Current
Projects
Human
Settlements as Ecosystems: Metropolitan Baltimore from 1797 - 2100,
Phase II PI: PI: S. Pickett; co-PIs: P. Groffman, A. Berkowitz, M.
Grove, R. Pouyat, L. Band, C. Welty, AJ Miller, K. Belt, S. Kaushal, C.
Boone, et al. (~ 40 co-PIs)
Sponsor: NSF
Project Web Site: http://beslter.org
Research
at the Baltimore urban Long-Term Ecological Research site is governed
by three questions: (1) What are the fluxes of energy and matter in
urban ecosystems, and how do they change over the long term? (2) How
does the spatial structure of ecological, physical, and socio-economic
factors in the metropolis affect ecosystem function? (3) How can urban
residents develop and use an understanding of the metropolis as an
ecological system to improve the quality of their environment and their
daily lives? The project spans the Baltimore Metropolitan region
with many studies focused on the Gwynns Falls drainage. The work
has centered on long-term stream and watershed monitoring, riparian
processing of nutrients and carbon, and stream restoration. BES
education programs engage youth, educators, and young scientists in
investigations of the urban environment. Over 156 journal
articles, 80 book chapters, 17 books, and 19 theses/dissertations have
been published from this work to date. The publications database can be
queried at http://beslter.org. UMBC hosts the field headquarters
of this project in the Technology Research Center.
Pervious Concrete: Technology Demonstration and Information Needs
PI: S. Schwartz
Sponsor: Chesapeake Bay Trust
Among
low impact development hydrology practices, pervious concrete and other
pervious paving systems offer great promise for on-site,
infiltration-based storm water management in urban and suburban
development. Despite this potential and a substantial body of
proven experience with the material, pervious concrete is not widely
used in the state of Maryland or the Chesapeake Bay watershed. To
overcome the barriers to successful specification, design, and
regulatory approval of pervious concrete as a valuable element in
integrated site design, the goals of this project are to develop (1) a
well-instrumented pervious concrete demonstration site with long-term
monitoring for performance evaluation and (2) educational and outreach
workshops to deliver design, specification, installation and permitting
information to regulators, practitioners, and community
stakeholders. The project integrates field demonstrations and
education and outreach workshops with rigorous site monitoring to
address the need for consistent knowledge and information that
currently limits the effective use of this material as an integral
component of sustainable site design in the state of Maryland and the
Chesapeake Bay watershed.
Baseflow Signatures of Sustainable Water Resources
PI: S. Schwartz
Sponsor: Harry R. Hughes Center for Agroecology
The
goal of this project is to link regional low flow characteristics to
spatial patterns and trends in land transformation, and to establish
benchmark sustainability measures for managing the growing competition
for Maryland’s limited water resources among demands from agriculture,
forest, and development.
Microbial Nitrogen Sequestration in Detrital-Based Streams of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Under Stress from Road-Salt Runoff
PI: C. Swan
Sponsor: Maryland Water Resources Research Institute
This
project is a multi-factorial study to elucidate how ecological
interactions (i.e., organic matter-microbial-invertebrate) react to a
gradient of salt stress currently imposed on freshwater ecosystems in
the region, and how this changes the capacity for the stream community
to remove nitrogen from streams. Road-salt runoff has been
recently identified as a stressor to freshwater streams. Given the
negative effect of salt stress on carbon mineralization that has been
documented for microbial communities in freshwater streams, road salt
is expected to alter rates of nitrogen sequestration. As a result, road
salt runoff might alter the natural ability of headwater streams to
ameliorate excess nutrient delivery to larger, downstream water bodies
(e.g., the Chesapeake Bay). This effect is being evaluated in this
study.
Quantifying Urban
Groundwater in Environmental Field Observatories (NSF); Integrating
Real-Time Sensor Networks, Data Assimilation, and Predictive Modeling
to Assess the Effects of Climate Variability on Water Resources in an
Urbanizing Landscape (NOAA)
PI: C. Welty; Co-PIs: Andrew Miller and Michael McGuire
Sponsors: NSF and NOAA
Project Web Site: http://www.umbc.edu/cuere/BaltimoreWTB/
This
WATERS Test Bed project is one of eleven environmental field
observatories funded by National Science Foundation to advance concepts
of digital watersheds, sensor networks, hydrologic information systems,
and design and operation of large-scale field facilities. The goal is
to test various approaches for quantifying flow paths, fluxes, and
stores of groundwater in urban areas at multiple scales. The focus is
on the Gwynns Falls watershed (171 km2), and the Dead Run catchment
(14.3 km2) and its subwatersheds (1- 5 km2). The approach used at each
scale is necessarily different, and the challenge is to tie together
the scales, which is being done with mathematical modeling. We are
taking advantage of the dense network of USGS hydrological
instrumentation already in place for the LTER in terms of stream gages
and precipitation gages to use as the backbone of the testbed.
Building on the test-bed concept, the goal of the NOAA project is to
establish a real-time observing system with wireless telemetry and
advanced visualization tools for simultaneous display of the temporal
and spatial patterns of all components of the hydrologic cycle at sites
throughout an urbanizing watershed in the Baltimore metropolitan area.
CNH: Collaborative Research: Dynamic Coupling of the Water Cycle with Patterns of Urban Growth
PI:
C. Welty; Co-PIs: AJ Miller, B. Hanlon, M. McGuire; J. Smith (Princeton
U) R. Maxwell (Colorado School of Mines); C. Jantz, S. Drzyzga
(Shippensburg U); E. Doheny (USGS)
Sponsor: NSF
The
objective of this work is to link an urban growth model with a
fully-coupled, physically-based three-dimensional hydrologic model to
evaluate the effects of growth on water availability and limits to
water supply using the Baltimore metropolitan region as a case
study. Combining a physically-based regional hydrologic model
with urban growth modeling allows an assessment of the coupled
feedbacks between growth projections (and the socio-economic variables
that affect growth) and surface and subsurface water resources. Changes
in stream base flow and groundwater availability may in turn influence
regulatory decisions on development permits in exurban areas. The
project represents a collaboration among social scientists and physical
scientists having expertise in urban systems. PARFLOW is being used as
the coupled watershed model for this project at the scales of Dead Run,
the Gwynns Falls, and the Gunpowder Patapsco.
Integrative Education, Research, and Training (IGERT) Program “Water in the Urban Environment”
PI: C. Welty; Co-PIs: Andrew Miller, Brian Reed, Virginia McConnell, Peter Groffman; 20 senior investigators
Sponsor: NSF
Urban
development changes the ways that water moves through the landscape,
altering the water cycle and increasing flood hazards, channel
degradation, and water-quality impairment. These problems have
led to successive generations of regulatory policy and engineering
measures designed to mitigate negative impacts, with varying degrees of
success. The effects on human health and social welfare are complex,
and designing effective long-term solutions requires integrated
ecological, economic and engineering approaches, as well as innovations
in policy-making.
The
UMBC IGERT program centers on three interwoven themes: (1) urban
hydrology and contaminant transport; (2) urban biogeochemical cycles,
aquatic ecosystems, and human health; and (3) urban water policy,
management, and institutions. New integrative curricula have been
developed in Water in the Urban Environment, Research Methods for the
Urban Environment, Modeling and Spatial Statistics for the Urban
Environment, which together with required seminar courses bring
together students from nine Ph.D. degree programs to gain an
appreciation of the varied disciplinary viewpoints, terminology, and
data sets required to address urban environmental problems. All IGERT
Fellows do internships in state or federal agencies and research
laboratories, nongovernmental organizations, industry or consulting, or
teaching, to expand their academic and career path horizons. Up
to 20 PhD students are to be supported by the program.
Science-Based Negotiation of Multiobjective Resources Disputes
PI: AJ Miller; co-PIs: M Rivera, Daniel Sheer
Sponsor: NSF
An
academic-industry partnership has been formed to create an upper-level
undergraduate course, Computer Aided Negotiation of Water Resources
Disputes, in which students tackle a real-world, interdisciplinary
problem in the form of an interstate water supply dispute. Students
integrate science, technology, public policy, and law to create
mutually beneficial solutions to resource disputes. Each student plays
the role of a lawyer, biologist, geologist or engineer employed by one
of the water supply stakeholders. The stakeholder groups use (1)
web-based, pedagogically-sound instructional tools, (2) a
multi-disciplinary panel of working professionals, and (3) a computer
model that utilizes linear programming algorithms to derive optimal
solutions in accordance with priorities determined jointly by the
stakeholders. The computer-aided negotiation process, which has been
applied successfully to water resources disputes over the past two
decades, is being used to develop and seek consensus on a set of
operating rules for the system.
Students learn to utilize scientific
knowledge and technological tools, function effectively on
interdisciplinary teams, and successfully negotiate with disparate
interests. Moreover, students learn the background information required
to participate in resource negotiations using research-supported
pedagogy.
Pilot-Scale Research of Novel Amendment Delivery for In-situ Sediment Remediation
PI: U. Ghosh; CA Menzie (Exponent)
Sponsor: National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIH)
Human
health risks associated with the presence of chemicals in sediments
arise from either direct contact with the sediments or by eating fish
and shellfish that have accumulated chemicals from the sediments.
Emerging laboratory-scale research has shown that contaminant transport
pathways and bioavailability can be interrupted by modifying and
enhancing the binding and contaminant assimilation capacity of natural
sediments. This is achieved by adding sorbent amendments such as
activated carbon for binding persistent organic pollutants and natural
minerals such as apatite, zeolites, or bauxite for the binding of toxic
metals in sediments. Critical barriers in the adoption of this in-situ
remediation approach are the availability of efficient delivery methods
for amendments to impacted sediments and understanding of physical and
biological processes in field sites that control technology
effectiveness. The main aim of this research project is to develop the
in-situ remediation technology through a pilot-scale investigation
aimed at addressing the critical barriers in the advancement of the
technology.
Development
and Application of Tools to Measure PCB Microbial Dechlorination and
Flux into Water During In-situ Treatment of Sediments
PIs: J. Baker, K. Sowers, U. Ghosh
Sponsor: Strategic Environmental Research and Developmental Program (DOD)
This
research is quantifying the two most important long-term loss processes
of PCBs in sediments: 1) microbial degradation and 2) diffusive and
resuspension-related losses to the water column. These main PCB loss
mechanisms from sediments depend upon the ease with which PCBs can
partition between solid and porewater phases and may be impacted by
in-situ remediation. Recent laboratory tests demonstrated that
amendment of sediment with activated carbon results in large reductions
in the bioaccumulation of PCBs by clams, worms, and amphipods. Two
important questions that are being addressed in this research are (1)
how is natural PCB microbial dechlorination activity in sediment
affected by the addition of activated carbon and (2) how is PCB
mobility altered by the addition of activated carbon?
Determination
of Sediment Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) Bioavailability using
Supercritical Fluid Extraction (SFE) and Ultra-Trace Porewater (UTP)
Analysis
PIs: D. Nakles, A. Hawkins, S. Hawthorne, T. S. Bridges, U. Ghosh
Sponsor: Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (DOD)
This
demonstration/validation project is designed to build upon the data
developed to date demonstrating how site-specific estimates of PAH
bioavailability in freshwater sediments can be used to predict toxicity
to benthic freshwater species. The goal of the project is to extend the
application of supercritical fluid extraction SFE and UTP estimates of
PAH bioavailability to marine/estuarine sediments and species.
Specifically, the project objectives are to (1) use SFE and UTP
analyses to predict the bioavailability of PAHs in marine/estuarine
sediments collected from two Navy facilities, (2) show the relationship
between predictions of PAH bioavailability and the actual measured
toxicity to a marine/estuarine macro invertebrate species and (3)
demonstrate the application and develop technical guidance on the use
of SFE and UTP as site-specific measurements of PAH bioavailability for
assessing risk.
Recently Completed Projects
Coupled Patterns and Processes in Urban Landscapes
PI: C. Welty; Co-PIs: A. Miller, B. Hanlon, M. McGuire
Sponsor: NOAA
The
NOAA funding for this project is delineated in US Congressional
Conference Report 109-272 accompanying HR 2862, the FY 2006
Appropriations Act for Science, the Departments of State, Justice, and
Commerce and related agencies, Public Law 109-108. The project
partially supported the core operations of CUERE as well as partial
infrastructure and research support for the following subproject areas:
(1) Development of an information system for urban environmental
observation, modeling, and analysis; (2) Evaluation of scale-dependence
in urban hydrologic modeling; (3) Evaluation of the impact of aging
urban infrastructure on environmental sustainability; and (4)
developing a cybercollaboratory on the urban environment for citizens,
researchers, and managers.
Cuyahoga Sustainability Network
PIs: S. Schwartz; T. Schwarz (Kent State); A. Bradley (U Iowa); B. Mikelbank (Cleveland State)
Sponsor: US EPA
Project web site: http://www.umbc.edu/csn
EPA
has supported creation of The Cuyahoga Sustainability Network to
integrate regional partnerships and interdisciplinary expertise
spanning the environmental, economic, and social dimensions of
sustainable decision making, focused on the intersection of land
transformation decisions and their consequences for urban
ecosystems. Program elements address information needs that
couple multiscale effects of land transformation decisions to ecosystem
responses in urbanized streams. With a regional focus on the
Cuyahoga River Valley and its built environments, the Cuyahoga
Sustainability Network is cultivating a portfolio of collaborative
science and technology applications to support sustainable decision
making at the intersection of natural systems, engineered systems, and
human social and institutional systems.
Modified 12/30/10
Feedback/
Corrections
Center for Urban Environmental Research and Education
UMBC, Technology Research Center 102
1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, Maryland 21250
Phone:410-455-1763 Fax: 410-455-1769 Email: cueremail@umbc.edu