Recommendations to Increase the Resilience of Wastewater Treatment in Coastal Virginia

This white paper discusses the problem of septic failures in Virginia, as infrastructure ages and previously installed systems can no longer function. Section II.A. discusses the feasibility of regulatory and other measures that the Virginia state and local governments can implement to incentivize the identification, maintenance and repair of septic systems. Among these measures is a point-of-sale inspection requirement, which would require real property sellers to have their septic system inspected upon sale. Additionally, this white paper addresses several alternative options to conventional onsite septic systems, including public information campaigns to inform septic system owners of maintenance and repair techniques; and programs incentivizing the creation and use of innovative septic systems as alternatives to conventional systems. Section II.C examines eligibility for aid based on different federal metrics of hardship and discusses options to increase the number of people eligible for aid. The Virginia General Assembly has created grant and loan programs to address the growing septic problem, and the Virginia Department of Health has received federal funding to assist with septic and private well repairs as well. This white paper also discusses the potential environmental justice and equitable concerns raised by the implementation of various programs and proposes some septic options. Adopting any or a combination of these options could improve the longevity and resiliency of septic systems as well as homeowner awareness of emerging issues. This abstract has been taken from the authors\u27 introduction

Variability in marsh migration potential determined by topographic rather than anthropogenic constraints in the Chesapeake Bay region

© The Author(s), 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Molino, G. D., Carr, J. A., Ganju, N. K., & Kirwan, M. L. Variability in marsh migration potential determined by topographic rather than anthropogenic constraints in the Chesapeake Bay region. Limnology and Oceanography Letters, 7(4), (2022): 321-331, https://doi.org/10.1002/lol2.10262.Sea level rise (SLR) and saltwater intrusion are driving inland shifts in coastal ecosystems. Here, we make high-resolution (1 m) predictions of land conversion under future SLR scenarios in 81 watersheds surrounding Chesapeake Bay, United States, a hotspot for accelerated SLR and saltwater intrusion. We find that 1050–3748 km2 of marsh could be created by 2100, largely at the expense of forested wetlands. Predicted marsh migration exceeds total current tidal marsh area and is ~ 4× greater than historical observations. Anthropogenic land use in marsh migration areas is concentrated within a few watersheds and minimally impacts calculated metrics of marsh resilience. Despite regional marsh area maintenance, local ecosystem service replacement within vulnerable watersheds remains uncertain. However, our work suggests that topography rather than land use drives spatial variability in wetland vulnerability regionally, and that rural land conversion is needed to compensate for extensive areal losses on heavily developed coasts globally.This work was funded by the U.S. Geological Survey Climate Research and Development and the U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program. Additional funding was provided from the National Science Foundation CAREER, LTER, and CZN programs (EAR-1654374, DEB-1832221, and EAR-2012670)

Variability in marsh migration potential determined by topographicrather than anthropogenic constraints in the Chesapeake Bay region

Sea level rise (SLR) and saltwater intrusion are driving inland shifts in coastal ecosystems. Here, we make high-resolution (1 m) predictions of land conversion under future SLR scenarios in 81 watersheds surrounding Chesapeake Bay, United States, a hotspot for accelerated SLR and saltwater intrusion. We find that 1050–3748 km2 of marsh could be created by 2100, largely at the expense of forested wetlands. Predicted marsh migration exceeds total current tidal marsh area and is about 4x greater than historical observations. Anthropogenic land use in marsh migration areas is concentrated within a few watersheds and minimally impacts calculated metrics of marsh resilience. Despite regional marsh area maintenance, local ecosystem service replacement within vulnerable watersheds remains uncertain. However, our work suggests that topography rather than land use drives spatial variability in wetland vulnerability regionally, and that rural land conversion is needed to compensate for extensive areal losses on heavily developed coasts globally

Quantifying slopes as a driver of forest to marsh conversion using geospatial techniques: application to Chesapeake Bay coastal-plain, United States

© The Author(s), 2021. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Molino, G. D., Defne, Z., Aretxabaleta, A. L., Ganju, N. K., & Carr, J. A. Quantifying slopes as a driver of forest to marsh conversion using geospatial techniques: application to Chesapeake Bay coastal-plain, United States. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 9, (2021): 616319, https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.616319.Coastal salt marshes, which provide valuable ecosystem services such as flood mitigation and carbon sequestration, are threatened by rising sea level. In response, these ecosystems migrate landward, converting available upland into salt marsh. In the coastal-plain surrounding Chesapeake Bay, United States, conversion of coastal forest to salt marsh is well-documented and may offset salt marsh loss due to sea level rise, sediment deficits, and wave erosion. Land slope at the marsh-forest boundary is an important factor determining migration likelihood, however, the standard method of using field measurements to assess slope across the marsh-forest boundary is impractical on the scale of an estuary. Therefore, we developed a general slope quantification method that uses high resolution elevation data and a repurposed shoreline analysis tool to determine slope along the marsh-forest boundary for the entire Chesapeake Bay coastal-plain and find that less than 3% of transects have a slope value less than 1%; these low slope environments offer more favorable conditions for forest to marsh conversion. Then, we combine the bay-wide slope and elevation data with inundation modeling from Hurricane Isabel to determine likelihood of coastal forest conversion to salt marsh. This method can be applied to local and estuary-scale research to support management decisions regarding which upland forested areas are more critical to preserve as available space for marsh migration.Funding for this study was provided by the United States Geological Survey’s Coastal/Marine Hazards and Resources Program and Ecosystems Mission Area

Proceedings of the 3rd Biennial Conference of the Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) 2015: advancing efficient methodologies through community partnerships and team science

It is well documented that the majority of adults, children and families in need of evidence-based behavioral health interventionsi do not receive them [1, 2] and that few robust empirically supported methods for implementing evidence-based practices (EBPs) exist. The Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) represents a burgeoning effort to advance the innovation and rigor of implementation research and is uniquely focused on bringing together researchers and stakeholders committed to evaluating the implementation of complex evidence-based behavioral health interventions. Through its diverse activities and membership, SIRC aims to foster the promise of implementation research to better serve the behavioral health needs of the population by identifying rigorous, relevant, and efficient strategies that successfully transfer scientific evidence to clinical knowledge for use in real world settings [3]. SIRC began as a National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-funded conference series in 2010 (previously titled the “Seattle Implementation Research Conference”; $150,000 USD for 3 conferences in 2011, 2013, and 2015) with the recognition that there were multiple researchers and stakeholdersi working in parallel on innovative implementation science projects in behavioral health, but that formal channels for communicating and collaborating with one another were relatively unavailable. There was a significant need for a forum within which implementation researchers and stakeholders could learn from one another, refine approaches to science and practice, and develop an implementation research agenda using common measures, methods, and research principles to improve both the frequency and quality with which behavioral health treatment implementation is evaluated. SIRC’s membership growth is a testament to this identified need with more than 1000 members from 2011 to the present.ii SIRC’s primary objectives are to: (1) foster communication and collaboration across diverse groups, including implementation researchers, intermediariesi, as well as community stakeholders (SIRC uses the term “EBP champions” for these groups) – and to do so across multiple career levels (e.g., students, early career faculty, established investigators); and (2) enhance and disseminate rigorous measures and methodologies for implementing EBPs and evaluating EBP implementation efforts. These objectives are well aligned with Glasgow and colleagues’ [4] five core tenets deemed critical for advancing implementation science: collaboration, efficiency and speed, rigor and relevance, improved capacity, and cumulative knowledge. SIRC advances these objectives and tenets through in-person conferences, which bring together multidisciplinary implementation researchers and those implementing evidence-based behavioral health interventions in the community to share their work and create professional connections and collaborations

Recommendations to Increase the Resilience of Wastewater Treatment in Coastal Virginia

This white paper discusses the problem of septic failures in Virginia, as infrastructure ages and previously installed systems can no longer function. Section II.A. discusses the feasibility of regulatory and other measures that the Virginia state and local governments can implement to incentivize the identification, maintenance and repair of septic systems. Among these measures is a point-of-sale inspection requirement, which would require real property sellers to have their septic system inspected upon sale. Additionally, this white paper addresses several alternative options to conventional onsite septic systems, including public information campaigns to inform septic system owners of maintenance and repair techniques; and programs incentivizing the creation and use of innovative septic systems as alternatives to conventional systems. Section II.C examines eligibility for aid based on different federal metrics of hardship and discusses options to increase the number of people eligible for aid. The Virginia General Assembly has created grant and loan programs to address the growing septic problem, and the Virginia Department of Health has received federal funding to assist with septic and private well repairs as well. This white paper also discusses the potential environmental justice and equitable concerns raised by the implementation of various programs and proposes some septic options. Adopting any or a combination of these options could improve the longevity and resiliency of septic systems as well as homeowner awareness of emerging issues. This abstract has been taken from the authors\u27 introduction

Decision-making of the benthic diatom Seminavis robusta searching for inorganic nutrients and pheromones

Microorganisms encounter a diversity of chemical stimuli that trigger individual responses and influence population dynamics. However, microbial behavior under the influence of different incentives and microbial decision-making is poorly understood. Benthic marine diatoms that react to sexual attractants as well as to nutrient gradients face such multiple constraints. Here, we document and model behavioral complexity and context-sensitive responses of these motile unicellular algae to sex pheromones and the nutrient silicate. Throughout the life cycle of the model diatom Seminavis robusta nutrientstarved cells localize sources of silicate by combined chemokinetic and chemotactic motility. However, with an increasing need for sex to restore the initial cell size, a change in behavior favoring the attraction-pheromone-guided search for a mating partner takes place. When sex becomes inevitable to prevent cell death, safeguard mechanisms are abandoned, and cells prioritize the search for mating partners. Such selection processes help to explain biofilm organization and to understand species interactions in complex communities