Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2017ME327B

(Seed Grant) Maine’s Changing Winter: focus on natural resources, ecology, and the economy

Institute: Maine
Year Established: 2017 Start Date: 2017-03-01 End Date: 2018-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $5,000 Total Non-Federal Funds: $12,250

Principal Investigators: Sarah Nelson, Karen Wilson, Ivan Fernandez, Julia Daly, Jean MacRae, Glenn Hodgkins, Erik Blomberg, Mindy Crandall, Hamish Greig, Robert Dudley, Amanda Shearin

Project Summary: Despite our state’s reputation for having cold, snowy winters, Maine scientists and stakeholders do not currently have a depth of expertise in, or knowledge of, the impacts of our changing winter. In particular, reduced snowfall and snowpack depth and duration and their importance to the ecological, social, and economic values of Maine’s natural resources are not well understood. This proposal builds upon efforts by University of Maine System (UMS) faculty who began to develop synergy around the science and economics of winter, having all independently identified the need for cold-season research. We are bringing together faculty at three UMS campuses, scientists at the US Geological Survey, and resource managers at the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, as well as other stakeholders to be identified in our coordination process, to develop an interdisciplinary focus on a changing winter and the impacts on Maine’s unique natural resource based economies. The workshop will establish a network of researchers to create a science-based foundation for future research proposals, stronger relationships between researchers and stakeholders and an improved awareness of stakeholder interests, and the identification and establishment of a common field site for monitoring and research and leverage efforts aimed at natural resource use and conservation.