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ESRI has released the second edition of it’s free best practices e-book title “GIS for Climate Change.” The second edition features a new introduction by ESRI president Jack Dangermond and Dr. James Baker of the William J. Clinton Foundation. Articles include:
- The Nature Conservancy Deploys ESRI Technology for Climate Trend Analysis
- Assessing Economic Biomass Resources in California with GIS
- Carbon Nation
- Building an Oasis in the Desert
- Conserving Bolivia’s Critical Resources
- Mapping the Solar Potential of Rooftops
- Harvesting Efficiently Using Mobile GIS
- Mapping the Ayles Ice Shelf Break
- National Carbon Sequestration (NatCarb)
- Renewable Energy—No Longer the Impossible Dream!
- Westchester County’s Green Map Aids County Global Warming Task Force Plans
“Primary responsibility is to analyse high resolution hyperspectral and Lidar data of forest ecosystems located in the complex alpine region. The scientific activity aims to understand the sensitivity of carbon and nitrogen cycles to climate and land use changes using spatially processbased models, remote sensing and other spatial techniques on a range of different spatial scales. Models development and analysis, parameter estimation, sensitivity analysis and simulations of different scenarios are other objectives.
“Experience with Lidar and hyperspectral data analysis in complex areas and previous work with large database are required. Candidates will be preferably familiar with a programming language such as C, FORTRAN, or MATLAB and have prior experience or training in forest ecosystems classification and analysis of Lidar data for forest structure and biophysical parameter estimation.
“The candidate should also have experience in planning and implementing scientific projects, including writing research proposals, and have a good written scientific record.”
- More information [PDF]
By Jane G. Ferrigno, Alison J. Cook, Amy M. Mathie, Richard S. Williams, Jr., Charles Swithinbank, Kevin M. Foley, Adrian J. Fox, Janet W. Thomson, and Jörn Sievers
“Reduction in the area and volume of the two polar ice sheets is intricately linked to changes in global climate, and the resulting rise in sea level could severely impact the densely populated coastal regions on Earth. Antarctica is Earth’s largest reservoir of glacial ice. Melting of the West Antarctic part alone of the Antarctic ice sheet would cause a sea-level rise of approximately 6 meters (m), and the potential sea-level rise after melting of the entire Antarctic ice sheet is estimated to be 65 m (Lythe and others, 2001) to 73 m (Williams and Hall, 1993). The mass balance (the net volumetric gain or loss) of the Antarctic ice sheet is highly complex, responding differently to different climatic and other conditions in each region (Vaughan, 2005). In a review paper, Rignot and Thomas (2002) concluded that the West Antarctic ice sheet is probably becoming thinner overall; although it is known to be thickening in the west, it is thinning in the north. The mass balance of the East Antarctic ice sheet is thought by Davis and others (2005) to be positive on the basis of the change in satellite-altimetry measurements made between 1992 and 2003.
“Measurement of changes in area and mass balance of the Antarctic ice sheet was given a very high priority in recommendations by the Polar Research Board of the National Research Council (1986), in subsequent recommendations by the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) (1989, 1993), and by the National Science Foundation’s (1990) Division of Polar Programs. On the basis of these recommendations, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) decided that the archive of early 1970s Landsat 1, 2, and 3 Multispectral Scanner (MSS) images of Antarctica and the subsequent repeat coverage made possible with Landsat and other satellite images provided an excellent means of documenting changes in the cryospheric coastline of Antarctica (Ferrigno and Gould, 1987). The availability of this information provided the impetus for carrying out a comprehensive analysis of the glaciological features of the coastal regions and changes in ice fronts of Antarctica (Swithinbank, 1988; Williams and Ferrigno, 1988). The project was later modified to include Landsat 4 and 5 MSS and Thematic Mapper (TM) images (and in some areas Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) images), RADARSAT images, aerial photography, and other data where available, to compare changes that occurred during a 20- to 25- or 30-year time interval (or longer where data were available, as in the Antarctic Peninsula). The results of the analysis are being used to produce a digital database and a series of USGS Geologic Investigations Series Maps (I-2600) (Williams and others, 1995; Swithinbank and others, 2003a,b, 2004; Ferrigno and others, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and in press; and Williams and Ferrigno, 2005) (available online at http://www.glaciers.er.usgs.gov).”
- View the map online [PDF]
Global Change Biology, April 2009, 15:2874–2884
Luigi Ponti , Q. Antonio Cossu, and Andrew Paul Gutierrez
“Global warming will affect all species but in largely unknown ways, with certain regions such as the Mediterranean Basin and its major islands including Sardinia being particularly vulnerable to desertification. Olive (Olea europaea) is of eco-social importance in the Mediterranean where it was domesticated. This drought-resistant crop and its major pest, the olive fly (Bactrocera oleae), have tight biological links that make them a suitable model system for climate change studies in the Mediterranean. Here a physiologically based weather-driven demographic model of olive and olive fly is used to analyze in detail this plant–pest system in Sardinia under observed weather (10 years of daily data from 48 locations), three climate warming scenarios (increases of 1, 2 and 3 °C in average daily temperature), and a 105-year climate model scenario for the Alghero location (e.g. 1951–2055). GRASS GIS is used to map model predictions of olive bloom dates and yield, total season-long olive fly pupae, and percent fruit attacked by the fly. Island wide simulation data are summarized using multivariate regression. Model calibration with field bloom date data were performed to increase simulation accuracy of olive flowering predictions under climate change. As climate warms, the range of olive is predicted to expand to higher altitudes and consolidate elsewhere, especially in coastal areas. The range of olive fly will extend into previously unfavorable cold areas, but will contract in warm inland lowlands where temperatures approach its upper thermal limits. Consequently, many areas of current high risk are predicted to have decreased risk of fly damage with climate warming. Simulation using a 105-year climate model scenario for Alghero, Sardinia predicts changes in the olive–olive fly system expected to occur if climate continued to warm at the low rate observed during in the past half century.”
More information
The National Park Service is now accepting applications for the George Melendez Wright Climate Change Fellowship.
The goals of this student fellowship program are to support new and innovative research on climate change impacts to protected areas and to increase the use of scientific knowledge toward resource management. Awards will be made in the range of $5,000 to $20,000 per fellowship for research to be undertaken in calendar year 2010.
Projects may consist of exploratory research that could lead to a larger project funded by other sources, but must result in tangible outcomes that are aimed at informing resource decisions.
Applications are welcomed for proposed research in any area relevant to the natural and cultural resources of units of the National Park System. Examples include projects addressing vulnerability and risk assessment; adaptation strategies; public perceptions and values; and impacts to cultural landscapes and ethnographic resources.
Eligibility: Graduate students or superior upper-level undergraduate students (3.5 GPA or above) currently enrolled in a U.S. accredited college or university.
Deadline: Applications must be received by March 15th; applicants will be notified of selection decisions by April 5th. Fellowship details and an application form are available at the link below.
- More information [PDF]
Resources for the Future (RFF) seeks a highly-motivated individual to lead the development and spatial modeling of a major climate change and forestry GIS tool for policy makers, stakeholders and investors. Qualified candidates will have a graduate degree in a quantitative social science such as geography, economics, environmental science and management or related field. Must have demonstrated experience with raster datasets and raster-based spatial analysis using large global raster datasets. Familiarity with policy related to climate change, forestry, agriculture, and REDD+ and experience with forestry and land use datasets preferred. Government or peer-reviewed publications using GIS should be mentioned in application materials.
NSF grant supports innovative approach to community-based environmental research
Environmental experts fear that climate change—rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns—could have a devastating impact on agricultural and pastoral communities in Africa. An innovative research project led by Ohio University geographers uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to draw on the local knowledge of these rural societies, in an effort to explore options for community-based adaptation to climate change.
Ohio University geographer Thomas Smucker and colleagues received a $571,859 grant from the National Science Foundation to support the participatory research project. Communities in Northern Tanzania will work with the research team to collect information on rural livelihoods and environmental management.
Ohio University geographer Elizabeth Wangui conducts field work in the Maasai community in northern Tanzania. Photo courtesy of Thomas Smucker.
The project will use the latest mapping technologies and develop a GIS for integrating field data and climate change projections. GIS-based analysis will enable the team to better assess future climate stresses and ways local communities can adapt to them.
The researchers hope that community organizations will learn the benefits of using GIS to assess adaptation options in East Africa, which has a heavy concentration of agricultural and pastoral communities vulnerable to drought.
“One goal of the project is to empower local civil society organizations to interact and collaborate with local government entities,” said Smucker, a visiting assistant professor of geography and director of the International Development Studies Program at Ohio University. “Not only does this create layers of information that can help us to understand what’s going on, but it can further mobilize critical thinking within the community.”
The researchers want to avoid the pitfalls of many past development projects in Africa in which outside experts have implemented unsustainable or inappropriate projects for local communities, Smucker noted.
GIS, a computer system that analyzes geographic information and creates maps, traditionally has been used mainly by experts, explains co-investigator Daniel Weiner, a geography professor and executive director of Ohio University’s Center for International Studies. Participatory GIS (PGIS) expands the conventional scope of GIS by incorporating local knowledge and perceptions into the program. For example, in a related project in South Africa, community input created a more accurate, detailed understanding of soil quality than would have been possible using the conventional data collection methods used by GIS experts, he said.
“There is a lot of debate going on about environmental and climate change in general, and we seem overly reliant on computer models for information,” Weiner said. “Local communities have a lot of knowledge about this issue that could be helpful in interpreting data coming out of the models.”
The project brings together the diverse expertise of scholars at various universities—Ohio University, Michigan State University, Oberlin College, University of Florida, the University of Dar es Salaam, Sokoine University of Agriculture, the Center for Energy, Environment, Science and Technology and the LINKS Trust—that include geospatial techniques, cartography and human-environment analysis.
In addition to Smucker and Weiner’s past work in East Africa, the project builds on the work of Ohio University geographer and co-investigator Elizabeth Wangui, who has studied gender and pastoralist development in the region. Gaurav Sinha’s expertise in Geographic Information Science (GIScience) will help the team incorporate qualitative data on local knowledge systems into the GIS. Cartographer Margaret Pearce’s work on geovisualization and indigenous cartographies will inform the production of maps derived from the GIS for use in community forums.
The new National Science Foundation grant also will support graduate assistantships and field research for three geography graduate students.
The team will travel to Tanzania this summer to conduct field research with Tanzanian colleagues. The field work will include a household survey and collaboration with community-based organizations whose activities address climate-sensitive aspects of livelihood and rural development, such as soil/water conservation groups and beekeeping associations. Additionally, the research team hopes to learn how communities perceive, discuss and anticipate climate change.
Next, the geographers will work with community organizations to design local field research activities that create additional data layers in the PGIS. This might include mapping land use change or changes in use and management of resources in livestock grazing and fuel wood collection areas. In the third year of the project, the research team will explore ways that PGIS can be used for proactive planning that reduces peoples’ vulnerability to new patterns of climatic variability associated with global climate change.
The project will result in maps the community can use to document climate change impacts over time. An online version of the PGIS and curriculum development workshops will contribute to modules that will be integrated into university courses in Tanzania and the United States, Smucker added.
Contacts: Thomas Smucker, (740) 593-1832, smucker@ohio.edu; Daniel Weiner, (740) 593-1889, weinerd1@ohio.edu;Director of Research Communications Andrea Gibson, (740) 597-2166, gibsona@ohio.edu.
[Source: Ohio University press release]
Rising temperatures on the Greenland ice sheet cause the creation of large surface lakes called supra-glacial lakes. Now a Penn State geographer will investigate why these lakes form and their implications.
NASA awarded Derrick Lampkin, assistant professor of geography, almost $300,000 over three years to look at these lakes.
“Learning where lakes are, how they form, and how that changes through the melt season can help us really understand a lot about important processes that control how the Greenland ice sheet responds to warming,” Lampkin said.
Supra-glacial lakes form when melting water collects in pools in the lower levels of the ice sheet in melt or ablation zones. These lakes drain rapidly through cracks in the ice channeling water to beneath the ice sheet, affecting how ice sheets move and how pieces calve off into the ocean.
Researchers assumed that the influence of basal structure — the structure under the ice at the base — controls where lakes form on the surface, but the magnitude and degree of this influence are not well known, according to Lampkin. It is important to determine how surface processes and basal conditions interact to shape the ice sheet topography.
Lampkin’s work will complement other research by glaciologists at Penn State, such as Richard Alley and Sridhar Anandakrishan, in understanding how ice sheets work and contribute to sea level. He will look at a variety of existing information, including altimeter data, to create surface topography. He will model the temperatures under the ice and, using existing ice-penetrating radar data, create the basal topography. He will also look at ten years worth of high-resolution LandSat images to map lake features.
“This is an exciting time for the study of the world of ice, but unfortunately the public is not always aware of why this type of work is important,” Lampkin said.
In an effort to involve the public in the investigation of ice sheets, Lampkin has proposed an outreach program to create Facebook and iPhone applications that will allow users to map the locations of supra-glacial lakes using high-resolution satellite imagery.
The Facebook and iPhone applications will present users with pre-selected satellite imagery and a tutorial on how to spot the supra-glacial lakes. Lampkin said users who map the locations could receive some sort of incentive through points or rewards for another Facebook game.
According to Lampkin, it is important to track the development of the supra-glacial lakes, because they form and drain quickly. More people mapping these lakes will give researchers more data to learn about them. In addition, if members of the public are able to map the lakes, they might feel they have a personal stake in the study of climate change science.
“The more the public is involved and informed, the more they will understand how climate science is conducted and may be more willing to support these research efforts,” he said. Additionally, participation of this type may be the very spark to encourage a young mind to one day become an ice scientist.
[Source: Penn State press release]
Theoretical and Applied Climatology, Volume 99, Numbers 3-4 / January, 2010
Muhammad Waseem Ashiq, Chuanyan Zhao, Jian Ni and Muhammad Akhtar
“In this study, the baseline period (1960–1990) precipitation simulation of regional climate model PRECIS is evaluated and downscaled on a monthly basis for northwestern Himalayan mountains and upper Indus plains of Pakistan. Different interpolation models in GIS environment are used to generate fine scale (250 × 250 m2) precipitation surfaces from PRECIS precipitation data. Results show that the multivariate extension model of ordinary kriging that uses elevation as secondary data is the best model especially for monsoon months. Model results are further compared with observations from 25 meteorological stations in the study area. Modeled data show overall good correlation with observations confirming the ability of PRECIS to capture major precipitation features in the region. Results for low and erratic precipitation months, September and October, are however showing poor correlation with observations. During monsoon months (June, July, August) precipitation pattern is different from the rest of the months. It increases from south to north, but during monsoon maximum precipitation is in the southern regions of the Himalayas, and extreme northern areas receive very less precipitation. Modeled precipitation toward the end of the twenty-first century under A2 and B2 scenarios show overall decrease during winter and increase in spring and monsoon in the study area. Spatially, both scenarios show similar pattern but with varying magnitude. In monsoon, the Himalayan southern regions will have more precipitation, whereas northern areas and southern plains will face decrease in precipitation. Western and south western areas will suffer from less precipitation throughout the year except peak monsoon months. T test results also show that changes in monthly precipitation over the study area are significant except for July, August, and December. Result of this study provide reliable basis for further climate change impact studies on various resources.”
The President’s FY 2011 Budget Proposal for the USGS
In a fiscally responsible budget that emphasizes cost containment, management efficiencies and program savings, the President’s proposed $1.1 billion budget for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in fiscal year 2011 reflects his commitment to use science as the basis for natural resource management decisions.
“Science is a cornerstone for sound decision making,” said Marcia McNutt, USGS director. “Today’s complex, interrelated natural resource issues—such as climate change, energy conservation and development, and water quality and availability—demand that policy makers and managers start with timely, unbiased science. The President’s budget supports that vital perspective.”
Because of the significant role USGS plays in climate change monitoring and adaptation, energy, ecosystems, and other priorities, the 2011 budget represents an increase of $21.6 million from the FY 2010 enacted level. Major USGS program increases proposed are summarized below. For more detailed information on the President’s proposed USGS FY 2011 budget, visit the FY 2011 Budget and Related Information Web site.
New Energy Frontier
$3.0 million
The USGS will work closely with Department of the Interior bureaus to provide the scientific information needed to make decisions concerning permitting, implementing, and operating wind facilities on public lands by using USGS research, modeling, and monitoring to assess the ecological impacts to fish and wildlife. In 2011, USGS efforts will begin in the Great Plains and offshore Cape Cod region and will work toward developing an assessment methodology that can be applied nationwide.
Climate Change Adaptation
$11.0 million
Management and policy decisions made in response to climate change impacts must be informed by science. The USGS will continue to assist the Department of the Interior in the development of regional climate science centers that provide climate change impact data and analysis geared to the needs of the fish and wildlife management community, in partnership with other Federal, State, university and other non-governmental partners. Additionally, the USGS will continue to assess biological carbon sequestration options and develop decision-support tools through the USGS Global Change program.
WaterSMART
$9.0 million
Water shortages and water-use conflicts have become more commonplace in many areas of the United States. Water is essential to the economic security of individual communities and the economic vitality and environmental health of our nation as a whole. The USGS will begin an assessment of the availability and use of water resources in the United States in FY 2011. The information will provide tools to address a new set of water resource challenges, including aging infrastructure, rapid population growth, depletion of groundwater resources, water quality impairments associated with land uses, and climate variability.
Treasured Landscapes: The Chesapeake Bay
$3.6 million
President Obama issued an Executive Order in May 2009 directing Federal agencies to use their expertise and resources to protect and restore the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed. The USGS will support restoration strategies by providing tools and science for assessing climate change impacts and adaptation, for conserving landscapes, and for restoring habitats, fish and wildlife, in partnership with the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service.
Increasing Resilience to Natural Hazards
$4.0 million
The USGS Multi-Hazards Demonstration Project in Southern California will continue to support emergency planning by developing earthquake early warning capabilities and conducting impact analysis of environmental, human-health and ecosystem responses to earthquakes and other hazards. This project will be expanded into the coastal communities of Alaska, and the USGS will invest in earthquake, tsunami and volcano science to support community planning in the Pacific Northwest. Additionally, the USGS proposes to add a volcanic earthquake detection role to the USGS National Earthquake Information Center, which will provide critical early warning to give observatories and affected communities time to plan and prepare for an eruption.
Landsat Data Continuity
$13.4 million
Scientists, educators and the general public around the globe use USGS Landsat data for a wide array of activities ranging from supporting disaster relief efforts to making agricultural crop assessments to identifying sites for cell phone towers. The USGS will accommodate ground-system requirement changes for the Landsat Data Continuity Mission associated with moving the Operational Land Imager to a free-flying satellite and the addition of a Thermal Infrared Sensor on board the spacecraft. These activities are required to meet the mission launch in December 2012.
Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning
$4.0 million
The Department of the Interior has substantial coastal and ocean resource management responsibilities and a critical role in implementing the Administration’s National Ocean Policy. USGS mapping, monitoring and research provide information to assess the status and vulnerability of ocean, coastal and Great Lakes resources. The USGS will engage with other Department of the Interior bureaus and Federal agencies to make available an information framework that provides critical information for coastal and marine planning.
[Source: USGS press release]
