Climate Commons^™

Drone-Based Medication Delivery For Rural, Flood-Prone Coastal Cities, Yin-Hsuen Chen, Amro M. El-Adle, Kevin J. O'Brien, Taylor Wentworth, Heather G. Richter

Center for Geospatial Science, Education & Analytics Faculty Publications

Access to healthcare remains a critical challenge for rural populations, particularly in flood-prone coastal communities where transportation barriers limit access to essential medical services. This study evaluates the effectiveness of drone-based medication delivery in improving healthcare accessibility for vulnerable populations on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. Compared to traditional personal vehicle travel, drone delivery reduced trip times from up to 50 minutes to under 10 minutes for more than 80% of the population, including elderly patients. Using publicly available datasets, we developed two transportation vulnerability indices that incorporate age, travel time, and flood risk to prioritize patients for drone-based pharmaceutical delivery. These …

Farm Profit Impacts Of Consecutive Drought Years Under Climate Scenarios In Southwestern Australia, Sud Kharel, Kevin J. Foster, Meredith M. Guthrie, Ross Kingwell

Climate Science Research Articles

Climate projections for southern Australia indicate an increased likelihood of years of consecutive droughts. How resilient are farm businesses and their farming systems to recover from episodic drought? This study assesses the farm economic and financial impacts of consecutive droughts in southwest Australia. Bioeconomic simulation modelling of farm businesses with different farming systems at three locations is used to examine the long-term financial consequences of consecutive droughts. Various key factors affecting those consequences are examined. Farm location, farming system and starting equity are found to be the main determinants of how quickly a farm business can financially recover from the …

Sustainable Management Of Erosive Shores: An Interdisciplinary Approach Integrating Engineering And Social Sciences At A Tide-Dominant Beach Area, Jun Ik Sohn, Hyun Dong Kim, Kiran Adhithya Ramakrishnan

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

This study investigates the causes and consequences of shoreline erosion at Kkotji Beach, a prominent tourist destination on the west coast of South Korea, where the degradation of the coastal environment has increasingly threatened the local tourism industry and economy, by employing a mixed-methods approach that combines field observations with MIKE 21 hydrodynamic simulations and by integrating perspectives from coastal engineering and the social sciences to develop practical, site-specific strategies for mitigating erosion, enhancing public awareness, and promoting sustainable coastal planning and development that support long-term environmental resilience and economic stability. The results show that dominant ebb currents drive southward …

2024 - Tennessee Annual Climate Summary, Tennessee Climate Office, East Tennessee State University

Tennessee Climate Office Monthly Reports

No abstract provided.

Unfolding Cascading Impacts Of Changing South Asia Monsoon On A Hindu Kush Himalayas Basin, Surendra Maharjan, Wenzhao Li, Shahryar Fazli, Arshad Ansari, Suraj Tiwari, Roma Thakurathi, Rejoice Thomas, Hesham El-Askary

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Study region

Study focus

New hydrological insights for the region

Changes In Climate And Their Implications For Cattle Nutrition And Management, Bashiri Iddy Muzzo, R. Douglas Ramsey, Juan J. Villalba

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Climate change is a global challenge that impacts rangeland and pastureland landscapes by inducing shifts in temperature variability, precipitation patterns, and extreme weather events. These changes alter soil and plant conditions, reducing forage availability and chemical composition and leading to nutritional stress in cattle. This stress occurs when animals lack adequate water and feed sources or when these resources are insufficient in quantity, composition, or nutrient balance. Several strategies are essential to address these impacts. Genetic selection, epigenetic biomarkers, and exploration of epigenetic memories present promising avenues for enhancing the resilience of cattle populations and improving adaptation to environmental stresses. …

Extraordinary 21st Century Drought In The Po River Basin (Italy), Abel Andrés Ramírez Molina, Glenn Tootle, Giuseppe Formetta, Thomas Piechota, Jiaqi Gong

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Recent research identified 2022 as being the year of lowest seasonal April–May–June–July (AMJJ) observed streamflow for the Po River Basin (PRB) in the past two centuries. Expanding upon this research, we applied filters (2-year to 30-year filters) to the AMJJ observed streamflow and identified the late 20th and 21st century as displaying extreme drought. In this study, we introduce PALEO-RECON, an automated reconstruction tool developed to leverage tree ring-based proxies and streamline regression processes. Using PALEO-RECON, we reconstructed the AMJJ streamflow, applying traditional regression techniques and using a nested approach in which 30-, 40-, and 50-year windows within the ~200-year …

2024 December 19 - Tennessee Weekly Drought Summary, Tennessee Climate Office, East Tennessee State University

Tennessee Climate Office Weekly Drought Summaries

No abstract provided.

Invasion Stress Mitigates Climate Stress In A Brackish Marsh Amphipod, Lorna E. Haworth, Sarah Nancollas, Susie N. Landa, Anne E. Todgham, Richelle L. Tanner

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

1. Organisms in coastal brackish ecosystems face not only highly variable environmental conditions, but the intensity and stochasticity of these environmental conditions are anticipated to increase due to climate change. While environmental changes are often presented unilaterally as stressors, there are some anthropogenic environmental transformations, such as the introduction of habitat forming plant species, that may mitigate physiological stress imposed by warming. In Suisun Marsh in the California Delta, native plant canopies allow light and heat to penetrate to the understory yet the canopies of the introduced Phragmites australis reed block out sunlight and heat for organisms living below.
2. We set …

Flood Risks Surge In Unexpected Places, Leaving Americans Unprepared And Uninsured, Genna Y. Contino

Capstones

As weather patterns become more unpredictable, the amount of uninsured property loss is expected to soar – disproportionately impacting communities of color in the U.S. Hurricane Helene, which devastated the western North Carolina mountains, demonstrates this trend. Experts say boosting insurance literacy and updating floodplain maps will better prepare the country as it navigates a changing climate.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSApu2Io6-IjMynum2d3IakyOV2AZysgayw8f4ypNID6dF0j06vumogvy6tJ9XPvqhXtC76fs8ZHre9/pub

2024 December 12 - Tennessee Weekly Drought Summary, Tennessee Climate Office, East Tennessee State University

Tennessee Climate Office Weekly Drought Summaries

No abstract provided.

Advancing S2s Precipitation Outlooks Through The Weather Regime-Gaussian Mixture Model Framework, Wei Zhang

Funded Research Records

No abstract provided.

2024 December 05 - Tennessee Weekly Drought Summary, Tennessee Climate Office, East Tennessee State University

Tennessee Climate Office Weekly Drought Summaries

No abstract provided.

Comparing Metabolism And Hypoxia Tolerance Of Native And Non-Native Florida Freshwater Fishes In Climate Change Scenarios, Benjamin A. Share

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

As climate change brings rising water temperatures and lower dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations to freshwater bodies, it has become increasingly important to understand how this will affect ecosystems with established non-native or invasive species. Fishes of the family Cichlidae are the most pervasive non-native fishes in the Everglades and may increase their range further north under a changing climate. To better understand potential invasibility and competition with native fishes, the metabolism and hypoxia tolerance of non-native Blue Tilapia Oreochromis aureus was compared to native Bluegill Lepomis macrochirus when acclimated across a range of seasonal and projected temperatures. Intermittent-flow respirometry was …

2024 December - Tennessee Monthly Climate Report, Tennessee Climate Office, East Tennessee State University

Tennessee Climate Office Monthly Reports

Hi All,

December was relatively warm and wet for West Tennessee, while areas further east were closer to average. The main weather and climate stories of December 2024 included the strong blast of cold air early in the month that led to widespread light snowfall and record cold temperatures from December 3-6, and two cold fronts that brought strong thunderstorms, localized flash flooding, some small hail, and strong winds to the state on December 18 and December 28-29. Heavy rains on the 29th led to flash flooding and closure of roads and temporary bridges in parts of Carter County that …

Performance Of Acoustic Telemetry And Space Use Of Pallid Sturgeon In The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Christopher F. Pullano

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Pallid Sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus) are centenarian, potamodromous, rheophiles that historically occupied the Missouri River and Mississippi River basins. Listed on the U.S. Endangered Species Act in 1990, population declines are attributed to habitat fragmentation and degradation, as well as overharvest, and hybridization. A knowledge gap exists regarding the extent to which tributaries facilitate key life stages for Pallid Sturgeon. This study evaluated the capacity of acoustic telemetry to monitor the movements of Pallid Sturgeon in a shallow, braided tributary to the Missouri River. The specific objectives were to (1) evaluate the environmental variables influencing the performance of acoustic …

Sedimentary Characteristics Of Flood Deposits In Coastal And Fluvial Environments: Examples From Washover Fans (North Carolina, Usa) And Floodplain Deposits (Mississippi, Usa), Shara Gremillion

Dissertations

Extreme flooding from severe and prolonged meteorological events and / or overbanking rivers are some of the most deadly and expensive disasters globally, impacting millions of lives, the environment, and property. People living in vulnerable areas, such as near coasts and rivers, are the first to be impacted with effects of these flood hazards. Scientific studies and their results can aid communities and officials in planning and preparing for those flood impacts. In this three-part study, flood impacts from coastal storms in North Carolina, and flooding along the Mississippi River (MSR) in the state of Mississippi, USA are assessed from …

Investigating Nekton Response To Changing Salinities In The Mississippi Sound: An Experimental And Statistical Approach, Adam Murray

Master's Theses

The Mississippi Sound provides nursery habitats for many coastal species and is recognized for its commercial fisheries. Previous freshening events linked to the Bonnet Carré Spillway, a Mississippi River flood diversion structure, proved catastrophic for oyster populations in the Mississippi Sound, but effects on mobile fish and shellfish species are not well-defined. The planned Mid-Breton Sediment Diversion (MBSD), an initiative to combat wetland loss, is also forecasted to lower salinities in the region, increasing the need to better understand responses of commercially and ecologically important species to freshening events. The objective of this study was to characterize effects of salinity …

Time Series Decomposition Of Land Surface Temperature For Long-Term Trend Forecasting And Impact On Nesting Sea Turtle Habitats In The Arabian Gulf, Sachi Perera, Rommel H. Maneja, Mohamed Allali, Cyril Rakovski, Erik Linstead, Daniele Struppa, Ali Qasem, Hesham El-Askary

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Improving land surface temperature (LST) modeling is vital for mitigating climate change effects on various ecosystems and marine habitats such as important sea turtle habitats. Over the past decade, extreme temperatures have likely significantly affected nesting sea turtle habitats in the Arabian Gulf, with predominantly female hatchlings creating an imbalance in the sex ratio. Such shifts have profound implications for these habitats’ long-term survival and conservation management. This study leverages statistical machine learning models to measure ongoing temporal variations in LST. We break down the LST time series into trend, seasonal, and noise components using classical decomposition methods like X11, …

Thermal Inequity Along The Us-Mexico Border: An Analysis Of El Paso, Texas, Mia Alexandra Trevino

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The Urban Heat Island effect (UHI) combined with rising average global temperatures invariably results in thermal inequality, the unequal distribution of temperature patterns by different socioeconomic and sociodemographic groups, resulting in an array of negative public health impacts. This thesis research focused on the historical factors that contribute to UHI and tree cover in historically underserved neighborhoods in El Paso, Texas. The impact of maps from 1933-1954 created by the Home Ownerâ??s Loan Corporation (HOLC), a federal selective lending program, resulted in decades of disinvestment and inequality especially in redlined areas. Geospatial analyses of environmental and socioeconomic indicators such as …