State of the Science

Project Overview Sea-level rise, stronger storms, and coral reef bleaching events occurring with climate change threaten infrastructure, livelihoods, and cultural practices in Hawai'i. Researchers supported by this Pacific Islands CASC project will integrate Indigenous Knowledge and scientific research to co-produce climate adaptation strategies and conservation guidance for the...

Invasive species have had devastating effects on Pacific Island biodiversity, ecosystem services, food, infrastructure, culture, and public health. Meanwhile, climate change is expected to worsen droughts and wildfires, increase storm severity, and raise the temperature, acidity, and sea level, all of which exacerbate invasive species issues and complicate management. Invasive species...

The Gulf of America coast of Louisiana and Texas faces threats from increasingly destructive extreme weather, heat, subsidence, and coastal erosion. Inland areas also face stronger storms, floods, and shifts in land development patterns. Increasing drought and extreme heat in Texas and New Mexico also exacerbate fires and floods. All of these regions are culturally rich, rapidly changing...

Inland fisheries have tremendous cultural, economic, and subsistence value. However, climate change brings new stresses to land-locked fisheries that raise novel challenges for resource managers. One fundamental challenge in inland fisheries is how to best assess and manage data-limited fisheries when resources are finite and uncertainty is pervasive. To address this challenge, we will...

Mountain ecosystems are prioritized by the North Central CASC due to the provided water resources, recreation opportunities, and endemic biodiversity. Mountain ecosystems are vulnerable to climate change due to elevation-dependent warming, loss of snowpack, reduction in physical area at higher elevations, and general sensitivity of alpine species to climate. Current climate adaptation...

In Hawaiʻi, a large percentage of historically forested areas have been lost, driven in part by changes in land use, such as the conversion of forests into pastures for livestock. This transformation has not only resulted in widespread loss of native biodiversity and important ecosystem functions but has also increased the risk of fire on the landscape. Though targeted restoration...

Stretching almost 1,900 miles from Colorado to the Gulf of America, the Rio Grande/Río Bravo Basin (RGB) supplies drinking water for more than 6 million people and irrigation for about 2 million acres of land. The river also supports habitat for many at-risk and endangered species. Because of its size and diverse ecosystem services, the RGB faces complex shared-management challenges that...

Ecological drought impacts ecosystems across the U.S. that support a wide array of economic activity and ecosystem services. Managing drought-vulnerable natural resources is a growing challenge for federal, state and Tribal land managers. Plant communities and animal populations are strongly linked to patterns of drought and soil moisture availability. As a result, ecosystems may be...

Increasing temperatures, decreasing rainfall, and more intense droughts and storms are threatening the health and wellbeing of ecosystems and communities across Hawai‘i and the Pacific Islands. Future rainfall and temperature projections provide some insight into future change, but uncertainty remains in when, where, and how impacts will manifest, presenting daunting challenges to...

Federal and state agencies gather information; work with partners, stakeholders, and others; and then write planning documents that guide their natural and cultural resource management. These planning documents are most useful when they reflect current and anticipated conditions, including information about climate change. However, there has been little research about what climate...

Climate change threatens to damage historical sites and disrupt cultural practices in communities around the world, including the South-Central United States. Researchers are now paying greater attention to the impact of climate change on these cultural resources, but currently little guidance exists for decision makers who are interested in protecting them. Because communities value and...

Project Overview Human fossil fuel use and agricultural practices have increased atmospheric nitrogen deposits (e.g., through snow and rain) to mountain ecosystems. This, along with increasing measurable climate warming is affecting soil and water acidity and altering nutrient balances. In this project, North Central CASC-supported researchers will analyze decades of unexplored data...