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You are here: Home / OLD National Capital Region's Biennial Spotlight on National Park Resources / Spotlight Posters on National Park Resources

Spotlight Posters on National Park Resources

CCVA Fact Sheet Meadows

CCVA Meadow
CCVA Meadow

Publication Date: 2018

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Fact Sheet: Assessing Vulnerability of Species and Habitats

New vulnerability assessments for 41 species and 3 habitats in the Appalachians now available.
New vulnerability assessments for 41 species and 3 habitats in the Appalachians now available.

Publication Date: 2017

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Environmental flows in the context of unconventional natural gas development in the Marcellus Shale

This study clarifies how additional water demands in the region may adversely affect freshwater biological integrity. The results make clear that policies to limit or prevent water withdrawals from smaller streams can reduce the risk of ecosystem impairment. 2016 Scientific Reports associated with the AppLCC-funded research to Cornell.
This study clarifies how additional water demands in the region may adversely affect freshwater biological integrity. The results make clear that policies to limit or prevent water withdrawals from smaller streams can reduce the risk of ecosystem impairment. 2016 Scientific Reports associated with the AppLCC-funded research to Cornell.

Publication Date: 2016

Source: 2016 Ecological Applications, 27(1), 2017, pp. 37–55

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Assessing Future Energy Development Across the Appalachians

Assessing Future Energy Development across the Appalachian LCC used models that combined data on energy development trends and identified where these may intersect with important natural resource and ecosystem services to give a more comprehensive picture of what potential energy development could look like in the Appalachians. Ultimately this information is intended to support dialogue and conservation on how to effectively avoid, minimize, and offset impacts from energy development to important natural areas and the valuable services they provide.

Assessing Future Energy Development Across the Appalachians - Read More…

Development of a Spatially Explicit Surface Coal Mining Predictive Model

The goal of this project was to create a spatially explicit 1km2 grid cell model for the Appalachian Landscape Conservation Cooperative (Figure 1) predicting where surface coal mining is likely to occur in in a projected future time period, under two different scenarios. To accomplish this goal we combined GIS spatial analysis, a Random Forests predictive model, and future mining buildout scenarios. This report provides a detailed methodology of our approach and discussion of our results.
The goal of this project was to create a spatially explicit 1km2 grid cell model for the Appalachian Landscape Conservation Cooperative (Figure 1) predicting where surface coal mining is likely to occur in in a projected future time period, under two different scenarios. To accomplish this goal we combined GIS spatial analysis, a Random Forests predictive model, and future mining buildout scenarios. This report provides a detailed methodology of our approach and discussion of our results.

Publication Date: 2014

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Riparian Restoration to Promote Climate Change Resilience in Eastern U.S. Streams

Provision of shade via riparian restoration is a well-established management adaptation strategy to mitigate against temperature increases in streams. Effective use of this strategy depends upon accurately identifying vulnerable, unforested riparian areas in priority coldwater stream habitats. An innovative riparian planting and restoration decision support tool is now available to the conservation community. This user-friendly tool allows managers and decision-makers to rapidly identify and prioritize areas along the banks of rivers, streams, and lakes for restoration, making these ecosystems more resilient to disturbance and future changes in climate.

Riparian Restoration to Promote Climate Change Resilience in Eastern U.S. Streams - Read More…

Cave and Karst Data Access

The cave and karst dataset from this research is available through our Conservation Planning Atlas.
These GIS data represent the input and results of a spatial statistical model used to examine the hypothesis that the presence of major faunal groups of cave obligate species could be predicted based on features of the Earth surface.
Georeferenced records of cave obligate amphipods, crayfish, fish, isopods, beetles, millipedes, pseudoscorpions, spiders, and springtails within the area of Appalachian Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) in the eastern United States (Illinois to Virginia, and New York to Alabama) were assigned to 20 x 20 km grid cells. Habitat suitability for these faunal groups was modeled using logistic regression with twenty predictor variables within each grid cell, such as percent karst, soil features, temperature, precipitation, and elevation. The models successfully predicted the presence of a group greater than 65 percent of the time (mean=88 percent) for the presence of single grid cell endemics, and for all faunal groups except pseudoscorpions. The most common predictor variables were latitude, percent karst, and the standard deviation of the Topographic Position Index (TPI), a measure of landscape rugosity within each grid cell. The overall success of these models points to a number of important connections between the surface and cave environments, and some of these, especially soil features and topographic variability, suggest new research directions. These models should prove to be useful tools in predicting the presence of species in understudied areas.

Fact Sheet: Stream Classification

Developing consistent region-wide information to ensure enough water for people and wildlife.
Developing consistent region-wide information to ensure enough water for people and wildlife.

Publication Date: 2017

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Species and Habitat Vulnerability Assessments of Appalachian Species and Habitats

Future climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies will be dependent on the best available projections of how the regional climate will change and the impacts those changes will have on the region’s natural and cultural resources. Understanding the vulnerability of various species and habitats to climate change within the Appalachian LCC is of critical importance for making effective conservation decisions. The AppLCC funded a Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment research project that addresses several factors: 1) how the Cooperative should acquire information about the climate vulnerability of Appalachian species and habitats to develop vulnerability assessments for a suite of key species and habitats to share with partners; 2) compilation of known vulnerability assessments of species and habitats, and 3) new climate change vulnerability assessments of selected species and habitats in the AppLCC region.

Species and Habitat Vulnerability Assessments of Appalachian Species and Habitats - Read More…

Cumberland - Southern Appalachian Climate Change Vulnerability Species Assessments

These results are a compilation of climate change vulnerability assessments in the southeastern portion of the LCC, covering the area from southern West Virginia, south to Alabama, west to eastern Kentucky and Tennessee. Hyperlinks to additional information are separated into two additional spreadsheets, one for aquatic and subterranean, and another for terrestrial species.

Click Here to View the Spreadsheet Online

Click Here to Download the Excel Spreadsheet

Additional Information on Aquatic and Subterranean Species

Additional Information on Terrestrial Species

Southern Appalachian Climate Change Vulnerability Species Assessments Excel Spreadsheet

Downloadable spreadsheet to accommodate the Cumberland - Southern Appalachian Climate Change Vulnerability Species Assessments.
Southern Appalachian Climate Change Vulnerability Species Assessments Excel Spreadsheet
Downloadable spreadsheet to accommodate the Cumberland - Southern Appalachian Climate Change Vulnerability Species Assessments.

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Conservation Challenge

Water withdrawals from human activities can alter surface water resources and impact aquatic habitats and organisms. The most commonly studied sources of flow alterations are typically dams and water withdrawals associated with agricultural operations and industrial uses. However, the emergence of hydraulic fracturing has led to the rapid expansion of natural gas drilling and has made it a key source in altering surface water resources in the Marcellus Shale region.

from: Brian Buchanan et al., 2015

The Appalachian LCC geography covers the entire Marcellus Shale region in the Central Appalachians, including portions of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia. Because the LCC has identified energy development as a key driver of landscape change, the Cornell research area focused on the Marcellus Shale region and watersheds that extend beyond the Appalachian LCC borders.

Hydraulic fracturing is a process of drilling and injecting large quantities of water (often obtained from nearby streams) underground to break apart shale rocks and release natural gas. This energy process has rapidly expanded in Pennsylvania and West Virginia and could likely spread into Ohio and New York.

The Marcellus Shale region is characterized by geologic, topographic, and climatic variation that has created a variety of stream habitats and aquatic communities. This variety has led to considerable aquatic biodiversity. For example, field surveys summarized in this study suggest the region is home to more than 220 different fish species, including some threatened and locally endangered species. Furthermore, nearly 135,000 streams drain into three major economically and ecologically important watersheds: the Susquehanna, Ohio, and Delaware River basins.

The abundant biodiversity along with the many societal benefits provided by streams in the region (from energy to recreational) highlight the need for achieving sustainable river and stream flows that balance human/energy needs with healthy ecosystems.

Environmental Flow Analysis for the Marcellus Shale Region PDF

A technical report submitted to the Appalachian Landscape Conservation Cooperative in completion of grant# 2012-03 - Final Report
Environmental Flow Analysis for the Marcellus Shale Region PDF
A technical report submitted to the Appalachian Landscape Conservation Cooperative in completion of grant# 2012-03 - Final Report

Publication Date: 2015

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Environmental Flows from Water Withdrawals in the Marcellus Shale Region

The Appalachian LCC collaborated with Cornell University to study the environmental impacts of water withdrawals in the Central Appalachian region. The rivers and streams of the Central Appalachians are home to more than 200 species of fish and other aquatic life. They also provide a reliable source of drinking water, recreational opportunities and associated economic benefits to people living in large cities and surrounding communities. This research looks at how the region’s surface freshwater supply – and the health of natural systems delivering this resource – have been impacted and may be altered in the coming years under increasing water withdrawals. It focuses on the Marcellus Shale region in the Central Appalachians, including portions of NY, PA, OH, MD, WV and VA.

Environmental Flows from Water Withdrawals in the Marcellus Shale Region - Read More…

Video Update: Aquatic Ecological Flows Research

This presentation from Dr. Todd Walter of Cornell University provides an update to the Steering Committee on this Appalachian LCC funded research project. The Aquatic Ecological Flows project is providing a report assessing availability of hydrologic and ecological flow model(s) suitable for the region, an assessment of available ecological data to inform the ecological flow model(s), the application of the model(s) to anticipate how changes in stream flow will affect environmental conditions, and a report that forecasts changes in hydrology and associated biological responses to critical watersheds from different water resource development scenarios.

You can also watch this video on our Vimeo Channel.

Stream Impacts from Water Withdrawals Phase 1 Report

The 1st phase of this research project involved reviewing existing tools and gathering available data within the project area on hydrologic and ecological flow model(s) that would be suitable for the region.
Stream Impacts from Water Withdrawals Phase 1 Report
The 1st phase of this research project involved reviewing existing tools and gathering available data within the project area on hydrologic and ecological flow model(s) that would be suitable for the region.

Publication Date: 2013

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Data Access

Phase I of this project involved an inventory of flow models and the underlying, or potential, data sources from instream monitoring networks.

The inventory helped to determine what ecological flow models - that can predict both low and high flows - were in use or were applicable to the Marcellus Shale region and recommended suitable model(s) for instream flow predictions both dependent and independent of ecological/biological data. The deliverables for Phase 1 of this project included a report that assessed the availability of hydrologic and ecological flow models suitable for the Marcellus Shale region and a georeferenced summary of the adequacy of available ecological data to inform ecological flow model(s) for streams within the Marcellus Shale region. The georeferenced summary assessment is available as an Access database.

The database consists of five main tables. These tables include:

  • tbl_datasets_marcellus: provides information on original dataset and states represented for each dataset
  • tbl_originators_marcellus: provides information on data collecting agency and states represented for each originator
  • tbl_fish_species_lookup_marcellus: provides unique ids (maris_fishspecies_id), common names and scientific names at family, genus and species level
  • tbl_loc_info_marcellus: provides unique ids for collection sites (originator_station_id) and associated site information, including latitude and longitude, which can be used to link location information to fish collection information. Additional queries were run to create refined location tables
      • tbl_location_marcellus_state_stream_sites: all stream fish collection sites within states or ecoregions that overlap the Marcellus boundary
      • tbl_location_marcellus_all_sites: all fish collection sites within the Marcellus boundary
  • tbl_fish_info_marcellus: provides unique ids for each collection event (originator_sample_id) which can be used to link collection information (date, collection methods, effort, species, abundance) with site information.

 

Information from the last three tables (tbl_fish_species_lookup_marcellus, tbl_location_info_marcellus, tbl_fish_info_marcellus) can be combined based on unique ids and queried based on criteria in the tables (i.e. collection method, targeted sampling verses community sampling, etc.) to develop fish datasets for different analyses in the future.

In addition, two shapefiles have been created from the database. These shapefiles display the location of the sampling points. If a user wants to view the results of a sampling station, they will need to find the station using the shapefile and then refer to the results table. This process can be completed manually by looking up the information in Access or a join can be performed in ArcGIS to connect these tables so all of the information appears in one attribute table.

Key Findings & Management Recommendations

The Appalachian LCC-funded study is the first region-wide assessment to document “flow-ecology” relationships – showing connections between observed impacts under current water withdrawal standards (based on daily water gauge data collected over the last 15 years and fish surveys) and the decline in freshwater fish communities.

Based on the assessed relationships and factors such as season, stream size, and projected expansion of natural gas development in the region, scientists developed models showing how water withdrawals impact sustainability of aquatic ecosystems. Cornell researchers also applied a model to vary water withdrawal scenarios – for example from current standards to a more seasonally variable scenario – that provided critical information on how flow regimes can be modified to achieve a balance in meeting both human/energy water needs and those required to maintain healthy ecosystems and diversity.

Key findings and recommendations from the research include:

  • Flow-ecology relationships indicate fish are sensitive not only to changes in low flows, but also to changes in a variety of flow components (season, median, and high flows). This has important implications for setting sustainable flow standards and designing monitoring campaigns.
  • A considerable number of streams are at high risk of flow alteration due to withdrawals during the summer and fall seasons – especially smaller streams in the southwestern (western portions of Ohio River Basin) and northern (headwaters of the Upper Susquehanna and Hudson River Basins) sections of the region.
  • Though these high-risk streams are individually small, combined they drain the majority of the study region.
  • Fixed minimum aquatic flow standards that do not consider seasonal changes in flows and throughout the year may not be adequate to sustain fish populations and aquatic biodiversity.
  • But a balance can be realized if flow standards due to water withdrawal regulations vary with stream size and season and thus provide the necessary balance between human needs and flows needed to sustain fish and aquatic ecosystems.

Final Report: Environmental Flow Analysis for the Marcellus Shale Region

 

Download the PDF

or read it online:

Bat Summary for Appalachian LCC Cave/Karst Study

This document contains a list of the bat species that regularly use caves and mines in the Appalachian LCC region, federal status of these species, and sources of bat data.
This document contains a list of the bat species that regularly use caves and mines in the Appalachian LCC region, federal status of these species, and sources of bat data.

Publication Date: 2016

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