U.S. Navy awards $8 million to develop wave, tidal energy technology

The U.S. Navy has committed to get half of its energy from renewable sources by the year 2020. One element of that strategy will be looking to extract energy from tides, currents and waves. The University of Washington is helping to reach that goal with an $8 million, four-year contract from the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, or NAVFAC, to develop marine renewable energy for use at the Navy's facilities worldwide. The goal is to generate energy from the surrounding water at coastal bases, islands or overseas facilities in order to lower costs and increase reliability of the power supply. Forming a partnership with NAVFAC will allow the UW to develop tools for the Navy to predict and tap energy at its various marine locations.

Public comments sought on RESTORE Act draft NOAA science plan

Today, NOAA released for public comment the draft science plan for the NOAA RESTORE Act Science Program, which supports research in the Gulf of Mexico on long-term sustainability of the ecosystem and its fisheries. The draft plan, of which notice be to published appears on line today at the Federal Register, outlines 10 long-term research priorities to guide how the program will invest its funds and explains how these priorities were determined. The program will review the comments received and anticipates releasing a final version of the science plan early next year.

Scientists: Cancel Maine Shrimp Season Again Because Of Rising Ocean Temperatures

After an alarming report of a collapsed fishery cancelled the shrimp season in the Gulf of Maine last year due to higher water temperatures, it seemed unthinkable to locals that it would happen again. "There are definitely still people that were holding out hope that we might be able to get in a bit of a season this year," said Ben Martens, who runs the Maine Coast Fishermen's Association. But that's exactly what a team of scientific experts told the federal regulators who will make the call next week in a draft report, according to the AP. The scientists on the Northern Shrimp Technical Committee told the regulatory body known as the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission that "the depleted condition of the resource" - meaning the shrimp population - can be blamed on "long term trends in environmental conditions." And the culprit, according to the AP's take on the draft report, is "rising ocean temperatures."

Boston Mayor Walsh announces regional effort to tackle climate change

On the two-year anniversary of Hurricane Sandy, Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced the creation of a regional summit on climate change Wednesday, saying rising sea levels and powerful storms pose a pressing threat. "The climate knows no municipal boundaries," Walsh said at a press conference at the Architecture Boston Expo, held at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center. The summit will be held next spring at the University of Massachusetts Boston and will coordinate a regional approach to climate change, drawing a number of agencies as well as officials from Cambridge, Somerville, Chelsea, and other towns and cities. Scientists project that sea levels could rise one to two feet by 2050, and three to six feet by 2100, threatening coastal areas.

Building for the Next Storm: After Hurricane Sandy, New York Builds for the future

While only a few of the smallest projects have been finished, the vast constellation of proposals - backed by what one official called a "strange polyamorous relationship" of the city, state and federal governments - will most likely take years and billions of dollars to complete, if indeed that is ever achieved. If there is one guiding principle at work, it is the notion that the city, which has thumbed its nose at the water for 300 years, can no longer keep the sea at bay, but must by necessity invite it in. "We didn't want to just build barriers; we wanted to build an ecosystem," said Henk Ovink, a Dutch water-management expert who now serves as a senior adviser to the Presidential Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force, a group within the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which has earmarked billions for the program. "For that to happen, we have to live with the water, to understand it, while still understanding our vulnerabilities."

NCCOS Completes Ecosystem Assessment of Chesapeake Bay Watersheds

NCCOS recently completed an assessment of three watersheds in the Chesapeake Bay region (Corsica, Magothy, and Rhode Rivers), exploring the linkages between dominant land-use type (agriculture, residential, and mixed-use, respectively) and aquatic ecosystem health. Habitat health was determined based on factors of water quality including dissolved oxygen, nitrogen, and phosphorous concentrations, and aquatic organism health indicators of fish and shellfish growth, disease prevalence, abundance, and diversity. Understanding how these observations relate to local human activities and subsequently indicate trade-offs between land development and aquatic ecosystem health is necessary for balancing the needs of the growing population and protecting the Chesapeake Bay's valuable ecosystem services, from commercial and recreational fisheries, boating, and ecotourism.

New Washington DC flood barrier to be tested: Metal wall would block surging water

Washington's long-delayed 17th Street flood barrier is scheduled to be tested Friday when officials from the Army and the National Park Service install the metal apparatus across 17th Street, near Constitution Avenue. Seventeenth Street, between Constitution and Independence avenues, near the National World War II Memorial, will be closed in both directions from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Army Corps of Engineers said. The test installation will take place during that time. The temporary barrier is designed to block floodwaters surging north from the Tidal Basin and flowing into downtown Washington.

Hampton Roads military bases brace for climate change, sea-level rise

When Hurricane Isabel raged through Hampton Roads in 2003, tidal levels rose 7.9 feet, putting most of Langley Air Force Base underwater. As the waters receded, the damage was immense. Two hundred facilities on the base were affected. Recovery efforts cost $166 million. Every major storm since has done less damage, not because they were less powerful storms - Hurricane Irene in 2011 brought 7.6 feet of water on base and tides rose 6.8 feet during Hurricane Sandy two years ago - but because base engineers have taken steps to address the rising tides and sea-level changes that many scientists are attributing to climate change. Last week, the Department of Defense released a Climate Change Adaptation Roadmap, which recognized Hampton Roads as the largest concentration of U.S. military sites in the world and an area that is frequently inundated with flood waters. The map lays out plans to assess U.S. military bases worldwide for potential climate change impacts and to address those issues.

NC Coastal Resources Commission Airs Top Coastal Issues

When Gov. Pat McCrory dropped by this week's Coastal Resources Commission meeting in Wilmington, he got a primer on issues that are uppermost in the minds of commission members. Those issues include the rising cost and reduced federal funding for beach and inlet maintenance, questions about offshore energy exploration, the cost of flood and wind insurance and how to maintain coastal environments to sustain the fishing and tourism industries.

In Florida, a water-pollution warning that glows at night

Karen McLaughlin normally carries a flashlight for her nighttime kayak trips along Florida's Banana River to spot any alligators resting on the banks. But these days, it's the river itself that glows in the dark. "It's beautiful!" McLaughlin, an eco-tour guide, said as her boat's wake set off an eerie light show on a moonless October night. Each dip of her paddle stirred up bioluminescent plankton that have invaded this eastern Florida waterway in record numbers since late summer. Like millions of tiny fireflies, they lit a jumping fish in a geyser of emerald light. A manatee out for the evening glowed like an alien spaceship as it passed underneath. It was striking, but also strange: In a region where explosive "blooms" of toxic or nuisance algae have battered fisheries and killed dolphins and sea turtles in recent years, the glowing microorganisms represent another mysterious shift in an ecosystem that scientists say is out of kilter.

Giant machines help South Florida dissect hurricanes

Florida, the most storm-battered state in the nation, now is home to groundbreaking research that allows scientists to dissect the raw power of hurricanes. Both the University of Miami and Florida International University have built complexes that recreate realistic hurricane conditions, including the enormous wind, battering waves and rainfall they can generate. The idea is to provide scientists with a better understanding of how the storms work, information that should help improve forecasts and bolster construction.

Restoring nearshore habitats in Puget Sound

One of the largest habitat restoration and preservation programs ever undertaken in the United States, the Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project (PSNERP) includes three projects in the Stanwood-Camano region.

Damage total mounts in Port Orford, Oregon

Damages from the storm that hammered the port at Port Orford on Saturday are beginning to be calculated, with estimates already in the $1 million range. On Monday, Kate Groth, representative for the Army Corps of Engineers, joined Senior Port Commissioner Brett Webb and other Port Orford officials to assess the devastation. While the port has not yet released an official monetary assessment of its losses, Webb estimated the cost of the destruction at approximately $474,000 and likely to rise - a figure that just applies to the damage incurred by the port's tenants. On Saturday, the first big storm of the season pounded the port as winds up to 90 mph drove heavy waves over the dock, destroying small buildings and forcing an evacuation. Well-known seafood restaurant Griffs on the Dock suffered damage upward of $350,000, while the Hallmark Fisheries building was washed away.

Researcher probes saltwater intrusion into Calif.'s coastal groundwater supplies

In one of the most picturesque parts of California's long Pacific Coast, researchers are investigating what could be a large and contentious unknown: the groundwater that lies beneath the shoreline. A Stanford University earth sciences professor, Rosemary Knight, is investigating the extent to which salt water has intruded into underground aquifers. The topic is of immediate relevance in the drought-stricken state, and particularly along the 24-mile stretch Knight has selected where small legal wars over groundwater use are brewing.