Orange County Water District’s Post

Our new paper on restoration, "Explore before you restore: Incorporating complex systems thinking in ecosystem restoration," was published on Monday, this week. Thank you, Sybryn for leading this and all the coauthors for this wonderful paper. It is worth reading for those who are interested in restoration science and Restoration practitioners. https://lnkd.in/eR6Hp75a

We’re very excited to announce that Madlyn Carpenter will defend her Master’s thesis on Monday, July 8th. Madlyn is part of the Natural Infrastructure Graduate Fellowship, an educational initiative formed by the Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems (IRIS) at the University of Georgia and Ducks Unlimited. Madlyn’s abstract: Wetlands provide ecosystem services such as reducing phosphorus (P) pollution and providing habitat for waterfowl. Lake Erie, one of the five Laurentian Great Lakes, suffers from harmful algal blooms in its western basin which are associated with P loading from the Maumee River Watershed (MRW). Some waterfowl populations in the MRW have declined significantly in recent decades. Ducks Unlimited (DU), a major partner in wetland conservation in the MRW, has identified a need for improved wetland restoration for meeting the dual goals of providing waterfowl habitat and improving water quality through P retention through site selection, design, and management. This research identified three objectives in support of these goals: 1) create subbasin prioritization maps for wetland restoration in the Great Lakes Region in accordance with DU’s high-priority criteria, 2) create a practical, intermediate complexity tool with minimal inputs to help practitioners probabilistically predict P retention, and 3) utilize the novel tool to test design and management scenarios for wetland performance to identify water management and design approaches that simultaneously improve P retention and waterfowl habitat suitability. Data from 249 wetlands with agricultural runoff as their primary pollutant of interest were input into a k-C model to generate P retention estimates, and waterfowl habitat suitability was assessed based on preferred foraging depths. Results show that active, dynamic management of water depth can help reduce tradeoffs between wetland objectives and that larger wetlands (2-7% of subbasin area) tend to outperform smaller wetlands in meeting both objectives.

Check out the last of the projects that the Center is engaged in! "Impacts of Grazingland Stewardship on Soil Carbon Dynamics in the Southern Great Plains" - with Dr. Goodwin and Dr. Lewis!

📢Starting today: The GEF - IEO 4th Conference on Evaluating Environment and Development, taking place 5 – 7 March in Washington DC, United States. The Conference brings together evaluators to exchange ideas about enhancing their understanding of how to design and conduct influential evaluations at the nexus of environment and development.    Attending the Conference? Don’t miss out on the following sessions with the IEU:     📍 Wednesday 6 March | 11am | Room C1-200: Climate Change Mitigation   📍Wednesday 6 March | 15:15pm | Room C2-125:  Approaches, Methods, and Tools; Mixed Methods Focus  📍 Wednesday 6 March | 15:15pm | Room C2-125: Approaches, Methods, and Tools; Quantitative Focus  📍 Wednesday 6 March | 16:45pm | Room C1-200: Forestry, Land-use Management, and Biodiversity    Represented by Prashanth Kotturi and Michell Dong, IEU’s cross-participation in these evaluation conferences shows its commitment to strengthening engagements with like-minded organizations for impactful evaluations and contributes to efforts to be at the forefront of climate evaluations.    For more on the Conference and IEU’s participation, click here: https://lnkd.in/gy_Q5y5d 

[CLEWS NEWS] UCI scientists are leading groundbreaking research in Dana Point, as highlighted in a recent Spectrum News article. 👉 The study delves into the dynamic coastal environment, emphasizing the crucial role of sand in ecological balance. Through cutting-edge techniques, UCI researchers track and analyze sand movements, offering valuable insights for coastal planning, conservation, and disaster mitigation. 👉 The project's success stems from collaboration and community involvement, emphasizing the collective responsibility for environmental stewardship. As UCI scientists forge ahead in sand tracking, their findings not only benefit Dana Point but also contribute to global coastal science, influencing sustainable management policies and practices. 📽 https://lnkd.in/gbGGSgZe

Excited to share that I recently had the privilege to present, alongside my incredible research team from the Ewing Lab at Bates, at the Androscoggin Watershed Conference on May 7! I'm thrilled to have had the opportunity to present findings from over 400 Sabattus Pond samples that I analysed during the past semester. Read more on our presentations and other fascinating research by clicking on the article link below. #Research #WaterQuality #DataAnalysis

FUNDING AND AWARD ANNOUNCEMENTS   FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: ‘Seed to Carbon Forest Acceleration’ - with Terraformation. This pioneering biodiversity-focused, carbon-funded forest accelerator, will help local forestry teams with the tools to launch restoration projects and succeed at scale. These include early-stage financing, training in resilient native ecosystem restoration and tools to increase project transparency in critical early stages. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis and will be considered for an upcoming cohort. See https://lnkd.in/ekKRPNxT | https://lnkd.in/eRfZGP3S Open calls for proposals - Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund https://lnkd.in/eN7fRmZs   OPPORTUNTY: Ecosystem restoration standard - Scaling restoration on the carbon markets. Apply on Restor https://lnkd.in/egpwvgnj   International Climate Initiative. Funding https://lnkd.in/e-9vHSRd The IKI finances climate and biodiversity projects in developing countries as well as in countries in transition (ODA-eligible countries). The IKI selects projects for funding on the basis of ideas competitions only. These ideas competitions are announced on the IKI website regularly. Project outlines can be submitted via the IKI online platform only. The IKI-funding process is structured along two different kinds of funding programmes: a) Funding for large-scale projects with funding volumes between 5 to 20 million euros (thematic and country specific calls) and b) Funding for small-scale projects with funding volumes between 60.000 and 800.000 euros (IKI Small Grants and IKI Medium Grants) To find out whether your project idea meets our funding programmes and our funding requirements, please find more information at: https://lnkd.in/emczEytQ   FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: Google Offers All Expenses Paid Trips to Tech, Business, and STEM Conferences for Underrepresented Individuals Worldwide. Posted 20 Mar 2024 https://lnkd.in/eHM-9bbv expenses-paid-trips-to-tech-business-and-stem-conferences-for-underrepresented-individuals-worldwide/   FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: Micro-grants Program to Support Climate Justice Initiatives in the Global South: Apply Now for grants of up to $10,000 USD. Posted 20 Mar 2024 Deadline? https://lnkd.in/erVuvqUm  

The latest paper to be published about our farm from Llucia Mascorda Cabre and the team at the University of Plymouth. You can find it https://lnkd.in/eMAmCpmG - Assessing the impact of an offshore longline mussel farm on local water circulation in a highly hydrodynamic energetic bay.

Global Mangrove Alliance Report: Key Advances in Mangrove Conservation 🌿🌍 G20 GLI is excited to share the 2024 edition of The State of the World’s Mangroves report. This vital update highlights groundbreaking progress in mangrove conservation, including: -Enhanced scientific understanding -Strengthened collaboration and information sharing -Innovative management practices -New policy, legal, and financial tools Discover how these advancements are shaping a sustainable future for mangrove ecosystems and benefiting coastal communities worldwide. Read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/gUrgR-6 #MangroveConservation #G #ClimateAction #SustainableFuture #United4Land #LandisLife #GenerationRestoration

Lots of you ask to see the academics and results of the 10 years of studying our mussel farm - here is the latest paper to be published. #research #science #marinebiology #blueeconomy #aquaculture