The effects of climate change can stress biota and natural systems, particularly if their habitats are degraded. The State of Massachusetts is working to restore degraded rivers, wetlands, and riparian areas to healthy, intact natural habitats so they can support viable populations of native plants and wildlife and better adapt to a warming climate, changing precipitation patterns, and rising sea levels.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur ecological restoration projects\u2014from dam removals and culvert replacements to wetland fill removal and streamflow enhancement\u2014support climate change resiliency,\u201d observes Hunt Durey, Acting Director of the Division of Ecological Restoration (DER) at the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game. \u201cThey enhance critical ecological processes like biological dispersal and nutrient transport that help wildlife and plants better adapt to a changing climate, and they can also benefit human communities by improving ecosystem services, such as flood protection and water filtration.\u201d<\/p>\n
Many of DER\u2019s past and current projects lie in coastal communities, with more than two dozen active restoration efforts underway in the Gulf of Maine watershed. At Tidmarsh Farms in Plymouth, for example, DER is working with local, state, federal, and NGO partners to remove two dams and 6 other water control structures, eliminate agricultural ditches, reconstruct 3.5 miles of main channel and tributaries, re-connect the floodplain, install over 3,000 pieces of large wood, and promote native wetland vegetation across the 250-acre site by activating the native seed bank and planting rare species. \u201cRestoring more natural ecological conditions at this large site,\u201d notes Durey, \u201cwill help strengthen the capacity of the whole watershed to adapt as climate conditions change.\u201d\u00a0 For more on the DER\u2019s work and a map of priority projects, visit http:\/\/www.mass.gov\/eea\/agencies\/dfg\/der\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n Support from organizations like DER has been critical to the success of the Gulf of Maine Council\u2019s Habitat Restoration Program, providing funding and technical assistance to 120 projects around the Gulf since 2002. That support has allowed the Habitat Restoration Program to re-establish 682 acres of coastal marsh, 141 miles of historical fish habitat access and 98 miles of free-flowing streams, as well as shellfish and eelgrass beds. For more information on the Council\u2019s restoration work, including a map of past projects, visit http:\/\/restoration.gulfofmaine.org\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][et_pb_search admin_label=”Search field” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” exclude_pages=”on” exclude_posts=”off” hide_button=”off” custom_css_main_element=”background-color:#F1F1F1;”] [\/et_pb_search][et_pb_button admin_label=”Button” button_url=”http:\/\/visitor.r20.constantcontact.com\/d.jsp?llr=f9uznsbab&p=oi&m=1101203821381&sit=jqtzxvebb&f=d7375947-75a7-48b2-9a83-36b5198e942a” url_new_window=”on” button_text=”Sign up for Quarterly Climate Outlook” button_alignment=”center” background_layout=”light” custom_button=”off” button_letter_spacing=”0″ button_use_icon=”default” button_icon_placement=”right” button_on_hover=”on” button_letter_spacing_hover=”0″] [\/et_pb_button][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Credit: Sherry Godlewski<\/p><\/div>\n Projected Temperature Changes in the Gulf of Maine Region by the 2050s (\u00b0C.), reflecting the most recent IPCC models (Credit: Adam Fenech, UPEI Climate Lab)<\/p><\/div>\n What\u2019s Climate Change and What\u2019s Just the Weather?<\/b><\/p>\n This one-minute animation by Ole Christoffer Haga, produced by Teddy TV for the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, clearly and humorously illustrates the difference between long-term climate trends and variable weather patterns.<\/p>\n![\"Looking-south-from-Mars\"](\"http:\/\/www.gulfofmaine.org\/2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/Looking-south-from-Mars.png\")
\nPhoto: Massachusetts DER<\/small><\/span><\/p>\n\n
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