migration to ensure …
Requiring Responsible Mitigation Banking, Julia Baer
Requiring Responsible Mitigation Banking, Julia Baer
Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects
In the national attempt to achieve “no-net-loss” of wetlands, the business of wetland mitigation banking has experienced enormous growth over the past few decades. These banks’ purpose is to compensate for wetland loss due to development through the restoration and creation of wetlands elsewhere. While this mitigates the rate of wetland loss, “no-net-loss” is not truly achieved because development is the only federally recognized force destroying wetlands today. Wetland mitigation banks should be required to take sea level rise into account when selecting new sites, and forbidden from using sites where function losses exceed 5% within 50 years, using the …