wetlands

Morphology and Tidal Inundation of Tidal Wetlands in the Delaware Estuary

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An expanse of tidal wetlands fringes the Delaware Estuary and provides Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey with abundant ecosystem services including habitat for indigenous and migrating plants and wildlife, biogeochemical cycling of nutrients, preserving water quality, flood hazard mitigation

Creation of Improved Accuracy LiDAR-Based Digital Elevation Models for the St. Jones River and Blackbird Creek Watersheds

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In tidal wetlands, the high density of vegetation cover inhibits penetration of LiDAR pulses through the vegetation to the ground surface and low vegetation heights inhibit classification of ground point elevations. This project identities and corrects for biases found in the St. Jones and Blackbird Reserves using GPS RTK surveying and statistical analysis.

Beatrice O'Hara of DGS presented a poster

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Beatrice O'Hara of Delaware Geological Survey presented a poster titled "Sediment Carbon Stock, Accumulation Rates and Potential Erosion-Induced Carbon Emissions in the Delaware Bay Tidal Salt Marshes" at "The Earth's Carbon Cycle in the 21st Century: Climate, Ecosystems, and Energy," held April

Coastal flood workshop - UD, organizations collaborate to improve Mid-Atlantic coastal resiliency

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Sea-level rise, dissipating dunes and susceptibility to storm surges are a few of the factors that contribute to a vulnerable coast. A coast at risk means an increased potential for damage to coastal communities and ecosystems in the event of tropical systems, nor'easters or other damaging weather.

More than 40 experts representing state and federal agencies and regional universities gathered to discuss these and other important issues during the Coastal Flood Research, Modeling and Monitoring Workshop on Sept. 16.

Gauging sea-level rise in marshes

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Gauging sea-level rise in marshes

Global sea-level rise and sinking land are combining to cause water levels near Bowers Beach, Del., to climb at a rate faster than anywhere else on the Atlantic coast. Surrounding wetlands may change into mudflats if wetland elevation cannot keep pace with rising sea level. Sea Grant researchers Jack Puleo and Thomas McKenna are conducting field research in Kent County to increase our understanding of how marshes respond to sea-level rise. The work could help natural resource managers monitor marsh stability and predict future changes.

GM16 Geologic Map of the Fairmount and Rehoboth Beach Quadrangles, Delaware

The geologic history of the surficial units of the Fairmount and Rehoboth Beach quadrangles is that of deposition of the Beaverdam Formation and its subsequent modification by erosion and deposition related to sea-level fluctuations during the Pleistocene. The geology reflects this complex history both onshore, in Rehoboth Bay, and offshore. Erosion during the late Pleistocene sea-level low stand and ongoing deposition offshore and in Rehoboth Bay during the Holocene rise in sea level represent the last of several cycles of erosion and deposition.