Archive for ‘rivers’ Category

Bruce Jennings at the Earth Institute

Regional Cultures of Conservation, The Philosophy and Politics of Planning: A Case Study of the Hudson River Valley

April 13th, 2010

CHN Director of Bioethics Bruce Jennings will speak at an upcoming symposium and webcast on sustainability. On April 15, 2010, from 6:00-7:30 p.m. the Earth Institute at  Columbia University and the Environmental Consortium of Hudson Valley Colleges and Universities will convene a panel discussion on “Navigating Sustainability: The Hudson and Beyond” at Barnard College. The symposium will be available as a live webcast. For further information about the symposium and webcast, click on this link to the Earth Institute website.

More posts about Aldo Leopold, Hudson River, Land Ethic, New York, atmosphere, biodiversity, bruce jennings, carbon emissions, climate change, ecology, economics, environmental ethics, environmental justice, ethics, public health, public policy, rivers, smart growth, sustainability, video

CHN Co-Sponsors South Carolina Rivers Forum II

, Regional Cultures of Conservation

April 28th, 2009

The second South Carolina Rivers Forum met March 9-10 at the University of South Carolina’s Green Quad for Sustainable Futures with approximately 60 participants from various interest groups, including state and federal agencies, NGOs, concerned citizens, academics, environmental consulting firms, water utilities and river-keepers. The discussion, presentations and breakout groups centered on water efficiency and flows, problems exacerbated by serious drought in the Southeastern United States and the pending legislation on minimum water flows in South Carolina’s Rivers. Speakers included Senator Vincent A. Sheheen (D-SC District 27); Mary Ann Dickinson, Executive Director for the Alliance for Water Efficiency; Diana Toledo, the River Network’s Southeast Program Manager; Jenny Hoffner, Water Supply Program Director for American Rivers; Scott Robinson, Coordinator, Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership; Gerrit Jobsis, Southeast Regional Director, American Rivers; and CHN colleague Bruce C. Coull.

More posts about South Carolina, law, rivers, water

Minimum Instream Flow for South Carolina Rivers and Streams

, Regional Cultures of Conservation

January 20th, 2009

Although the South Carolina General Assembly failed to establish minimum flow standards in SC rivers and streams during 2008 a Senate bill to establish such flow regimes was re-introduced January 15, 2009 for the 2009 legislative session. Because the Center for Humans and Nature is viewed as neutral by the NGO community, industry and the legislature, the Center established an independent panel of academic experts to assess various flow models and provide evaluation of these models. The panel of 21 experts from six South Carolina universities provided data from 30 USGS stream gages in the state in early November and CHN hired a GIS expert to assemble the data. The independent panel met on December 3, 2008, to discuss the models and recommend procedures to the legislature for consideration during committee deliberations. The Panel’s report was completed in January 2009 and submitted to the General Assembly.

The independent panel recognized that water is a highly variable resource that fluctuates through time and varies across space. Water resources are susceptible to change as a result of the adjustments to land cover resulting from land management, urbanization, and population growth. The group concluded the rule that is ultimately adopted should be able to account for seasonal (within years) and annual (from one year to another) variability as well as geographic variation in river and stream behavior, be simple and easily understood and used, and that it be scientifically valid. The group also concluded that the economic and environmental needs of the state are not well served by a minimum flow rule that is a single number or one that relies solely on annual data. An effective rule is likely to be one defined by a formula that produces minimum flow requirements that vary seasonally and geographically. The group recognizes that a key component of any successful rule is the selection of a reference time period, because climate conditions vary across different multi-year time periods

The full text of the report “Minimum Flow Rules for South Carolina Rivers” may be found at http://www.cas.sc.edu/gis/HAN/ under “Final Report.” CHN and the independent academic panel will continue to work together through the 2009 legislative session.

More posts about South Carolina, law, public policy, rivers, water

CHN Participates in Nature Conservancy’s Rising Waters Project

November 25th, 2008

On September 24 and November 25, 2008 CHN colleague Bruce Jennings took part in workshops of a project on climate change in the Hudson Valley and New York metropolitan region called “Rising Waters” that is being sponsored by the New York chapter of the Nature Conservancy. He has been an active participant in the project which is developing climate change adaptation and mitigation scenarios for use in public education activities through out the region.

More posts about climate change, public policy, rivers, water