Scientists at the Climate System Research Center (CSRC) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst released a set of state-specific reports describing likely effects of carbon emissions targets, agreed upon in December at “COP21” in Paris, on the future climate of 22 states including all those in the Northeast.

Click here for UMASS article about reports:  
http://www.umass.edu/newsoffice/article/impact-paris-climate-agreement-northeast

Link directly to state reports:
https://www.geo.umass.edu/climate/stateclimatereports.html

As SAGE begins to formulate what type of analysis to use to test our Gradient Theory members are looking for examples.  This is one that was recently sent to us.

Sandia Laboratories
SANDIA REPORT

"Development of an Urban Resilience Analysis Framework with Application to Norfolk, VA"

"This report describes the development of a process to analyze the resilience of urban regions to the shocks and stresses that those cities care about, and applies this process to address flooding in Norfolk and Hampton Roads. The goal is to provide Norfolk city officials and regional asset owners with actionable information to plan the infrastructure improvements that will most greatly enhance the region’s resilience to flooding. Results suggest that there are wide -ranging impacts of a major acute flooding event beyond the Hampton Roads region. A single four -day, 100 -year flood event in Hampton Roads would cause on the order of $355 -606 million in detrimental impacts to global production, with greater impacts occurring in the future as net sea levels rise. This report highlights the infrastructure behaviors, inter-dependencies, and the economic analyses that determine these impacts."

The threat of the sea inundating coastal historical sites is real.  Residents can literally smell the sea in their basements, storms have already closed the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  Many, many places we take for granted will not be able to be saved.  The questions is not if, but when and what can we do to lessen the impact on our cultural artifacts, neighborhoods and our economy.

​http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/drowning-history-sea-level-rise-threatens-us-historic-38300090

DOES BEACH REPLENISHMENT SMOTHER A SHOREBIRD’S NEXT MEAL?
April 5, 2016

Conservation This Week
"Around the world, sandy beaches are eroding, and communities are increasingly fixing this problem by dredging up sand from offshore and pumping it back onto the beach. This method, known as beach replenishment, is seen as more environmentally friendly than building hard structures like seawalls to protect beaches.

But beach replenishment, too, has its downside: the method smothers intertidal invertebrates on which shorebird and fish populations depend. The total number of invertebrates falls by more than half in the wake of beach replenishment, according to a new study published in Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. And the invertebrate community may take longer to recover than previously thought." Follow the link to read more.