Tidal Wetland Resilience to Increased Rates of Sea Level Rise in the Chesapeake Bay: Introduction to the Special Feature
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MARSH RESILIENCE SUMMIT
Tidal Wetland Resilience to Increased Rates of Sea Level Rise in the Chesapeake Bay: Introduction to the Special Feature Taryn A. Sudol 1
&
Gregory B. Noe 2 & Denise J. Reed 3
Received: 13 November 2020 / Accepted: 30 November 2020 # Society of Wetland Scientists 2020
Abstract The papers in this Special Feature are the result of the first Marsh Resilience Summit in the Chesapeake Bay region, which occurred in February 2019. The Chesapeake Bay region has one of the highest rates of relative sea level rise in the U.S., jeopardizing over 1000 km2 of tidal wetlands along with other coastal lands. The goal of the Summit and this collection of articles is to analyze tidal wetland response to accelerating sea level rise and the effect their response will have on adaptation planning for surrounding communities. Ten Summit presenters share their research in this Special Feature. In this Introduction, we summarize their findings on evaluating restoration potential at the site-specific level, measuring and projecting marsh migration and erosions rates, describing impacts of wetland migration on a marsh dependent animal, effects on human communities, and finally the roles of property owners and government on future tidal wetland extent. These contributions demonstrate that tidal marsh distribution is dynamic in response to sea level rise, and that social, legal, and policy tools can be used and further developed to enable opportunities for restoring or conserving wetlands when stakeholders are engaged effectively. The papers here and feedback from Summit participants illuminate diverse priorities, research unknowns, and next steps for land use planning toward resilience of the Chesapeake Bay region that also can inform global communities. Keywords Tidal wetland . Sea level rise . Chesapeake Bay . Coastal resilience
Background The Chesapeake Bay, the nation’s largest estuary, experiences one of the highest rates of sea level rise in the U.S. (Boon & Mitchell 2015). Virginia and Maryland’s coastal areas (including the Atlantic coast) contain urban centers, ports, military infrastructure, NASA facilities, rural towns, agricultural lands, wildlife refuges, and historical sites, as well as over 1000 km2 of tidal wetlands (Chesapeake Bay Program 2010, CCRM 2017), all of which are vulnerable to accelerating rates of relative sea level rise. There is considerable scientific uncertainty of the dynamic nature, complex feedbacks, and * Taryn A. Sudol [email protected] 1
Chesapeake Bay Sentinel Site Cooperative, Maryland Sea Grant, College Park, MD 20740, USA
2
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA 20192, USA
3
Pontchartrain Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA 70148, USA
prediction of the future status of tidal wetlands in response to relative sea level rise. This generates confusion and provides little guidance for Bay coastal communities that are choosing options for adapting to climate change. Tidal wetlands’ current viabil
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