The BEAT News – July 5, 2017

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FROM THE CLIMATE REALITY PROJECT | JUNE 21, 2017

It’s easy to forget the profound impact the climate crisis has on every drop of H2O on the earth’s surface.

So much of the reporting on how the climate crisis is affecting water systems has centered on shrinking sea ice, glacial melt, and sea-level rise that it’s easy to forget that the crisis impacts every drop of H2O on the earth’s surface.

From the tiny stream in your grandmother’s backyard that you played in as a child to the mighty rivers that transport goods, power towns and cities, and provide recreation and fresh water to millions, waterways large and small are being transformed by climate change – and far quicker than even experts had predicted.

This spring, scientists studying Arctic river ice revealed what is being described as “the first case of large-scale river reorganization as a result of human-caused climate change,” according to the Washington Post.

The scientists discovered that in mid-2016, the rerouting of meltwater from the Kaskawulsh glacier in Canada’s Yukon Territory, which has been rapidly retreating because of Arctic warming, caused a dramatic change in the flow of two rivers. The melt once fed the Slims River, which flowed north into the Bering Sea. But over the course of just four days, the melt changed the drainage gradient of the glacier just enough that it began channeling its meltwater into an ice canyon that carried it away from its previous flow into the Slims and toward the Kaskawulsh River, flushing freshwater southward into the Gulf of Alaska and reducing the Slims to a trickle.

This is just one example of the major changes happening to rivers and streams all over the world as temperatures rise and precipitation patterns change. Read on to learn more.

DROUGHT AND FLOODING

You can look at climate change’s impact on rivers as a case of feast or famine. Warming is fundamentally altering the water cycle and shifting precipitation patterns. In many areas, rainfall has become either increasingly abundant or in desperately short supply, relative to longtime averages.

To fully grasp the impact this might have on a river, you should start at its literal source. If the glacial meltwater or high-elevation snowmelt that constitute the headwaters of many rivers diminishes because of warming and ever-lessening annual precipitation, the entire river system begins to dwindle.

In Bolivia, this situation was a significant contributor to the complete disappearance of the nation’s second-largest lake, Lake Poopó. The evaporation of the lake has been attributed in large part to the climate crisis-fueled decline of the Andean glaciers that fed the lake’s tributaries.

Conversely, extreme weather events that dump excessive rainfall on headwater regions can cause devastating floods far from the source of the heaviest precipitation as rivers swell and the floodwaters disperse all the way down the system.

WATER QUALITY

The feast-famine scenario created by changing long-term precipitation patterns, severe storms, and evaporation attributed to overall warming has parallel impacts on the quality of river water.

Extreme rainfall events lead to a lot of runoff because the soil simply isn’t able to absorb the precipitation at the rate it’s falling. In urban, suburban, and agricultural areas, this runoff will pick up pollutants from the landscape and carry them to nearby rivers and other waterways. Additionally, in many older communities, storm water runoff and sewage are transported together through the same single-pipe system. Extreme rain events can overwhelm these systems, spilling raw sewage and polluted storm water into nearby streams and rivers.

“Impaired water quality is a global and growing problem, limiting resources for drinking, domestic use, food production and recreation, as well as harming ecosystems,” Nature writes.

On the other end of the spectrum, frequent droughts, enhanced evaporation, and decreases in overall annual rainfall result in reduced water levels in streams, rivers, and lakes, which leaves less water to dilute even relatively common pollutants. It goes without saying that rising levels of pollution – whether from too much or too little precipitation – will create a major strain on any ecosystem that relies on the freshwater provided by streams, rivers, and lakes, threatening the survival of many fish, plant, and wildlife species. Of course, there are also major implications for drinking water as well.

WHAT CAN I DO?

With all this in mind, the White House’s recent proposal to cut the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget by more than 31 percent is especially disheartening. The EPA is tasked with enforcing America’s clean water laws, after all, and those regulations will become even more vital in a world where changes in our climate further compound existing pollution concerns.

Budgets reflect priorities, and any budget that scales back efforts to protect our rivers and streams makes it clear that, to this administration, the bottom lines of Big Polluters are more important than the health and well-being of Americans.

Jobs

 

2017-18 Position Openings with TerraCorps – Various locations

TerraCorps, formerly MassLIFT-AmeriCorps, is an innovative national service program helping communities conserve and secure land for the health and well-being of people and nature. This year we are looking for 36 members to serve in full-time, 11 month positions. Members will carry out capacity building projects; educate or train individuals; recruit, train, manage, and support community volunteers engaged in land-based activities; and identify new individuals and groups to participate in education, recreation, or service opportunities centered around land access and conservation.

Members serve as: Land Stewardship Coordinators, Regional Conservation Coordinators, Youth Education Coordinators, or Community Engagement Coordinators.

These 1,700 hour AmeriCorps positions receive a living allowance, education award, and additional AmeriCorps benefits. The 2017-2018 program will run from 8/28/17 – 7/27/18.

Application specifics, position descriptions, and information about organizations hosting TerraCorps members can be found at here.

Applications will be accepted until all positions are filled. Interviews begin mid-April, and we aim to fill all positions by the end of June.

AmeriCorps programs provide equal service opportunities. TerraCorps will recruit and select persons in all positions to ensure a diverse and inclusive climate without regard to any particular status. We encourage applications from individuals with disabilities and will provide reasonable accommodations for interviews and service upon request. TerraCorps is a grant program of the Corporation for National and Community Service.

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Various Positions – The Manice Education Center (MEC) – Florida, MA

The Manice Education Center (MEC) is intentionally located in a unique outdoor setting within the heart of the Berkshire Mountains of Western Massachusetts. MEC operates several distinctly different seasonal programs that are experientially focused in high-quality environmental education, wilderness camping, and leadership training.

Summer Outdoor educators will lead wilderness expeditions for campers & can expect to guide an average of 6 backpacking and/or canoeing trips, ranging from 2 to 5 days in length.  Expedition locations inlude the Appalachian Trail, Long Trail, Savoy Mountain State Forest, Taconic Trail, Battenkill River, Deerfield River, & Connecticut River. Educators receive training in backpacking and wilderness navigation, participate in a 2 day professional canoe clinic, & can earn free certifications in Wildernes First Aid and/or Waterfront Lifeguarding.

APPLY TODAY – SEND US A COVER LETTER AND RESUME TO EMPLOYMENT@CHRISTODORA.ORG 

For more details please visit our Jobs page (click here).

Please share this opportunity with your friends and colleagues! If you have any questions about employment in Christodora programs, please contact Matthew Scholl, Programs Director at 413.663.8463 or email us at employment@christodora.org

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Sierra Club – Temporary Boston Online Organizer

The Online Organizing team furthers Sierra Club’s goals by using online tools and tactics to engage members and activists at the local and national level. The team focuses on providing timely, engaging actions that Club activists can use to influence policy decision-making processes, as well as further develop and grow Sierra Club’s activist and volunteer leadership bases. This is a temporary position running June – September 2017. Visit the Sierra Club’s website for all the details.

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In-Lieu Fee Program Administrator

MassCareers Job Number 170003IV

The Department of Fish and Game (DFG) is accepting applications for their new In-Lieu Fee (ILF) Program Administrator position. The ILF Program Administrator will be responsible for developing a comprehensive framework for ILF Program planning and implementation including: identification, prioritization, selection, review, and approval of proposed mitigation projects; monitoring and tracking implementation, performance, and completion of approved mitigation projects; and managing all financial, accounting, budgeting, and reporting activities and requirements related to DFG’s administration of the ILF Program consistent with Department policies and the ILF Program Instrument. The ILF Program Administrator is a position within the Office of the Commissioner but will also work collaboratively and in partnership with staff from the Division of Ecological Restoration, Division of Marine Fisheries, Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, and the agency’s Land Protection Program.

For additional information and details about the ILF Program Administrator position, and to apply, please visit the MassCareers Job Opportunities website and search for Job Number 170003IV or click here. The job is open until filled. However, applicants within the first two weeks typically receive preference. For additional information about DFG’s In-Lieu Fee Program click here.

Questions? Please contact Christy Edwards at christy.edwards@state.ma.us or 617-626-1518.

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 Volunteer Opportunities with The Trustees