2017 Summit Proceedings and Presentations
2017 Summit Proceedings (includes program and abstracts)
MONDAY
Welcome & Keynote:
9:00 AM
Keynote: Ben Horton, Southern New Jersey and Delaware Sea Levels; Past, Present and Future
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Late morning 10:45 AM – 12:00 PM
Post Sandy Lesson
| 10:45 | Review and Application of New Jersey's Living Shorelines Engineering Design Guidelines | Jon Miller*, Andrew Rella, Thomas Herrington, Amy Williams |
| 11:00 | Completed Implementation of Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge's Recovery and Resiliency Ecosystem Restoration | Bartholomew Wilson*, Al Rizzo, Art Coppola |
| 11:15 | Beyond Sandy: How NJ’s Utilities Included Resiliency in their Designs after Superstorm Sandy | Heather Knizhnik*, Eugene Chebra, P.E. |
| 11:30 | Green Infrastructure and Storm Events: Combining Insights from Two Studies | Patrick Gurian*, Stephanie Miller, Bita Alizadehtazi , Franco Montalto, Kimberly DiGiovanni, Romano Foti |
| 11:45 | Delaware Bay Resiliency Restoration Projects: An Update | Capt. Alek Modjeski*, Tim Dillingham, Larry Niles, Joseph Smith, Shane Godshall, Steve Hafner, Dianne Daley |
Trash Talking Waterways
| 10:45 | Spatial and Temporal Variability of the Composition of Urban Litter in the Riparian Zone of the Poquessing Creek | Walter Yerk*, Nance Kerns, Suzanne Zlotnick |
| 11:00 | Scrubbing Up the Schuylkill | Virginia Vassalotti* |
| 11:15 | Identifying Litter Accumulation Areas on the Tidal Portions of the Delaware River: Field surveys, Laboratory Analyses, and Cleanups | Jay Kelly*, Caite Tobin and Cindy Zipf |
| 11:30 | One Man's Trash (Observations) | Bradley Maule* |
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Early afternoon 1:30 – 3:30 PM
Estuary Restoration I
| 1:30 | The Impact of Past Management Practices on Tidal Marsh Resilience to Sea Level Rise in the Delaware Estuary. | Joseph Smith*, Steven Hafner, Larry J. Niles |
| 1:45 | Restoration of Vulnerable and Damaged Marsh Ecosystems to Improve Response to Sea Level Rise | Mara Orescanin, Weishar, L., Hamilton, R*. P. |
| 2:00 | Prioritizing Natural Coastal Protection Strategies Through Shoreline Assessments | Christiana Pollack*, Jessica Jahre |
| 2:15 | Protecting Jersey Shore Residential and Ecological Communities by Changing the Culture of Beach Management | Jay Kelly*, Jaclyn Rhoads, Ryan Rebozo |
| 2:30 | Floating Oyster Cages and Wetlands As An Alternative Bio-Enhancement Strategy | Andrew McGowan*, Marianne Walch, Robert Collins |
| 2:45 | Developing Sources of Raw Material for Oyster Restoration projects in the Inland Bays | Bob Collins*, Marianne Walch, Andrew McGowan |
| 3:00 | Ecosystem Service Valuation: The How and Why for Your CoastalRestoration Project Team | Elizabeth Schuster* |
Water Quality
| 1:30 | Flow Management for the Delaware River and Estuary | Amy Shallcross* |
| 1:45 | Reconstruction of Historic Water Quality in the Tidal Christina River from Pre-European Settlement through the Present | Margaret Christie*, Donald Charles, Ronald Martin, Peter McLaughlin, James Pizzuto |
| 2:00 | Water Quality Modeling of Urban Streams in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | William Bezts*, Eileen Althouse, Josef Kardos, Kinman Leung |
| 2:15 | Brandywine-Christina Healthy Water Fund Model-based Prioritization | Andrew Homsey*, Jerry Kauffman, Brian Boutin, Kash Srinivasan |
| 2:30 | Advances in Implementation of Antidegradation Policies and Practices in Delaware River Basin Commission Special ProtectionWaters | Robert Limbeck* |
| 2:45 | Connecting the Drops: Stormwater Management in Bridgeton City and Upper Deerfield | Meredith Brown* |
| 3:00 | Storm Control Treatment Facility – A Novel Solution to Sanitary Sewer Overflows | Thomas Amidon* |
Special Panel
| 1:30 | Green City, Clean Waters: Planning and Outreach for the First 5 Years | Christopher Anderson, Stephanie Chiorean, Maggie Dunn |
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Early afternoon 3:45 – 5:15 PM
Special Panel
| 3:45 | Delaware River Watershed Initiative Panel | Carol Collier, Clare Billett, Amanda Bassow, Scott Haag, John Jackson |
Thin Layer Placement in Coastal Wetlands
| 3:45 | Site Assessment for Salt Marsh Restoration via Beneficial Use of Dredged Material: Insights from Recent Projects in New Jersey | Jackie Jahn*, Metthea Yepsen, Mary Paist Goldman |
| 4:00 | Habitat Restoration Through the Application of Dredged Material | Mary Paist-Goldman* |
| 4:15 | Beneficial Reuse of Dredge Material for Salt Marsh Restoration: Early Recovery of Vegetation and Epifaunal Macroinvertebrate | Jessie Buckner*, Metthea Yepsen, Adrianna Zito-Livingston |
| 4:30 | Bearing Capacity: Correlating Sediment Penetration Resistance and Vegetation Recovery in Salt Marsh Restoration Using Dredge Material | Jessie Buckner*, Metthea Yepsen |
| 4:45 | Benefically Using Dredge Material to Boost a Salt Marsh along Pepper Creek, Delaware | Alison Rogerson* |
| 5:00 | Perspectives on Linking Sediment Management to Science-Based Coastal Wetland Monitoring and Restoration | Danielle Kreeger * |
Special Panel
| 3:45 | Connect the Dots-Leveraging Community Partnerships and Media Relations to Elevate Nonprofit Success | Laura Bishop |
Tuesday
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Early Morning 9:00 – 10:00 AM
Water Quality
| 9:00 | Extensive Biogeochemical Sampling of the Sediment and Water Column in the Tidal Freshwater Delaware River, 2012-2014 | David Velinsky*, Jeffrey Cornwell, Mike Owens, David Walsh, Josef Kardos |
| 9:15 | High?Resolution Water Quality Model in the Urban Tidal Freshwater Delaware River | Josef Kardos*, Phil Duzinski, Kinman Leung, Paula Kulis, Ramona McCullough |
| 9:30 | Updating TMDLs For PCBs For The Delaware Estuary | Thomas Fikslin*, Namsoo S. Suk |
| 9:45 | Brandywine-Christina Healthy Water Fund | Martha Narvaez*, Gerald Kauffman, Andrew Homsey, Richie Jones |
Motivate Volunteers and Make a Difference
| 9:00 | Walking the Talk: How a For- Profit Business Inspires Environmental Volunteerism and Stewardship |
Kelly Offner* |
| 9:15 | Pennsylvania Master Watershed Steward Program | Rebecca Kennedy*, Erin Frederick |
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Late Morning 10:00 – 11:15 AM
Wetlands
| 10:00 | Site Assessment for Salt Marsh Restoration via Beneficial Use of Dredged Material: Insights from Recent Projects in New JerseyDo Nitrous Oxide Emissions Offset Potential Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Benefits of Wetland Restoration in Eutrophic Estuaries? |
Elizabeth Watson*, Rose Martin, Kerstin Wasson, Kat Beheshti, Elisabeth Powell, David Velinsky, Cathleen Wigand |
| 10:15 | Net Ecosystem Carbon Exchange and the Greenhouse Gas Balance of Tidal Marshes along the Salinity Gradient in the Delaware River Estuary | Nathaniel Weston*, Scott Neubauer, David Velinsky, Melanie Vile |
| 10:30 | Monitoring the Response of Estuarine Wetlands to Anthropogenic Disturbances at the St. Jones Reserve After One Year | Christina Whiteman*, Drexel Siok, Lyndie Hice-Dunton, Ph.D, Kari St. Laurent, Ph.D |
| 10:45 | Mispillion Watershed: Wetland Status and Health | Alison Rogerson*, Andrew Howard, Brittany Haywood, Kenny Smith |
| 11:00 | The Value of Delaware’s Tidal Wetland Ecosystem Services: A Choice Experiment | Nicole Rodi* |
Monitoring
| 10:00 | Monitoring Bird and Vegetation Communities at Prime Hook NWR Before, During, and After Tidal Marsh Restoration | Susan Guiteras*, Tim Freiday, Greg Shriver, Elizabeth Tymkiw, Mack McGraw, Annabella Larsen, Jennifer McAndrews |
| 10:15 | Contaminant Exposure and Productivity of Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) Nesting in Delaware Bay and River in 2015 |
Barnett Rattner*, Thomas G. Bean, Rebecca S. Lazarus, Peter C. McGowan, Dan D. Day, Robert W. Scarborough, Kate Fleming |
| 10:30 | Bird's Eye View: Quantifying Short-term Beach Morphology Using UAV Photogrammetry | Stephanie Dohner*, Doug Miller, Arthur Trembanis |
| 10:45 | Dirt Cheap: Low-Cost, Real- Time Remote Soil Moisture Sensor Network For Rain Gardens | Matthew Fritch* |
| 11:00 | A Feasibility and Baseline Assessment for Zooplankton Monitoring at the Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve | Kari St.Laurent*, Molly Williams |
Beyond Education to Engagement
| 10:00 | Jersey-Friendly Yards: Landscaping for a Healthy Environment | Karen Walzer*, Becky Laboy |
| 10:15 | Exploring Effective Science Communication In The Digital Realm | Lisa Tossey* |
| 10:30 | Engaging With Diversity: From Latinas In Motion To Pokémon Trainers | Doryan De Angel* |
| 10:45 | Delaware Bay Oyster Shell Deficit Reduction Via Post Consumer Recycling Program | Jeff Long* |
| 11:00 | Online Advertising | Michelle Knoll* |
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Early Afternoon 2:00 – 3:15 PM
Physical and Chemical Processes
| 2:00 | Hydrologic Interaction of Fresh and Salt Water During Salt Marsh Reconstruction in 2015 at Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware | Thomas McKenna* |
| 2:15 | Hydrodynamic Processes Influencing Transport in the Upper Tidal Delaware River | Ramona McCullough*, Paula Kulis, Phil Duzinski |
| 2:30 | Tidally-Induced Dispersion in the Delaware River near Philadelphia: Insights from Large-Scale Dye Experiment | Phil Duzinski*, Robert Chant, Elias Hunter, David Walsh |
| 2:45 | Impact of Future Salinity Increases on Operational Costs of Power Plants in the Delaware Estuary | Yosef Shirazi*, Edward Carr, Dr. George Parsons, Dr. Porter Hoagland |
| 3:00 | Signals of sea-level rise in Delaware and Chesapeake Bay tides | Andrew Ross*, Raymond G Najjar |
NJ Bayshore and Vicinity: Planning, Projects, Resilency
| 2:00 | Building Ecological Solutions to Coastal Community Hazards – Projects Update | Steven Jacobus* |
| 2:15 | Incorporating Resiliency Features into Bayshore Designs | Douglas Gaffney* |
| 2:30 | The Delaware Estuary Living Shoreline Initiative (DELSI): Results and Lessons Learned Regarding Three Treatments in the Maurice River, NJ. | Joshua Moody*, Dr. Danielle Kreeger, David Bushek, Angela Padeletti |
| 2:45 | Monitoring and Site Assessment for Post-Sandy Coastal Resilience Projects in New Jersey | Martha Doyle, Angela Padeletti* |
Special Panel
| 2:00 | Social Marketing Hands on Workshop: Part 1 | Jen Dindinger, Kacey Wetzel |
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Late Afternoon 3:30 – 5:30 PM
Living Shorelines
| 3:30 | The Promotion of Living Shorelines in Delaware through a Dedicated Work Group | Alison Rogerson*, Andrew Howard, Brittany Haywood, Kenny Smith |
| 3:45 | Innovative Living Shoreline and Tidal Marsh Enhancement Project at an Inland Bays Marina | Marianne Walch*, Douglas Janiec, Brett Dietz |
| 4:00 | Implementation of a Hybrid Living Shoreline Project in Gandy’s Beach/Money Island, New Jersey | Moses Katkowski*, Katie Conrad |
| 4:15 | A Goal-Based Framework for Coastal Restoration Project Monitoring Plan Development: Measuring Project Success, Informing Adaptive Management, and Guiding Future Project Development | Josh Moody*, Metthea Yepsen, Elizabeth Schuster |
| 4:30 | Application of a Goal-Based Monitoring Framework for Assessing Performance of Living Shoreline Projects | Josh Moody*, Danielle Kreeger, Angela Padeletti, David Bushek |
| 4:45 | What’s Living On Living Shorelines? Monitoring A Hybrid Living Shoreline Project In Delaware Bay | Jenny Paterno*, Lisa Calvo, David Bushek, Moses Katkowski |
| 5:00 | Siting Plan and Concept Designs for Living Shoreline Projects on the Inland Bays | Douglas Janiec |
| 5:15 | Apps Aren’t Just for Your Smartphone: Facilitating Living Shoreline Projects with Technology and Community Engagement | John Truscinski*, Patty, Doerr, Richard Lathrop, Jon Miller, Danielle Kreeger, Martha Maxwell-Doyle, Alek Modjeski |
Wednesday
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Early morning 9:00 – 10:15 AM
Monitoring
| 9:00 | Evaluation of Light Intensity under a Salt Marsh Boardwalk Utilizing Two Different Materials | Kari St.Laurent*, Molly Williams |
| 9:15 | The Marshian: Determining a Drone's Ability to Monitor Tidal Marshes | Stephanie Dohner*, Doug Miller, Arthur Trembanis |
| 9:30 | Sediment Carbon Stock and Carbon Accumulation Rates in the Delaware Bay Tidal Salt Marshes | Beatrice O’Hara*, Daria Nikitina, Matthew D. Serzega, Daniel Jennings, Deven Scelfo, Steven Esrey |
| 9:45 | Paddle for the Edge: Using Citizen Science to Monitor Marsh Shorelines | Erin Reilly*, Martha Maxwell-Doyle |
| 10:00 | The Results From A Water Quality Testing Program Conducted By A High School Aquatic Science Class On the East and West Branches Of The Brandywine Creek, Pennsylvania. | Dina DiSantis*, Christopher Vandergoes |
Connecting Youth to the Environment
| 9:00 | Camden Youth Lead Ecology History Paddle Tours On The Cooper River To Educate The Community About The Watershed And Promote Conservation Efforts | Victoria Carberry* |
| 9:15 | Designing Delaware: Creating Workforce Ready Graphic Designers through Environmental Partnerships | Maggie Pletta*, Patti Bishop |
| 9:30 | PowerCorps – Camden: Connecting Youth to the Environment Through Employment Opportunities | Caroline Gray*, Westin Mullings, Paige Prado, and Shareef Polk |
| 9:45 | Why Study Water Quality? According to the United States Geological Survey, “Water Quality is Critical to the Health and Habitat of Both Humans and Animals.” | Dina DiSantis*, Christopher Vandergoes |
| 10:00 | Using the Urban Watershed as an Integrated Context for Learning: Classroom Curriculum Program | Ellen Freedman Schultz*, Rachel Odoroff, Karen Brinkley, Aliya O’Neal, Blaine School, Philadelphia |
CONCURRENT SESSIONS: Late Morning 10:30 AM – 12:15 PM
Estuary Restoration
| 10:30 | Rebuilding Beaver Creek | Timothy Stahl* |
| 10:45 | Stream, Wetland, and Riparian Restoration of a Former Cranberry Bog Site in the Pinelands | Mary Paist-Goldman* |
| 11:00 | Using Green Infrastructure to Maximize Restoration Benefits | Jessie Thomas-Blate*, Brian Hazelwood |
| 11:15 | Field Study Of Biochar Amended Soils: Water Retention And Nutrient Removal From Stormwater Runoff | Joseph Brown* |
| 11:30 | Utilizing LiDAR to characterize forest structure and its effects on aquatic organisms at stream reach- and catchment-scales at DRWI restoration and protection sites | Will Ryan*, Scott Haag, Stefanie Kroll |
| 11:45 | Statistical Tools for Connecting Baseline Conditions to Potential Responses of Macroinvertebrate Communities to Restoration Activities Through the Delaware River Watershed Initiative | Stefanie A Kroll*, Meghan J O’Donnell, Brian L Brown, John K Jackson |
| 12:00 | The Delaware Watershed Resource Registry | Mark Biddle, PWS*, LaTonya Gilliam |
Special Panel
| 10:30 | Leading a Network or Coalition | Sarah Clark |
SESSION: Early Afternoon 1:45 – 3:15 PM
Hot Topics
| 1:45 | Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed Discussion | Madeline Urbish* |
| 2:00 | A Synthesized Gap-Free Continuous Sea Level Record for the Delaware River at Philadelphia | Victoria Reis*, James T. Smullen |
| 2:15 | Blue Collar Bivalves, Water Quality and Project ROI, Oh My | Danielle Kreeger*, Josh Moody, Kurt Cheng, Dave Bushek |
| 2:30 | Rancocas Creek National Water Trail, Nomination: 4,000 Years of Multi Use Impacts | John Anderson* |
| 2:45 | Green vs. Gray - A Business Perspective | Douglas Janiec* |
Posters
Estuary Restoration
Kathleen LaForce. Effects of Predator Availability and Substrate Position on Ribbed Mussel Recruitment for Living Shoreline Applications.
Kyle Runion. Does Living Shoreline Design Affect Vegetation Diversity?
Capt. Al Modjeski. Delaware Bay Resiliency Restoration Projects: An Update.
Jessica Hammond. Milford Neck Conservation Area Marsh Restoration.
Living Resources
Michael Acquafredda. Thermal tolerance of juvenile Atlantic surf clams (Spisula solidissima): A step towards diversifying the New Jersey shellfish aquaculture sector.
Kurt Cheng. Freshwater Mussel Propagation: Propelling Restoration Into The Future.
Andrew McGowan. Inland Bays Inshore Fish Survey: Citizen Science At Work.
Elizabeth Shea. InvertEBase: Providing Access to 200 Years of Land and Freshwater Mollusk Data from Eastern North America.
Natalie Zucca. An Assessment of Fish Species Richness in Cooper River, Camden County, NJ.
Daphne Munroe. Horseshoe Crab Activity and Interactions on Rack-and-Bag Oyster Farms.
Joseph Caracappa. Maternal and Salinity Effects on Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus) LarvalMorphology: Implications for Biophysical Interactions.
Patricia Woodruff. Horseshoe Crabs on Beaches Near Active Oyster Aquaculture Farms on theNew Jersey Delaware Bayshore.
Monitoring
Kaitlin T. Collins. A Marsh Futures Case Study: Cox Hall Creek (Lower Township, NJ) Marsh Vulnerability Assessment Using Streamlined Survey Methods.
LeeAnn Haaf. The Utility of Long Term Reference Data for Understanding Elevation Dynamics and Designing Thin Layer Placement Projects in New Jersey Coastal Marshes.
Christopher Nealen. Monitoring Coastal Storm Impacts Using the Surge, Wave, and Tide Hydrodynamics (SWaTH) Network Along the Delaware Bay.
Kenny Smith. MidTRAM 4.0: Updates and Improvements.
Sarah Borsetti. Early Post-Settlement Growth in Wild Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea virginica Gemlin 1791) Populations
Physical and Chemical Processes
Erin Reilly. Blue Carbon Storage in Natural Estuarine Wetlands and Living Shorelines of Delaware and New Jersey.
Jane Uptegrove. Cape May Spit Growth, Migration Of The Delaware River, And Evolution Of The Delaware Estuary Over The Last 150,000 Years.
Post Sandy
Katie Conrad. Gandy's Beach Living Shoreline Project.
John Szczepanski. Salt Marsh Resilience At Cape May And Supawna Meadows National Wildlife Refuges: Responding To Hurricane Sandy And Beyond.
Water Quantity and Quality
Marie J. Kurz. Patterns in Stream Chemistry Across the 8 Sub-watershed Clusters of the Delaware River Watershed Initiative.
Shirin Mardani. Delaware Estuary Data Visualization Techniques.
Kenneth Najjar. Progress in Water Resource Mapping in the Delaware Estuary. 20 Delaware Estuary Science & Environmental Summit 2017
Spencer Roberts. Quantifying the Water Quality Benefits of a New Shellfish-based Hybrid Living Shoreline.
John Yagecic. Applications For Near Real-Time And Interactive Data Assessment In The Delaware River Basin.
Wetlands
Drexel Siok. Monitoring Wetland Flooding Dynamics in a Delaware Bay Tributary.