RAPID: Impact of Hurricane Sandy on the Ecology of the New Jersey Shorelines: Recovery and Resilience

CBET - 1313185Michel C.新泽西理工学院在飓风桑迪过后，对北泽西海岸线的生态恢复力进行了评估。 选择了三个代表不同生态系统的地点：拉里坦湾的沙滩，一个湿地系统，以及纽瓦克湾内陆一英里处的帕塞伊克河上的一个地点。 这些系统在历史上是淡水到微咸的，重要的是要量化由于大量海水和沙子侵入它们而造成的压力。 在内陆地区被洪水淹没的沙滩上设置了取样断面，风暴结束后洪水仍持续了一周。 假设是，这种住宅洪水改变了化学品的质量和数量方面的环境通量。 正在获取孔隙水的测量数据，并对它们进行营养物质、金属和盐度分析。 该湿地系统是微咸的，假设测试是，湿地的行为从甲烷转化为硫酸盐还原。 沉积物样品正在分析硫化物，营养物质，金属（铁，锰等），和多环芳烃。 模型MARUN，变饱和介质中密度相关流的有限元模型将用于解释结果。 目前正在检验的假设是，由于飓风桑迪造成的帕塞伊克河的损害比飓风艾琳造成的损害更严重，因为飓风艾琳之前的风暴潮很大。城市中心的沿海地区正受到人口密度和活动增加的压力。 虽然这种压力的量化具有挑战性，但在飓风等主要但不常见的压力源存在的情况下，这变得极其困难。 此外，城市海岸线由人为结构、受控（或受管制）河口、海滩表面形态和湿地组成。 维持这样一个系统整体需要各种工具和测量方法，每种方法都适合特定的生态系统。 在该项目中，在三个生态系统中进行了特定地点的测量：海滩面、湿地和河口居民区，该项目的目标是提供可用于更好地构建海岸线可持续性模型的数据。 这项研究的结果将传达给各利益相关者，包括受影响的当地社区和新泽西州。

CBET - 1313185Michel C. BoufadelThe New Jersey Institute of TechnologyThe ecological resilience of the North Jersey shorelines was evaluated following Hurricane Sandy. Three locations were selected each representing a different ecosystem: Sand beaches in Raritan Bay, a wetland system, and a site on the Passaic River a mile inland of Newark Bay. These systems were historically freshwater to brackish, and it was important to quantify the stress within them as a result of the intrusion of large volumes of seawater and sand onto them. Sampling transects were set across sand beaches whose inland areas where flooded, and the flooding persisted one week after the end of the storm. The hypothesis was that this residential flooding altered the ambient flux of chemicals in terms of quality and quantity. Measurements of pore water are being acquired, and they are analyzed for nutrients, metals, and salinity. The wetland system was brackish, and the hypothesis to test was that the behavior of the wetland switched from methanogenesis to sulfate reduction. Sediment samples are being analyzed for sulfide, nutrients, metals (Iron, Manganese, etc), and PAHs. The model MARUN, a finite element model for density-dependent flow in variably-saturated media will be used to interpret the results. The hypothesis being tested is that the impairment of the Passaic River due to Hurricane Sandy is more severe than that due to Hurricane Irene due to the large storm surge of the prior.Coastal areas in urban centers are being stressed by increased population density and activity. While the quantification of this stress is challenging, it becomes extremely difficult in the presence of major but infrequent stressors such as hurricanes. In addition, urban coastlines consist of a mixture of anthropogenic structures, controlled (or regulated) estuaries, beach face morphology, and wetlands. Maintaining such a system whole requires various tools and measurements, each adapted to a particular ecosystem. In this project, site-specific measurements were made in three ecosystems: Beach face, wetland, and estuary residential areas, and the goal of the project is to provide data that could be used to better construct a model for coastline sustainability. The results of this study will be communicated to various stakeholders, including impacted local communities and the State of New Jersey.