Wildlife in Hot Water: Philadelphia Edition

This is the first in a multi-part series localizing the National Wildlife Federation's (NWF) recent report, Wildlife in Hot Water: America’s Waterways and Climate Change.

Last week, PennFuture joined the NWF in Scranton to release its new report, which examines the affects climate change is having on wildlife and the nation’s waterways. 

The report details the rapid changes to the Earth’s water cycle that are already having negative impacts on ecosystems. As a result of disruptive carbon pollution, these changes include earlier and more rapid snowmelt, fewer and more intense rainfall events, and more frequent and extreme droughts and floods. The very character, chemistry, and quality of our waterways are changing in some of the following ways: 

• Reduced dissolved oxygen levels in streams and lakes
• Loss of habitat for cold and cool water fish species as climate change is prompting warmer temperatures
• Loss of wetlands and reduced riparian/floodplain connectivity
• Loss of upstream/downstream connectivity caused by the drying of stream and river reaches
• Reduced extent, diversity, and quality of in-stream habitat for aquatic biota
• Increased pollutant concentrations from urban and agricultural runoff

These effects are already being felt throughout Pennsylvania. Last Wednesday, speakers at our press event discussed the negative effects of climate change on water and wildlife in the Lackawanna and Susquehanna Rivers. But northeast Pennsylvania isn’t the only region of the commonwealth feeling these effects. The City of Philadelphia, bordered by two tidal rivers, is particularly at risk to sea level rise and extreme weather events. 

Flooding on Kelly Drive in Philadelphia

Some findings concerning Philadelphia and climate change-related flooding:

• According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), nuisance flooding in Philadelphia – think road closures, overwhelmed storm drains, and infrastructure damage – has increased by 650 percent over the past 50 years. This significant increase is due to many factors, including climate-related sea level rise. NOAA concluded in its report that acceleration in sea level rise “will further intensify nuisance flooding impacts over time, and will further reduce the time between flood events.” 
• Sea levels in the Delaware Estuary have already risen by about a foot in the last century and experts expect to experience a rise of at last three more feet within ninety years.
• A report from the Union of Concerned Scientists projects that over the next thirty years tidal flooding events in Philadelphia will grow in frequency from 19 to 200 per year.
• The National Weather Service’s Sea, Lake, and Overland Surge from Hurricanes (SLOSH) model shows the that large sections of Philadelphia would be inundated if a Category 1 or 2 hurricane were to directly impact the region. In particular, southwest Philadelphia, which includes the Eastwick neighborhood as well as Philadelphia International Airport, would be particularly vulnerable to surge flooding where water levels would be higher than the elevation of the area. In an op-ed in Plan Philly’s Eyes on the Street blog, author Amy Laura Cahn shares that during Hurricane Floyd, “Eastwick’s slab-on-grade homes filled with six feet of water.” As a result, Eastwick residents have experienced spikes in the cost of flood insurance. 

Without climate action, it is expected that the rate of sea level rise will accelerate and extreme weather events will occur with greater frequency. Fortunately, there are many options for combating the causes of climate change while simultaneously preserving and protecting wildlife and the waterways they depend on, including: 

• Supporting the Clean Power Plan and reducing our carbon footprint: The Environment Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan is an important step first step toward mitigating climate change. The plan presents opportunities to not only reduce carbon pollution from existing power plants, but to also invest in a zero-carbon, clean energy future. The commonwealth should expand upon its existing wind, solar, and energy efficiency programs to meet our reduction goals in a manner that is both cost-effective and emissions-neutral. 
• Encouraging Clean Water Act Protections: In order to better protect our wildlife and waters, support for the Clean Water Rule is essential. Without this rule, at least 60 percent of America’s streams and 20 million acres of wetlands would be left vulnerable to the destructive hands of industrial activities. 

In the coming weeks, we plan to share more region-specific stories that underscore the need to act on climate to protect our waterways and wildlife. Stay tuned!

Katie Bartolotta is southeastern Pennsylvania outreach coordinator for PennFuture and is based in Philadelphia. She tweets @KatieBartolotta.  

Rally Ho!

Mayor Peduto speaks to the importance of Pittsburgh rivers

Q: What do Robert F. Kennedy Jr., award winning environmentalist Ma Jun and Pittsburgh’s Kim Teplitzky have in common? 

A.They care, deeply, about rivers.

River Rally 2014, a joint conference of River Network and Waterkeeper Alliance, took place in Pittsburgh this past weekend and it was a lot of fun. Attendees traveled from Iraq, Senegal, China, Mexico and across the United States to learn and to share their experiences working to protect our water resources across the globe.

Rivers are great conveners, and what better place than the three rivers for a gathering of people dedicated to protecting them? Though, truthfully, the question of exactly how many rivers Pittsburgh may lay claim to was raised more then once. As in, to horrifically "borrow from" (butcher) Shakespeare, a river by any other name…may still flow with the same water. I digress.

The four-day-long River Rally schedule was packed with workshops led by scientists, policy makers and local advocates. Participants could learn about anything from the role of macroinvertabrates in determining stream health thanks to Stroud Water Research Center, to the details of the newly proposed Waters of the U.S. Rule, to how best to build a volunteer base. The conference wasn't all talk, however. Sunday field trips included a tour of Ohiopyle State Park led by author Tim Palmer, a trip to see gas drilling well sites to learn more about fracking and, closer to home, a float on the Allegheny where conference attendees cleaned piles of trash out of our river (Pittsburgh THANKS you).

I had the pleasure of attending all four days and I learned a lot. Beyond important policy and academic knowledge, however, was a sense of just how many people care about our waterways. Many environmental organizations run with just a handful of staff working to clean up small streams in their own back yard. The impact of that work can often feel like a drop in the bucket (intended) until those groups are pulled together into one room. There were hundreds of people in attendance this year. Considering that we all need clean water to live, next year, in New Mexico, I hope to see thousands.

Valessa Souter-Kline is PennFuture's western Pennsylvania outreach coordinator and is based in Pittsburgh. She tweets @ValessaSK.

Can’t stop the rain (but can reduce the pollution)

We are all acutely aware of the damage caused by flooding after major storms such as Superstorm Sandy. Most of us, however, do not think about the effects ordinary rain events – even gentle showers – can have on our streams and rivers. Although our mental images of rain may include fond memories of running through a warm summer shower as a child, splashing through puddles and trying to catch drops on our tongues, the ultimate effect of that rainwater may actually be harmful to our streams and rivers.

As rain or melted snow makes its way through our gutters, down our streets and sidewalks, and over our fertilized fields, it picks up dirt, motor oil, pet droppings, fertilizer, cigarette butts, candy wrappers, and anything else that might be in its path. Many of our municipal storm sewer systems do not treat stormwater, so all the pollution the rainwater has collected runs into the streams and rivers in which we fish, boat, and swim, and from which we obtain much of our drinking water. In fact, according to estimates, 3,000 miles of Pennsylvania streams are polluted by stormwater runoff alone.

We all know that we can’t stop the rain, so what can we do to help protect our water? First, there are many small things that we can do in our everyday lives. These include properly disposing of products including motor oil or pesticides that contain harmful chemicals; using lawn fertilizers sparingly and only when necessary; and cleaning up after our pets.

On a larger scale, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in the process of drafting standards that would modernize its approach to stormwater. These standards should encourage "green design," which seeks to maximize the amount of stormwater controlled on the site where the rain falls, keeping it – and the pollutants it carries – out of the storm sewer system, and thus out of our waterways. Unfortunately, EPA’s draft rules are long overdue.

A campaign launched in August encourages citizens to ask their representatives in Congress to pressure EPA to publish these overdue rules. There is still time for you to lend your voice to that campaign. The organization American Rivers has developed tools that will make it easy for you to contact your representatives in Congress. Go to http://www.americanrivers.org/blog/tell-epa-not-delay-protect-clean-water/, and make your voice heard!