Correction to: Buying Time with Runnels: a Climate Adaptation Tool for Salt Marshes

The first Mares Conference on Marine Ecosystems Health and Conservation was a successful event organized by the MARES doctoral programme bringing together over 150 researchers in Olhão, Portugal from November 17th to 21st 2014. The conference was opened by Prof. Dr. Hans-Otto Pörtner, whose keynote address focused on a sectoral analysis by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report (IPCC AR5) on the impacts of climate change on the world’s oceans. The first session on “Future oceans” was opened with a talk by Dr. Frank Melzner highlighting the problems calcifying invertebrates face in the warmer, more acidic and hypoxic waters. Other presenters dealt with changing global diversity patterns, ocean acidification, and the loss the genetic diversity. The second session on “Natural resources” was opened by Dr. Rainer Froese, who focused on whether or not the oceans can feed humanity. This talk introduced other contributions in the session, dealing with fisheries issues and Marine Protected Areas, as well as problems with proper identifications of species used for economic purposes. “Biodiversity effects” was the scope of the third session opened by a talk on oxygenation and marine biodiversity challenges in the 21st Century by Prof. Lisa Levin. Rapid ocean deoxygenation is a process which is currently less investigated but which has considerable effects on body size, taxonomic composition, habitat heterogeneity, and nutrient cycling. The following presentations focused on other factors having a strong effect on marine biodiversity, ranging from the harvesting of algae to the fragmentation of ecosystems. The fourth session addressed “Biological invasions”. Dr. Gregory Ruiz discussed biological invasions in North American marine ecosystems and the need for constant monitoring, and the use of a dynamic and multi-vector approach. Problems with invasive species in European waters were addressed with examples from the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea. The fifth session on “Ocean Noise” was opened by Prof. Peter Tyack with a talk on the effects of anthropogenic sound on marine mammals. Although ocean noise issues are often linked to marine mammals, the effects of sound related to marine constructions on fish behaviour, nicely illustrated that ocean noise is a factor with a much broader impact than expected. The last session of the first Mares Conference dealt with “Habitat loss”. Dr. Michael Beck focused on this topic with his talk on ‘Building Coastal Resilience for Climate Adaptation and Risk Reduction’. Talks in the session ranged from the use of telemetry as a tool to monitor species in changed habitats, to cases dealing with sea level rise related problems in for example salt-marshes. The first Mares Conference offered a broad range of oral and poster presentations, as well as digital presentations. The poster and digital object presentations included over 100 contributions.

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Buying Time with Runnels: a Climate Adaptation Tool for Salt Marshes

Estuaries and Coasts ◽

10.1007/s12237-021-01028-8 ◽

2022 ◽

Author(s):

Alice F. Besterman ◽

Rachel W. Jakuba ◽

Wenley Ferguson ◽

Diana Brennan ◽

Joseph E. Costa ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Salt Marsh ◽

Sea Level Rise ◽

Sea Level ◽

Salt Marshes ◽

Climate Adaptation ◽

Open Water ◽

Tidal Range ◽

Management Interventions

AbstractA prominent form of salt marsh loss is interior conversion to open water, driven by sea level rise in interaction with human activity and other stressors. Persistent inundation drowns vegetation and contributes to open water conversion in salt marsh interiors. Runnels are shallow channels originally developed in Australia to control mosquitoes by draining standing water, but recently used to restore marsh vegetation in the USA. Documentation on runnel efficacy is not widely available; yet over the past 10 years dozens of coastal adaptation projects in the northeastern USA have incorporated runnels. To better understand the efficacy of runnels used for restoration, we organized a workshop of 70 experts and stakeholders in coastal resource management. Through the workshop we developed a collective understanding of how runnels might be used to slow or reverse open water conversion, and identified unresolved questions. In this paper we present a synthesis of workshop discussions and results from a promising case study in which vegetation was restored at a degraded marsh within a few years of runnel construction. Despite case study outcomes, key questions remain on long-term runnel efficacy in marshes differing in elevation, tidal range, and management history. Runnel construction is unlikely to improve long-term marsh resilience alone, as it cannot address underlying causes of open water conversion. As a part of holistic climate planning that includes other management interventions, runnels may “buy time” for salt marshes to respond to management action, or adapt to sea level rise.

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The first Mares Conference on Marine Ecosystems Health and Conservation 2014: key messages and outcomes

10.7287/peerj.preprints.1490v1 ◽

2015 ◽

Author(s):

Tim Deprez ◽

Magda Vincx ◽

Adelino V.M. Canario ◽

Karim Erzini ◽

Katherine Brownlie

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Biological Invasions ◽

Salt Marshes ◽

Marine Mammals ◽

Climate Adaptation ◽

Marine Ecosystems ◽

Taxonomic Composition ◽

Marine Biodiversity ◽

Intergovernmental Panel ◽

Ocean Noise

The first Mares Conference on Marine Ecosystems Health and Conservation was a successful event organized by the MARES doctoral programme bringing together over 150 researchers in Olhão, Portugal from November 17th to 21st 2014. The conference was opened by Prof. Dr. Hans-Otto Pörtner, whose keynote address focused on a sectoral analysis by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report (IPCC AR5) on the impacts of climate change on the world’s oceans. The first session on “Future oceans” was opened with a talk by Dr. Frank Melzner highlighting the problems calcifying invertebrates face in the warmer, more acidic and hypoxic waters. Other presenters dealt with changing global diversity patterns, ocean acidification, and the loss the genetic diversity. The second session on “Natural resources” was opened by Dr. Rainer Froese, who focused on whether or not the oceans can feed humanity. This talk introduced other contributions in the session, dealing with fisheries issues and Marine Protected Areas, as well as problems with proper identifications of species used for economic purposes. “Biodiversity effects” was the scope of the third session opened by a talk on oxygenation and marine biodiversity challenges in the 21st Century by Prof. Lisa Levin. Rapid ocean deoxygenation is a process which is currently less investigated but which has considerable effects on body size, taxonomic composition, habitat heterogeneity, and nutrient cycling. The following presentations focused on other factors having a strong effect on marine biodiversity, ranging from the harvesting of algae to the fragmentation of ecosystems. The fourth session addressed “Biological invasions”. Dr. Gregory Ruiz discussed biological invasions in North American marine ecosystems and the need for constant monitoring, and the use of a dynamic and multi-vector approach. Problems with invasive species in European waters were addressed with examples from the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea. The fifth session on “Ocean Noise” was opened by Prof. Peter Tyack with a talk on the effects of anthropogenic sound on marine mammals. Although ocean noise issues are often linked to marine mammals, the effects of sound related to marine constructions on fish behaviour, nicely illustrated that ocean noise is a factor with a much broader impact than expected. The last session of the first Mares Conference dealt with “Habitat loss”. Dr. Michael Beck focused on this topic with his talk on ‘Building Coastal Resilience for Climate Adaptation and Risk Reduction’. Talks in the session ranged from the use of telemetry as a tool to monitor species in changed habitats, to cases dealing with sea level rise related problems in for example salt-marshes. The first Mares Conference offered a broad range of oral and poster presentations, as well as digital presentations. The poster and digital object presentations included over 100 contributions.

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Climate Adaptation Cost for Flood Risk Management in the Netherlands

Storm Surge Barriers to Protect New York City Against The Deluge ◽

10.1061/9780784412527.007 ◽

2012 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Jeroen C.J.H. Aerts ◽

Wouter J.W. Botzen

Keyword(s):

Risk Management ◽

The Netherlands ◽

Flood Risk ◽

Climate Adaptation ◽

Flood Risk Management ◽

Adaptation Cost

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Urbanization impacts on production and recruitment of Fundulus heteroclitus in salt marsh creeks

Marine Ecology Progress Series ◽

10.3354/meps13378 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 645 ◽

pp. 187-204

Author(s):

PJ Rudershausen ◽

JA Buckel

Keyword(s):

Salt Marsh ◽

Salt Marshes ◽

Fundulus Heteroclitus ◽

Multiple Factor Analysis ◽

Southeastern Usa ◽

Density Dependent ◽

Dependent Relationship ◽

Juvenile Abundance ◽

The Relationship ◽

Throw Trap

It is unclear how urbanization affects secondary biological production in estuaries in the southeastern USA. We estimated production of larval/juvenile Fundulus heteroclitus in salt marsh areas of North Carolina tidal creeks and tested for factors influencing production. F. heteroclitus were collected with a throw trap in salt marshes of 5 creeks subjected to a range of urbanization intensities. Multiple factor analysis (MFA) was used to reduce dimensionality of habitat and urbanization effects in the creeks and their watersheds. Production was then related to the first 2 dimensions of the MFA, month, and year. Lastly, we determined the relationship between creek-wide larval/juvenile production and abundance from spring and abundance of adults from autumn of the same year. Production in marsh (g m-2 d-1) varied between years and was negatively related to the MFA dimension that indexed salt marsh; higher rates of production were related to creeks with higher percentages of marsh. An asymptotic relationship was found between abundance of adults and creek-wide production of larvae/juveniles and an even stronger density-dependent relationship was found between abundance of adults and creek-wide larval/juvenile abundance. Results demonstrate (1) the ability of F. heteroclitus to maintain production within salt marsh in creeks with a lesser percentage of marsh as long as this habitat is not removed altogether and (2) a density-dependent link between age-0 production/abundance and subsequent adult recruitment. Given the relationship between production and marsh area, natural resource agencies should consider impacts of development on production when permitting construction in the southeastern USA.

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Ribbed mussels Geukensia demissa enhance nitrogen-removal services but not plant growth in restored eutrophic salt marshes

Marine Ecology Progress Series ◽

10.3354/meps13132 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 631 ◽

pp. 67-80 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

J Zhu ◽

C Zarnoch ◽

JS Gosnell ◽

M Alldred ◽

T Hoellein

Keyword(s):

Plant Growth ◽

Nitrogen Removal ◽

Salt Marshes ◽

Geukensia Demissa ◽

Ribbed Mussels

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The Methow Beaver Project: the Challenges of an Ecosystem Services Experiment

Case Studies in the Environment ◽

10.1525/cse.2017.001057 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 1-14

Author(s):

Philip Brick ◽

Kent Woodruff

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Climate Adaptation ◽

Castor Canadensis ◽

Water Storage ◽

Climate Projections ◽

High Mountain ◽

Natural Resource Policy ◽

Watershed Scale ◽

Positive Role ◽

Climate Conditions

This case explores the Methow Beaver Project (MBP), an ambitious experiment to restore beaver (Castor canadensis) to a high mountain watershed in Washington State, USA. The Pacific Northwest is already experiencing weather regimes consistent with longer term climate projections, which predict longer and drier summers and stronger and wetter winter storms. Ironically, this combination makes imperative more water storage in one of the most heavily dammed regions in the nation. Although the positive role that beaver can play in watershed enhancement has been well known for decades, no project has previously attempted to re-introduce beaver on a watershed scale with a rigorous monitoring protocol designed to document improved water storage and temperature conditions needed for human uses and aquatic species. While the MBP has demonstrated that beaver can be re-introduced on a watershed scale, it has been much more difficult to scientifically demonstrate positive changes in water retention and stream temperature, given hydrologic complexity, unprecedented fire and floods, and the fact that beaver are highly mobile. This case study can help environmental studies students and natural resource policy professionals think about the broader challenges of diffuse, ecosystem services approaches to climate adaptation. Beaver-produced watershed improvements will remain difficult to quantify and verify, and thus will likely remain less attractive to water planners than conventional storage dams. But as climate conditions put additional pressure on such infrastructure, it is worth considering how beaver might be employed to augment watershed storage capacity, even if this capacity is likely to remain at least in part inscrutable.

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