Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology Commons^™

Estimated 2020 Co2 Emission Reductions In Virginia’S Transportation Sector From Covid-19, Eden E. Rakes, Pamela R. Grothe, Jeremy S. Hoffman

Virginia Journal of Science

The initial lockdown phase of the COVID-19 pandemic presented an unfortunate opportunity to observe how abrupt, large-scale changes in traffic volume can reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This study explores how carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from Virginia’s transportation sector may have been affected by the changes in activity stemming from COVID-19 to inform more carbon-neutral policies as the state recovers from the economic downfall. Emission savings were calculated by multiplying the percent change from 2019 to 2020 in traffic volume from the Virginia Department of Transportation with the business-as-usual 2020 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimate of CO₂ emissions …

Implications Of Covid-19 On Progress In The Un Conventions On Biodiversity And Climate Change, Andrea Monica D. Ortiz, Alaya M. De Leon, Justine Nicole V. Torres, Cecilia Therese T. Guiao, Antonio Gabriel M. La Viña

Environmental Science Faculty Publications

2020 was to be a landmark year for setting targets to stop biodiversity loss and prevent dangerous climate change. However, COVID-19 has caused delays to the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP) of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the 26th COP of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Negotiations on the Global Biodiversity Framework and the second submission of Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement were due to take place at these COPs. There is uncertainty as to how the COVID-19 disruption will affect the negotiations, whether parties will pursue more ambitious actions or take a …

Professors Study Evacuation Practices, Marcus Coles

News Items

No abstract provided.

Ua35/3 Memoranda, Wku Provost

WKU Administration Documents

2021 memoranda issued by the WKU Provost to faculty & staff via email.

• Provost's Message
• Awards
• Terrance Brown Named Dean of Potter College at WKU
• David N. Brown Named Dean of Ogden College at WKU
• Announcing New Dean of Ogden College of Science & Engineering
• Student Ombuds Announcement
• Message from the Provost, 9/7/2021
• Commons at Helm Library Update
• Update - Food Pantry
• WKU Help
• Tornado Relief Effort

Developing An Institutional Arrangement For A Whole-Of-Government And Whole-Of-Community Approach To Regional Adaptation To Sea Level Rise: The Hampton Roads Pilot Project, Juita-Elena (Wie) Yusuf, J. Gail Nicula, Burton St. John Iii, Meagan M. Jordan, Michelle Covi, Carol Considine, Marina Saitgalina, Joshua Behr

School of Public Service Faculty Publications

Adaptation to sea level rise (SLR) requires coordination among local, state, and federal entities and collaboration across governments, nonprofits, businesses, and residents. This coordination and collaboration are reflected in institutional arrangements associated with a whole-of-government and whole-of-community approach to regional adaptation. This study analyzes the development of an interlocal agreement (ILA), the Hampton Roads Sea Level Rise Preparedness and Resilience Intergovernmental Planning Pilot Project (the Pilot Project), as an example of such an arrangement. This study assesses how factors throughout three phases of ILA development (initiation, implementation, and execution) influence outcomes and effectiveness. Drawing upon participant observation, document analysis, survey …

A Global Ecological Classification Of Coastal Segment Units To Complement Marine Biodiversity Observation Network Assessments, Roger Sayre, Kevin Butler, Keith Van Graafeiland, Sean Breyer, Dawn Wright, Charlie Frye, Deniz Karagulle, Madeline Martin, Jill Cress, Tom Allen, Rebecca J. Allee, Rost Parsons, Bjorn Nyberg, Mark J. Costello, Peter Harris, Frank E. Muller-Karger

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

A new data layer provides Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS) labels for global coastal segments at 1 km or shorter resolution. These characteristics are summarized for six US Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON) sites and one MBON Pole to Pole of the Americas site in Argentina. The global coastlines CMECS classifications were produced from a partitioning of a 30 m Landsat-derived shoreline vector that was segmented into 4 million 1 km or shorter segments. Each segment was attributed with values from 10 variables that represent the ecological settings in which the coastline occurs, including properties of the adjacent …

The Conservation Status Of Marine Biodiversity Of The Western Indian Ocean, R. Bullock, Gina Ralph, E. Stump, F. Al Abdali, J. Al Asfoor, B. Al Buwaiqi, A. Al Kindi, A. Ambuali, Tiffany Birge, P. Borsa, F. Di Dario, B. Everett, S. Fennessy, C. Fonseca, Claire Gorman, A. Govender, H. Ho, W. Holleman, N. Jiddawi, M. Khan, H. Larson, Christi Linardich, P. Matiku, K. Matsuura, C. Maunde, H. Motomura, T. Munroe, R. Nair, C. Obota, B. Polidoro, B. Russell, S. Shaheen, Y. Sithole, W. Smith-Vaniz, F. Uiblein, S. Weerts, A. Williams, S. Yahya, Kent Carpenter

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

The Western Indian Ocean (WIO) is comprised of productive and highly diverse marine ecosystems that are rich sources of food security, livelihoods, and natural wonder. The ecological services that species provide are vital to the productivity of these ecosystems and healthy biodiversity is essential for the continued support of economies and local users. The stability of these valuable resources, however, is being eroded by growing threats to marine life from overexploitation, habitat degradation and climate change, all of which are causing serious reductions in marine ecosystem services and the ability of these ecosystems to support human communities. Quantifying the impacts …

Non-Conventional Vehicles As A Way Towards Carbon Neutrality In Iceland, Julia Sokolowska

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Paris Agreement’s chief objective is to protect the Earth and its inhabitants from a point of no return, when the effects of climate change will be so intense that they will shift the equilibrium of ecosystems. The distinctiveness of this international environmental treaty is that it does not impose climate change mitigation measures, but rather allows nation states to create their own set of measures, the NDCs, to reach the global warming of ‘well below 2oC’ by the end of the century. Thus, Iceland has submitted its own NDC, the Climate Action Plan 2018-2030, which has an ambitious goal of …

Life In Hampton Roads Survey: Hurricanes And Covid-19, News @ Odu

News Items

No abstract provided.

Statement Of World Aquatic Scientific Societies On The Need To Take Urgent Action Against Human-Caused Climate Change, Based On Scientific Evidence [Dear Colleague Letter], Scott A. Bonar, Brian R. Murphy, Leanne H. Roulson, Jesse T. Trushenski, Douglas J. Austen, Michael Edward Douglas

United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Publications

Dear Colleague Letter from the American Fisheries Society to fellow scientific societies, July 25, 2020, about the urgent need for responsive collective action to mitigate impending radical climate change. Includes the Statement of World Aquatic Scientific Societies on the Need to Take Urgent Action Against Human-Caused Climate Change, Based on Scientific Evidence, emphasizing the importance of aquatic ecosystems. Includes extensive citations and notes.

"Water is the most important natural resource on Earth as it is vital for life. Aquatic ecosystems, freshwater or marine, provide multiple benefits to human society, such as provisioning of oxygen, food, drinking water, genetic resources; regulation …

Odu Professors Focus On Hurricane Planning During A Pandemic, Sherry Dibari

News Items

No abstract provided.

Before Disaster Strikes: Preparing America To Be Disaster Resilient, Cole Hoyt

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

Major natural disasters in the United States are occurring more frequently and are causing more damage and destruction than ever before in the nation’s history. With the increased number and intensity of natural disasters, America’s failing infrastructure and current resiliency plan are inadequate to successfully prepare and respond to such catastrophic events. As a direct result, natural disasters in the United States cause scores of deaths and injuries, inflict billions of dollars’ worth of damage per disaster, and make it increasingly more difficult for Americans to recover and return to a sense of normalcy.

The World Health Organization (“WHO”), offers …

Cal Poly Pier Master Plan, Troy A. Lawson

Master's Theses

The Cal Poly Pier (Pier) Master/Facility Plan (FP) document provides the vision of the future for the Pier, a marine science research facility. The Plan facilitates project development and management of the Pier while meeting university and department research goals. Specifically, the FP document establishes goals and strategies to direct long-term development of the Pier, streamlines agency approval and permit requirements, provides context for pier management, and assists the permitting process for future development as it relates to regulatory permits and programmatic growth on the Cal Poly Pier to help meet goals of the Center for Coastal Marine Sciences (CCMS). …

Impactos En La Salud Pública Y Desigualdades Frente Al Cambio Climático En América Latina: Una Aproximación Hacia Las Consecuencias Diferenciales De Las Inundaciones Y Olas De Calor En La Cuenca Matanza Riachuelo. / Public Health Impacts And Inequalities In The Face Of Climate Change In Latin America: An Approach Towards The Differential Consequences Of Floods And Heat Waves In The Matanza Riachuelo Watershed., Julia Mettler-Grove

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

La relación entre el cambio climático y la salud pública es un tema emergente y crítico para estudiar en la escala local, concretamente en lo que refiere a analizar los efectos producidos por las olas de calor y las inundaciones. Si bien existe un campo de investigación creciente sobre el tema, son pocos los trabajos que ahondan en la conexión con la salud pública, un elemento central para pensar en la gestión del cambio climático en las ciudades. Esto es precisamente lo que se propone hacer la presente investigación, tomando como caso de estudio la cuenca más urbanizada e industrializada …

Changing Water Resources’ Effect On Livelihoods And Socio-Ecological Relationships In Himalayan Communities Of Nepal, Luke Bazemore

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The looming threat of climate change will lead to significant alterations in livelihoods and daily practices for individuals across the world. This paper seeks to identify the effects of climate change on hydrological regimes in Himalayan communities in Nepal with particular focus towards livelihood and socio-ecological transformations. Using the socio-ecological systems framework to analyze specific communities and their resource use, along with vulnerability and adaptative capacity analysis, this paper includes a meta-analysis of existing literature. Numerous findings indicated that rural, mountainous communities of Nepal face a variety of environmental impacts which may reduce viability of two significant modes of production: …

Crude Intentions: Evaluating The Growing Risks Of Arctic Alaskan Oil Production, Eliot Stein

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The discovery of oil on Alaska’s North Slope in the 1920s began a century of fossil fuel exploration, development, and production in the Arctic region. Alaska became integral to the nation’s growing energy dominance. However, since 1988, oil production on the North Slope has been in steady decline. In 2015, Shell, followed by several other oil majors, terminated their Arctic Alaska operations. This past year, BP made waves by ending six decades of operations in Alaska. Most recently, five of the six major U.S. banks announced they would no longer finance Arctic oil and gas projects. This paper analyzes these …

Una Evaluación De La Evolución Y El Futuro De La Vigilancia De La Pesca Ilegal En Antártida Bajo La Ccrvma, Courtney Jacobs

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Este documento de investigación evalúa el tema de la pesca ilegal en el Área de la Convención de la Antártida establecida por la Comisión para la Conservación de los Recursos Vivos Marinos Antárticos (CCRVMA). El enfoque general de esta investigación es evaluar la capacidad de la Comisión para abordar la preocupación de la pesca ilegal en el Área de la Convención. Este objetivo se persigue examinando tres subpreguntas: ¿cómo ha evolucionado la pesca ilegal en el Área de la Convención a lo largo del período estudiado, qué medidas ha tomado con éxito la Comisión con respecto al monitoreo y cumplimiento …

Climate Change And Migration In Madagascar: Investigating The Impacts On People, Ecosystems, And Natural Resources, Eloise Parish Mueller

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The principle objective of this study was to determine the impacts of migration caused or influenced by climate change on people and ecosystems in Madagascar. The specific objectives were 1.) to investigate the impacts of internal migration in Madagascar, particularly movements of people which are related to climate change, on migrants, established communities and ecosystems in regions they relocate to, and natural resources and 2.) to investigate possible solutions to social and environmental challenges resulting from migration in the country. While researching, I came to more fully appreciate the complexities of the relationships between climate, migration, and environmental and social …

Innovative Protection And Conservation Of Coral Reefs In Madagascar, Meghan Parker

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Madagascar is home to approximately 3,450 kilometers of coral reefs, including some of the most biodiverse and valuable marine ecosystems in the Indian Ocean (Webster 2002). This online research project investigates the status of Madagascar’s coral reefs separated by region, threats that are facing the reefs and community-based solutions to protect and conserve the reefs. Conclusions of this online research suggest that most coral reefs in Madagascar are in relatively good health, although looming threats exist from overfishing, increased coastal populations, tourism, and warming waters. Community-based solutions are abundant and have proven effective, and can be implemented nation-wide, personalized to …

Old Dominion University Partners With Hampton Roads Community Foundation To Speed Severe Weather Recovery, Joe Garvey

News Items

No abstract provided.

Homestead National Monument Of America, Acoustic Monitoring, 2011-2012

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

This report presents acoustical data gathered by Student Conservation Association interns and the Natural Resource Specialist at Homestead National Monument of America in 2011 and 2012. Data were collected at four sites to provide park managers with information on the acoustical environment, sources of noise, and the existing ambient sound levels within the monument. The data will also inform the park managers with information regarding the potential impact of traffic on Highway 4.

Monitoring occurred at each site during two different seasons (except HOME002) in order to document seasonal variations. In each deployment, sound pressure level (SPL) was …

A Proposed Taxonomy For General Aviation Pilot Weather Education And Training, John M. Lanicci, Thomas A. Guinn, Jayde M. King, Beth Blickensderfer, Robert Thomas, Yolanda Ortiz

Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research

As General Aviation (GA) safety continues to remain a focus of the aviation community, GA pilot weather education and training continues to be an active area of interest within the research community. This study introduces a taxonomy for organizing GA pilot weather education and training materials that was originally conceived as part of the FAA’s Weather Technology In the Cockpit research program. The taxonomy is built upon three main knowledge categories, or tiers:1) Weather Phenomena (which includes hazards); 2) Weather Hazard Products; and 3) Weather Hazard Product Sources and their Application. The concept behind the categorization is to link knowledge …

Arising: Hurricane (Superstorm) Sandy’S Impact On Design/Planning Professionals, Maxinne R. Leighton

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Standing by my bedroom window, looking out at the ocean, a huge wave comes and swallows up my building. Everything around me is gone, including me. I wake up. I am 13 years old and living in the Coney Island Houses on Surf Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. With ongoing anthropogenic changes to the natural environment such as sea level rise and intensifying storms, coastal communities, especially ones segregated by class and culture, are particularly vulnerable in this context that challenges a way of life, and in some instances, threatens that life's survival. This dissertation focuses specifically on what one massive …

"We Would Ride Safely In The Harbor Of The Future": Historical Parallels Between The Existential Threats Of Yellow Fever And Sea Level Rise In New Orleans And Norfolk, Morris W. Foster, Emily E. Steinhilber

Division of Research and Economic Development Faculty & Staff Publications

The 19th century experiences of Yellow Fever epidemics in New Orleans and Norfolk present historical parallels for how those cities, and others, are experiencing existential threats from climate change and sea level rise in the 21st century. In particular, the 19th century ?Sanitary Reform? movement can be interpreted as a model for challenges facing 21st century ?Climate Resilience? initiatives, including denialism and political obfuscation of scientific debates as well as tensions between short-term profit and the cost of long-term infrastructure investments and between individualism and communitarianism. The history of Sanitary Reform suggests that, at least in the U.S., Climate Resilience …

Vegetation Classification And Mapping, Missouri National Recreational River, Tom Baldvins, Matt Ley, David Jones, Joe Stevens, Hannah Pilkington

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

The vegetation inventory project at Missouri National Recreational River (MNRR) classified and mapped vegetation within the park administrative boundary and estimated thematic map accuracy quantitatively. The project was conducted over a four year period from the summer of 2015 to the winter of 2019.

The project follows guidance provided by the National Park Service (NPS) Vegetation Mapping Inventory (VMI) Program. The overall process includes initial planning and scoping, imagery procurement, field data collection, data analysis, imagery interpretation and classification, and accuracy assessment. The initial planning and scoping meetings to support study plan development took place in December, 2009, …

Climate Change And Human Rights: Shaping The Narrative For Reflexive Responses From Civilization’S Leadership To Counter And Abate Climate Change And Enhance The Role Of Human Rights In The Rule Of Law, Michael Donlan

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article offers a bold new legal process for enhancing and upgrading the rule of law to enable civilization to cope with and counter the mounting damage and injustice caused by climate change. Climate change, once an unimaginable threat, is now a brutal, ubiquitous game changer that is leading inexorably to the demise of all humanity. Only by enhancing the rule of law and melding international law with domestic law can civilization fashion a coherent, global action plan for survival.

For almost three centuries greenhouse gases have been emitted around the world by the burning of fossil fuel, and—most alarming—these …

Urban-Rural Surface Temperature Deviation And Intra-Urban Variations Contained By An Urban Growth Boundary, Kevan B. Moffett, Yasuyo Makido, Vivek Shandas

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

The urban heat island (UHI) concept describes heat trapping that elevates urban temperatures relative to rural temperatures, at least in temperate/humid regions. In drylands, urban irrigation can instead produce an urban cool island (UCI) effect. However, the UHI/UCI characterization suffers from uncertainty in choosing representative urban/rural endmembers, an artificial dichotomy between UHIs and UCIs, and lack of consistent terminology for other patterns of thermal variation at nested scales. We use the case of a historically well-enforced urban growth boundary (UGB) around Portland (Oregon, USA): to explore the representativeness of the surface temperature UHI (SUHI) as derived from Moderate Resolution Imaging …

Community Outreach For The Virginia Beach Comprehensive Flooding Response Plan (Sea-Level Wise), Michelle Covi, Wie Yusuf, Gail Nicula, Daniel Richards, Afi Anuar

Presentations, Lectures, Posters, Reports

[From Introduction]

In partnership with the City of Virginia Beach, the Old Dominion University research team of Drs. Michelle Covi, Wie Yusuf, Gail Nicula, Daniel Richards and Afi Anuar developed and executed a program for public engagement meetings using the ASERT (Action-oriented Stakeholder Engagement for a Resilient Tomorrow) framework to solicit resident engagement with and input into the City’s Comprehensive Sea Level Rise and Recurrent Flooding Response Plan, now known as Sea Level Wise.

Blue Economy And Climate Change: Bangladesh Perspective, Subrata Sarker, Firdaus Ara Hussain, Mohammad Assaduzzaman, Pierre Failler

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

Blue Economy is related to economic growth through the sustainable utilization of ocean resources with technological inputs to improve livelihoods. Economically important coastal and marine resources are the main components of the Blue Economy for Bangladesh. These resources are categorized into living, non-living, renewable resources and trade and commerce. As Bangladesh is vulnerable to climate change, related extreme events are making the coastal and marine resources vulnerable which may hamper the smooth Blue Economy development in Bangladesh. Climate change extreme events include warming trend, cyclone, sea level rise, droughts, erosion, tidal surge, saline water intrusion, flood, change in precipitation trend …

Water And War: The Potential For Perpetuation Of Conflict Due To Climate Change, Kaufman Butler

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Climate change has had a dramatic impact on the world’s weather for years, scientists can only make predictions about how global climate will continue to change going forward; but in all scenarios the circumstances are quite dire. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) will see some of the most severe effects of climate change, which will permanently alter the lives of millions of people in the region. In the MENA region, climate change is projected to result in extreme drought and temperatures which will lead to increased water scarcity, in what is already the most water poor region in …