Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Future Of Winter In Northeastern North America: Climate Indicators Portray Warming And Snow Loss That Will Impact Ecosystems And Communities, Elizabeth Burakowski, Alix Contosta, Danielle Grogan, Sarah Nelson, Sarah Garlick, Nora Casson

Faculty Publications

Winters in northeastern North America have warmed faster than summers, with impacts on ecosystems and society. Global climate models (GCMs) indicate that winters will continue to warm and lose snow in the future, but uncertainty remains regarding the magnitude of warming. Here, we project future trends in winter indicators under lower and higher climate-warming scenarios based on emission levels across northeastern North America at a fine spatial scale (1/16°) relevant to climate-related decision making. Under both climate scenarios, winters continue to warm with coincident increases in days above freezing, decreases in days with snow cover, and fewer nights below freezing. …

2020 Comprehensive Conservation And Management Plan: Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment, Ivy Mlsna

PREP Reports & Publications

The Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP), one of 28 National Estuary Programs supported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is updating their Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) for the 2020-2030 timeframe. A broad, risk-based, qualitative, planning-level climate change vulnerability assessment was conducted concurrent with this update, as directed by the Funding Guidance for this program.

Climate Change In Northern New Hampshire: Past, Present And Future, Cameron P. Wake, C. Keeley, Elizabeth A. Burakowski, Peter Wilkinson, Katharine Hayhoe, Anne Stoner, Julie Labrance

The Sustainability Institute Publications

EARTH’S CLIMATE CHANGES. It always has and always will. However, an extensive and growing body of scientific evidence indicates that human activities—including the burning of fossil fuel (coal, oil, and natural gas) for energy, clearing of forested lands for agriculture, and raising livestock—are now the primary force driving change in the Earth’s climate system. This report describes how the climate of northern New Hampshire has changed over the past century and how the future climate of the region will be affected by a warmer planet due to human activities.

Climate Change In Southern New Hampshire: Past, Present And Future, Cameron P. Wake, Elizabeth A. Burakowski, Peter Wilkinson, Katharine Hayhoe, Anne Stoner, C. Keeley, Julie Labranche

The Sustainability Institute Publications

EARTH’S CLIMATE CHANGES. It always has and always will. However, an extensive and growing body of scientific evidence indicates that human activities—including the burning of fossil fuel (coal, oil, and natural gas) for energy, clearing of forested lands for agriculture, and raising livestock—are now the primary force driving change in the Earth’s climate system. This report describes how the climate of southern New Hampshire has changed over the past century and how the future climate of the region will be affected by a warmer planet due to human activities.

Salt Marsh Values In A Changing World: Examining Sea Level Rise On Tidal Marshes With A Surface Elevation Table, Sarah Martina Tierney

Student Research Projects

Rising seas are threatening coastal communities and putting added pressures on the natural environment. Sea level rise rates are increasing on a global scale (from 1.7 to 3.2 mm/yr). Salt marshes are not only intertidal habitats acutely influenced by sea levels, but they also provide key ecosystem services such as: buffers against storm surges, habitat for wildlife, carbon dioxide storage, and pollutant filtration. In New England, salt marshes have built at a rate of 1 to 2 mm annually over the past 4,000 years, which has kept pace with sea level rise. However, we do not know if salt marshes …

Shellfish Tissue Monitoring In Piscataqua Region Estuaries 2010: Final Report, Matthew A. Wood, Philip R. Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

Gulfwatch examines the effects of decades of development and industrialization on the water quality of the Gulf as it relates to human health primarily through assessing contaminant exposure of marine organisms. Gulfwatch scientists collect blue mussels at over 60 US and Canadian sites Gulfwide, and analyze the organisms’ tissue for potentially harmful levels and concentrations of toxins including heavy metals, chlorinated pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). New Hampshire increased the number of Gulfwatch sampling locations from two sites per year in 1997 to an average of five sites per year from 1998-2010. The increased spatial coverage …

Trends And Variability In Localized Precipitation Around Kibale National Park, Uganda, Africa, Mary D. Stampone, Joel N. Hartter, Colin A. Chapman, Sadie J. Ryan

Geography

Our objective was to understand and describe local spatial and temporal variability in precipitation around Kibale National Park, a tropical forest area of high conservation value. Continental or regional-scale trends are often relied upon to make policy and management decisions, but these analyses are often at too coarse a resolution to capture important variability at a finer scale where management actions operate. Monthly rainfall data derived from ten long-term station records (1941-1975) were used to evaluate local spatiotemporal variability in seasonal and annual rainfall for the area surrounding Kibale National Park. The magnitude, direction and significance of trends in seasonal …

Eelgrass Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary For 2009 : Final Report, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

Eelgrass in the Great Bay Estuary in 2009 was once again present only in Great Bay itself and in Portsmouth Harbor. For the second year in a row, there was no eelgrass in Little Bay or in the Piscataqua River. In 2009, there was a continued loss of eelgrass biomass in Great Bay; there has been a 66.4% loss of biomass in Great Bay since 1996 and distribution is 30% less than in 1996. Although eelgrass distribution in Great Bay itself increased between 2008 and 2009, primarily due to continued expansion from natural seeding of bare areas, the Bay’s eelgrass …

Results Of The Gulfwatch 2010 Samples : Memorandum, Matthew A. Wood

PREP Reports & Publications

The purpose of this memorandum is to document the sample collection activities for Gulfwatch 2010. .

2010 Piscataqua Region Comprehensive Conservation And Management Plan (Ccmp), Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership

PREP Reports & Publications

In the fall of 2010, the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) completed an 18-month effort to understand current and future environmental issues affecting the Region’s estuaries, to establish realistic goals and objectives for the next 10 years, and to create effective action plans to systematically achieve the shared environmental goals of a broad base of Regional stakeholders.

With input from more than 150 individuals, representing 82 organizations, PREP compiled the 2010 Piscataqua Region Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) that lays the foundation for work over the next decade to protect and restore the Region’s estuaries and associated watersheds

2010 Piscataqua Region Comprehensive : Executive Summary, Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership

PREP Reports & Publications

In the fall of 2010, the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) completed an 18-month effort to understand current and future environmental issues affecting the Region’s estuaries, to establish realistic goals and objectives for the next 10 years, and to create effective action plans to systematically achieve the shared environmental goals of a broad base of Regional stakeholders.

With input from more than 150 individuals, representing 82 organizations, PREP compiled the 2010 Piscataqua Region Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) that lays the foundation for work over the next decade to protect and restore the Region’s estuaries and associated watersheds.