Conserving Freshwater and Coastal Resources in a Changing Climate

Develop a “Climate Endangered Ecosystem” list.
Develop a list of ecosystems and representative
places that are particularly at risk from impacts
associated with climate change to focus appropriate
adaptation strategies on these systems. They should
be monitored in light of climatic changes to better
track long-term health.
Foster collaboration between climate specialists and
habitat specialists. There appears to be ‘disconnect’
between climate experts and habitat experts.
For example, in two instances, freshwater experts
interviewed for this report felt that they were unable
to contribute as their research had never considered
climate change.
Foster Future Research:
Encourage scientists to incorporate climate change
considerations into their research so that there
is a heightened awareness of how ecosystems
might respond to all stressors, present and
future. Encourage more research projects that
focus specifically on aquatic ecosystems and
their predicted responses to climate change.
Identify topic areas which would benefit most
from research, such as species’ adaptation to low
flow scenarios and the potential for assisted
migration of ambulatory and less mobile aquatic
species.
A general gap in research exists pertaining to
freshwater ecosystems and climate change. As
these ecosystems are not directly affected by
sea-level rise, it seems that fewer studies have
investigated how climate-driven changes
will affect them. More work in this area could
foster understanding of the connection between
the timing and sensitivity of species’ life cycles
to climate change and on adaptation techniques
for effectively preserving freshwater systems as
they respond to climate change.
Promote collaboration between scientists from
different specialties in order to perpetuate the
concept of interconnectedness of all ecosystems
and how the health of one affects the
health of others. This collaboration could
come in the form of workshops, conferences, and
partnerships with other organizations.
Research the relationship between human related
water resource management and water conservation
for aquatic ecosystems. This research
is especially important as a significant increase
in demand for human water supplies could have
serious repercussions for aquatic ecosystems.
Long Term Recommendations
Seek funding for LIDAR mapping. While this is a costly
and time intensive method of mapping, it is the best
way to understand the future of shoreline inundation
from sea-level rise, flooding rivers and changing
hydrologic regimes. Being able to predict these
patterns is essential for protecting existing
conservation properties and evaluating new
purchases.
Support accurate, high resolution elevation mapping
for coastal wetlands. This is necessary for providing
baseline data to identify wetlands which may survive
inundation.
Floodplain mapping should be updated to better
predict future scenarios of hydrological systems.
The size and frequency of the ‘100 year flood’ is
changing as a result of climate change and current
mapping may not be adequate for the expected
increase in storm intensity and resultant increased
flood magnitudes.
Photography by Harold E. Malde
Conserving Freshwater and Coastal Resources in a Changing Climate
42