Browsing by Author "Yepsen, Metthea"

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
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    A Strategy to Advance Carbon Sequestration on New Jersey's Natural and Working Lands
    (Trenton, N.J. : New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, 2024) Genievich, Heather; Yepsen, Metthea; Blum, Julie; Sinclare, Lauren; McLaughlin, Frank; Colagiovanni, Nina; Rho, Tony; DeFlumeri, Rachel; New Jersey. Department of Environmental Protection; New Jersey. Department of Agriculture
    Climate change is an existential global crisis informed by clear scientific consensus. It is altering precipitation patterns, temperature, and rates of sea-level rise and will impact nearly all our natural resources and developed areas. A coordinated effort to decrease greenhouse gas emissions locally and globally is needed to slow the rate of global warming. New Jersey has made great strides in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels for energy generation. The Natural and Working Lands Strategy (NWLS) is our blueprint for enhancing carbon sequestration across New Jersey's diverse landscapes, aiming to boost the capture of carbon dioxide on both public and private lands, including wetlands, aquatic habitats, agricultural areas, and forests. New Jersey is committed to significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions and combating climate change. To achieve our goal of an 80% reduction in emissions from 2006 levels by 2050, we not only need to cut emissions but also enhance our carbon sequestration efforts. The NWLS provides a plan to help us reach this goal.
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    Beneficial Use of Dredged Material to Enhance Salt Marsh Habitat in New Jersey : Monitoring and Project Assessment
    (Trenton, N.J. : Department of Environmental Protection and Energy, Division of Science and Research, 2023-01) Yepsen, Metthea; Wilburn, Brittany; Woollard, Jaclyn
    This report summarizes monitoring conducted at three pilot beneficial use of dredged material to enhance salt marsh projects in New Jersey. Constructed between August 2014 and April 2017, these projects tested sediment addition techniques that included thin-layer placement (TLP) of dredged material on the platform of vegetated, stressed marshes (Ring Island, Avalon, and Fortescue) and the filling of degraded and expanding pool-panne complexes with dredged material on the surrounding stressed marsh platform (Avalon). The objectives for the three marsh pilot projects were (1) to increase and maintain the optimal tidal elevation (hydroperiod) for native salt marsh species, (2) to increase the cover and health of native salt marsh vegetation, and (3) to return all other metrics to baseline (i.e., pre-implementation) conditions (unless they were expected to change due to habitat conversion). Topographic surveys indicated that 1) on average sites reached target elevations, but the placement was uneven, 2) all sites initially gained elevation, but it was challenging to measure small elevation changes, 3) the higher the final elevation, the slower vegetation grew back, and 4) sites gained resilience against 10- to 27-years’ worth of sea-level rise. As of 2021, none of the salt marsh sites had increased plant cover from baseline conditions or established the targeted Spartina patens habitat. However, several sites matched control site conditions, and much was learned about how to increase the rate of plant recovery. Soil makeup, benthic infauna communities, and epifaunal macroinvertebrates did not return to baseline conditions by 2021, but water chemistry returned to control conditions. Nekton and avian use were variable and results were dependent on changes to vegetation and elevation. These findings suggest that both thin- and thick-layers of sediment addition to existing tidal marshes led to large initial changes in the habitat, from which the ecosystems rebounded/are rebounding at different rates.
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    Beneficial Use of Dredged Material to Enhance Salt Marsh Habitat in New Jersey : Project Summary and Lessons Learned
    (Trenton, N.J. : New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, 2021-08) Doerr, Patricia; Pecchioli, Joel A.; Yepsen, Metthea
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    Improving Marsh Restoration
    (Trenton, N.J. : New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Science and Research, 2023-01) Yepsen, Metthea; Wilburn, Brittany; Moody, Joshua; Haaf, LeeAnn; Beal, Irena
    Tidal wetlands are a prominent feature of New Jersey’s coasts, providing many ecosystem services, including water filtration, habitat for commercially and recreationally important animals, and carbon sequestration. Increasing rates of sea-level rise threaten the existence of tidal wetlands in New Jersey, and land managers are actively developing techniques to enhance resilience. This study aimed to address two emerging needs to support marsh resilience: 1) an evaluation of the effects of the beneficial use of dredged material to increase marsh elevation and 2) the development of a systematic approach to evaluating marsh condition.
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    Mapping and Assessing Tidal Marsh Condition Via Multispectral Imaging
    (Trenton, N.J. : Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Science and Research, 2024-07) Wilburn, Brittany P.; Moody, Joshua; Enache, Mihaela; Raper, Kirk; Yepsen, Metthea; Lester, Lori; Smith, William; Jacobus, Steven; DuMont, David; Blythe, Kevin; VanWieren, Molly; Schutte, Charles
    Within New Jersey, there are approximately 66,000 hectares of tidal saltwater wetlands. These wetlands are integral to the health and well-being of the residents that live within these coastal areas, as they provide a number of invaluable ecosystem services, including: carbon sequestration (Were et al., 2019), coastal storm energy reduction (Rezaie et al., 2020), flood water storage (Rezaie et al., 2020), water quality enhancement (Fisher and Acreman, 2004), and traditional and cultural significance (Pedersen et al., 2019). However, New Jersey has lost a significant portion of its coastal habitat as a result of climate change and other anthropogenic factors, such as reduced hydrological function from agricultural ditching (Smith et al., 2022). A first step to intervene in these losses is to determine vulnerable habitat as quickly, accurately, and efficiently as possible, in order to prioritize areas of marsh for protection or enhancement.
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    A Multi-Metric Site Evaluation Tool for Restoration of New Jersey’s Tidally Influenced Wetlands.
    (Trenton, N.J. : Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Science and Research, 2023-02) Yepsen, Metthea; Nassry, Mike; Raper, Kirk; Morrison, Donald
    Wetland restoration is a complex science that attempts to facilitate positive changes in ecologic function via changes in integrated physical and biologic structure. Although wetland ecology is driven by a suite of interactive factors, frequently, a single parameter or metric is used to determine the restoration goals and measures of a project. Additionally, restoration and/or mitigation targets may be set and evaluated without a complete understanding of appropriate reference conditions the project is proposing to duplicate. As interest in adaptive restoration (focusing on resilience to sea level rise and storm impacts) grows, it is vital to provide information to correctly characterize baseline and changing conditions of the wetland being manipulated relative to a natural or reference condition for greater resilience. Precise evaluation of condition, function, and structure will allow for greater refinement in project design, effective monitoring plan development, and adaptive management strategies to achieve the target goals and objectives. The goals of this effort were to: 1) fill gaps in tidal wetland reference data in New Jersey, and 2) increase the accessibility of monitoring data to the public. This was accomplished by: 1) developing the NJ Reference Wetland Tool database; 2) filling data gaps on tidal wetland hydrology and water quality; 3) adding a long-term monitoring site in the Raritan River; and 4) developing tools that will assist standardized data collection in the future.