NEW Report: A Salt Marsh Advancement Zone Assessment of Stratford, CT
November, 2014
Contributed by Adam Whelchel, Ph.D. Director of Science, Connecticut Chapter, The Nature Conservancy
There is a universal recognition by coastal and inland communities in Connecticut and elsewhere that natural infrastructure – wetlands and forests – is a cost effective, long-term part of the solution to help protect people, infrastructure and natural systems from extreme weather and climatic change.In order to maintain these natural resources it will require 1) routine and on-going management activities as well as the restoration of degraded areas, 2) forward-looking planning to accommodate changes in habitat composition and location due to climatic change and 3) enforcement, modification and/or development of new land use policies and growth strategies. While longer-term changes in temperature and precipitation patterns will alter the species composition and type of habitats in a given location, the more immediate implication is the upslope advancement of habitats such as salt marsh in response to continued sea level rise.The Nature Conservancy presents the following report to assist with future planning for natural resources in the context of overall risk reduction and resiliency improvement for the community. Ultimately, it is our hope that this report will serve to inform the community about future marsh advancement locations, current land use of those locations and which parcels are critical to ensure the persistence of natural resources in Stratford longer term.
For more on Coastal Resilience in Connecticut visit www.coastalresilience.org/Connecticut
Contact: Adam Whelchel awhelchel@tnc.org