Today: Gulf of Maine King Tides Photo Contest

Today’s the day: go take a photo at high tide!

Join in the second Gulf of Maine King Tides Photo Contest, taking images of the extreme high tide around midday on October 28, 2015. For more details on submitting photos, see their Participate page.

In conjunction with the Contest, communities are encouraged to organize their own King Tides events—helping people envision future changes. These could include photographic excursions, signs marking future sea levels, street theater, and gallery exhibits.

More information at http://gulfofmaine.kingtides.net/

Report – sea level rise and local wetlands management

A recent paper published in Environmental Research Letters describes work to bring land use planners from 100 local governments along the Atlantic coast to create maps distinguishing lands likely to be protected from lands likely to be given up to the rising sea. From the abstract: “Based on…land use plans, we estimate that almost 60% of the land below 1 m along the US Atlantic Coast is expected to be developed and thus unavailable for the inland migration of wetlands. Less than 10% of the land below 1 m has been set aside for conservation.” The full report, including maps, is available online.

Ocean Explorium Ocean Voice Speaker Series

*August 11*

7-8 PM

*The Future of Salt Marshes as Sea Level Rises*

How do coastal marshes respond to changes in sea level? Sea level has risen over the past centuries, but the rate is increasing with very different responses in places such as Massachusetts, Louisiana, andWashington. Come listen to salt marsh expert John Teal, scientist emeritus at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, explain this phenomenon and its environmental impact on these important ecological areas and human activities.

Ocean Explorium at New Bedford Seaport

174 Union Street

New Bedford MA 02719

ph: 508-994-5400

Admission: $3 adults, $2 seniors and children