USGS science plays an essential role in helping natural resource managers, communities, and policy makers prepare and mitigate for changing environmental conditions.
USGS science plays an essential role in helping natural resource managers, communities, and policy makers prepare and mitigate for changing environmental conditions. As storms become more intense and frequent, sea level rises, temperatures warm, and more carbon is released into the atmosphere, the research USGS conducts is critical for understanding the implications of these changes.
Coastal communities are particularly at risk to climate change impacts. The USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research Center implements a variety of approaches to understand how coastal ecosystems particularly in the southeastern United States, along the Gulf of Mexico, and in the Caribbean, are responding to changing environmental conditions and what this might mean for the coastal communities that depend upon the services they provide.
Tropicalization of Species
As temperatures warm, tropical, cold-sensitive species such as mangroves, are expected to expand their range north, displacing temperate species and habitats. While these species are usually limited by freezing temperatures, as climate changes, these extreme cold events are expected to become less frequent, less intense, and shorter-lasting. These shifts could lead to economic, ecological, and human health consequences, including the spread of insect-borne diseases and invasive species. USGS WARC scientists are investigating the “tropicalization” of plants and animals in the southeast to better understand the ecological implications of such changes, as well as their ability to recover following extreme winter temperatures. USGS and partners are working to anticipate future changes and ensure resource managers and policy makers have the information to make effective decisions related to the protection, restoration, and adaption of coastal habitats and species throughout the southeastern United States.
Climate Change and Storms in Hurricane Hole
Warming sea temperatures, ocean acidification, hurricanes, and disease are threatening corals throughout Florida and the Caribbean. In St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, three bays within Hurricane Hole, which lies in Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument, offered a unique refuge for corals seeking protection from changing environmental conditions; USGS scientists discovered more than 30 reef-building coral species growing on and near the prop roots of red mangroves trees. However, Hurricanes Irma and Maria severely damaged this biodiverse habitat when they swept over the island in 2017. Red mangrove trees were uprooted, and their roots were stripped of the sponges, corals, and other marine organisms that lived on them, while many other corals were overturned or buried in rubble. USGS WARC scientists are now investigating the effects these storms had on the mangroves and corals within Hurricane Hole and the potential for their recovery. USGS researchers from WARC and the NWHC are also working with partners to better understand and combat the stony coral tissue loss disease outbreak that has rapidly spread throughout the reef-building corals in the Caribbean and Florida.
Carbon Sequestration in Coastal Wetlands
Wetlands may be less extensive than other US ecosystems such as forests and grasslands, but they have the ability to capture and store more carbon per unit area, making them an incredible climate change mitigation tool. However, when wetlands are damaged or destroyed, the services they provide are diminished or even lost, including their ability to store atmospheric carbon. Although almost half of all coastal wetlands in the United States are located along the northern Gulf of Mexico, these wetlands are rapidly disappearing, and with them goes the potential for carbon storage. USGS WARC scientists study wetland ecosystems to better understand their capacity for long-term carbon sequestration, how these ecosystems might respond to natural and human-induced changes, and how such changes might affect coastal wetlands’ resiliency and capacity for carbon storage in the future. This information is directly used by USGS computer models that can help inform restoration and management plans in the Mississippi River Delta and southeastern U.S. with the capacity to expand to the national scale.
Mapping Land Area Change in Louisiana
The wetlands lining the coast of Louisiana are home to important fish and wildlife species, protect shorelines from erosion and storm surge, and filter contaminants from the water. However, the state has lost more than a quarter of its coastal wetlands, an area about the size of Delaware, since the 1930s. Changes to the Mississippi River and its ability to carry sediment downstream to the Gulf of Mexico, coupled with sea-level rise, hurricanes, and land subsidence have contributed to the disappearance of these important ecosystems. USGS WARC scientists use historical surveys and aerial and satellite data to monitor the occurrence and rates of wetland change. By quantifying land area change over time, USGS WARC researchers are able to document and assess the short- and long-term effects of natural and anthropogenic factors on coastal wetland loss.
USGS science plays an essential role in helping natural resource managers, communities, and policy makers prepare and mitigate for changing environmental conditions.
USGS science plays an essential role in helping natural resource managers, communities, and policy makers prepare and mitigate for changing environmental conditions. As storms become more intense and frequent, sea level rises, temperatures warm, and more carbon is released into the atmosphere, the research USGS conducts is critical for understanding the implications of these changes.
Coastal communities are particularly at risk to climate change impacts. The USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research Center implements a variety of approaches to understand how coastal ecosystems particularly in the southeastern United States, along the Gulf of Mexico, and in the Caribbean, are responding to changing environmental conditions and what this might mean for the coastal communities that depend upon the services they provide.
Tropicalization of Species
As temperatures warm, tropical, cold-sensitive species such as mangroves, are expected to expand their range north, displacing temperate species and habitats. While these species are usually limited by freezing temperatures, as climate changes, these extreme cold events are expected to become less frequent, less intense, and shorter-lasting. These shifts could lead to economic, ecological, and human health consequences, including the spread of insect-borne diseases and invasive species. USGS WARC scientists are investigating the “tropicalization” of plants and animals in the southeast to better understand the ecological implications of such changes, as well as their ability to recover following extreme winter temperatures. USGS and partners are working to anticipate future changes and ensure resource managers and policy makers have the information to make effective decisions related to the protection, restoration, and adaption of coastal habitats and species throughout the southeastern United States.
Climate Change and Storms in Hurricane Hole
Warming sea temperatures, ocean acidification, hurricanes, and disease are threatening corals throughout Florida and the Caribbean. In St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, three bays within Hurricane Hole, which lies in Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument, offered a unique refuge for corals seeking protection from changing environmental conditions; USGS scientists discovered more than 30 reef-building coral species growing on and near the prop roots of red mangroves trees. However, Hurricanes Irma and Maria severely damaged this biodiverse habitat when they swept over the island in 2017. Red mangrove trees were uprooted, and their roots were stripped of the sponges, corals, and other marine organisms that lived on them, while many other corals were overturned or buried in rubble. USGS WARC scientists are now investigating the effects these storms had on the mangroves and corals within Hurricane Hole and the potential for their recovery. USGS researchers from WARC and the NWHC are also working with partners to better understand and combat the stony coral tissue loss disease outbreak that has rapidly spread throughout the reef-building corals in the Caribbean and Florida.
Carbon Sequestration in Coastal Wetlands
Wetlands may be less extensive than other US ecosystems such as forests and grasslands, but they have the ability to capture and store more carbon per unit area, making them an incredible climate change mitigation tool. However, when wetlands are damaged or destroyed, the services they provide are diminished or even lost, including their ability to store atmospheric carbon. Although almost half of all coastal wetlands in the United States are located along the northern Gulf of Mexico, these wetlands are rapidly disappearing, and with them goes the potential for carbon storage. USGS WARC scientists study wetland ecosystems to better understand their capacity for long-term carbon sequestration, how these ecosystems might respond to natural and human-induced changes, and how such changes might affect coastal wetlands’ resiliency and capacity for carbon storage in the future. This information is directly used by USGS computer models that can help inform restoration and management plans in the Mississippi River Delta and southeastern U.S. with the capacity to expand to the national scale.
Mapping Land Area Change in Louisiana
The wetlands lining the coast of Louisiana are home to important fish and wildlife species, protect shorelines from erosion and storm surge, and filter contaminants from the water. However, the state has lost more than a quarter of its coastal wetlands, an area about the size of Delaware, since the 1930s. Changes to the Mississippi River and its ability to carry sediment downstream to the Gulf of Mexico, coupled with sea-level rise, hurricanes, and land subsidence have contributed to the disappearance of these important ecosystems. USGS WARC scientists use historical surveys and aerial and satellite data to monitor the occurrence and rates of wetland change. By quantifying land area change over time, USGS WARC researchers are able to document and assess the short- and long-term effects of natural and anthropogenic factors on coastal wetland loss.