JULY 2020 NEWSLETTER The latest news and updates from DIPP |
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Dear Deal Island Peninsula Partners, Below you'll find the latest news and updates. First and foremost, we're excited to report that long-anticipated permit approvals have come through for the Shoreline Project! We'll continue to bring you updates from DNR and the County on the construction timeline as they become available. You'll also find information about some upcoming social science research that will be carried out as part of the Thin-Layer Placement (TLP) project. If you're interested in sharing your thoughts on TLP, marsh enhancement work, or dredge material re-use, please get in touch with me (vandolah@terpmail.umd.edu). We've also provided some useful resources for those preparing for this year's hurricane season. All of this and more below. Feel free to get in touch with questions or to share news, updates, or other relevant information with the partnership. For those living on the Peninsula, stay safe with Tropical Storm Isiasis's approach! Sincerely,
Liz Van Dolah DIPP Coordinator |
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The Deal Island Shoreline Project: The Shoreline Project’s MDE permits have been approved as well as provisional permits from the Army Corps of Engineers (to be finalized once required signatures are in place). The next step will be to finalize local permits and submit a bid to hire a contractor for the Project's construction. Request for photos: With Tropical Storm Isiasis coming up the east coast, we are expecting shoreline and storm surge impacts this week. If you live near the Deal Island Shoreline Project site and are able to safely take before/during/after photos of the beach over the next few days, please send photos to Liz (vandolah@terpmail.umd.edu). |
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Upcoming Social Science Research as Part of the Deal Island Thin-Layer Placement Project |
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In 2021, the Army Corps of Engineers in partnership with the Audubon Society, and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources will be implementing a thin-layer placement (TLP) project to help sections of marsh on the Deal Island Peninsula adapt to rising waters. Thin-layer placement is a process of re-using dredge material to elevate the surface of |
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flood-prone marsh. By adding sediment – usually sprayed as a slurry across the marsh – TLP helps wetland vegetation to keep pace with sea level rise. This coastal resiliency strategy is being pursued to support vital habitat and wetland buffers that protect the Peninsula from storm surge. As part of this project, Maryland DNR is supporting a team of graduate students from the University of Maryland’s Marine Estuarine Environmental Science (MEES) Program who will be conducting social science research to understand stakeholder perspectives on TLP and other marsh enhancement strategies used in coastal areas. They will be working under the guidance of Michael Paolisso and Liz Van Dolah from the University of Maryland’s Department of Anthropology to conduct interviews with local residents, government staff, and practitioners involved in the project’s implementation. Input from interviews will help DIPP to understand the range of stakeholder understandings, concerns, and goals surrounding marsh enhancement and beneficial re-use projects. Data will also help inform future TLP project implementation and community engagement strategies that consider a range of needs and goals. TLP Project Timeline: - Drone survey data: August 30 2020
- Social science research: August 2020 - March 2021
- Finalize Design: Sept. 1 – October 31, 2020
- Project Coordination: November 1, 2020
- Advertise Contract for TLP Application: December 4, 2020
- Award Contract: February 5, 2021
- Project Begins: Late Summer/early fall 2021
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Meet the Graduate Student Team |
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Taylor Gedeon is a Master’s student in the MEES Program, with a concentration on the relationship between the environment and society. Growing up next to a state park in New York, Taylor’s neighborhood was home to humans and bears alike, which led to her interest in working to resolve human-wildlife conflicts to enable both parties to coexist sustainably. For her Master’s thesis she is examining wildlife management practices in the United States and the potential to further include stakeholders in management decisions to support conservation and equitable wildlife responses. She is excited to join research with DIPP and looks forward to learning more about Deal Island’s beautiful marshes and coastal challenges from the communities experiencing them firsthand. |
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Andrea Miralles-Barboza is a Venezuelan-American who grew up in Miami, Florida and has spent the last 10 years in Maryland. Always living in places shaped by water and other natural resources, Andrea became interested in how environmental issues could be addressed by studying humans. She received a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science and Policy in May 2018 at the University of Maryland where she attended an environmental field school in New Zealand that emphasized the need to collaborate with local communities when doing environmental research. She is back at the University of Maryland pursuing an M.S. in the MEES program where she researches responses to climate change displacement, looking at people and places who are vulnerable to issues of climate change such as sea level rise. In the future, she hopes to be able to contribute to developing accessible and appropriate climate change adaptation plans that consider not just environmental vulnerability, but social vulnerability as well. |
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Megan Munkacsy is a Master's student in the MEES program who first became interested in how the environment and people are related to each other when studying the cod fishery collapse in New England. Now, she works on issues relating to oysters and the Chesapeake Bay. For her Master's thesis, Megan will be working with SeaGrant to study policy options that manage conflict between oyster aquaculturists and recovery efforts for underwater grasses. Through the DIPP project, she is looking forward to meeting friends of the Deal Island Peninsula Partnership to learn about Deal Island and hear what people think about how marsh enhancement projects can help support local coastal resilience on the Peninsula. |
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DIPP Featured in DNR's Federal Evaluation |
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Every five years or so, NOAA conducts a performance evaluation of Maryland's Coastal Zone Management and Research Reserve programs in order to understand how these programs are being implemented across the state and with partners. The evaluation provides an opportunity to both share accomplishments and collect feedback in order to enhance the Maryland Department of Natural Resources's (MD-DNR) work through these programs. MD-DNR's evaluation was held the week of July 20th. Special thanks to DIPP's Coordinating committee members, Michael Paolisso (UMD), Liz Van Dolah (UMD), and Kristen Tremblay (Somerset County Office of Planning and Zoning) who participated in a stakeholder session focused solely on DIPP as well as the public meeting portion of the evaluation. Nancy Goldsmith (Dames Quarter resident) joined the DIPP stakeholder discussion as well to provide a community member perspective. DIPP efforts were featured as a success in the initial findings of the evaluation and a highlight of how both programs work together to drive resources and technical expertise to local communities. |
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Skipjacks of the Deal Island Peninsula |
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In honor of the Deal Island's 61st Annual Skipjack Races (happening this Labor Day), we invite you to learn more about Deal Island's Skipjacks and the importance of these work boats for Deal Island’s history and heritage from Captain Stoney Whitelock, featured in the video below. Watermen traditions, such as working skipjacks and other practices of working the water, remain an important part of Deal Island's identity and celebrated symbol of Deal Islanders' resilience in the face of change. |
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DIPP Partner News and Updates |
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Introducing the Beach to Bay Heritage Area The Lower Eastern Shore Heritage Area has a new name! Visit their website to learn about opportunities to support local heritage initiatives on the Deal Island Peninsula. What is the Beach the Bay Heritage Area’s Mission? “The Beach to Bay Heritage Area works to blend economic development at the local level with the conservation of the area's natural, cultural and historic resources in a regional heritage area approach that will better serve all counties and municipalities on Maryland's Lower Eastern Shore. The Beach to Bay Heritage Area is a grassroots, nonprofit organization whose purpose is to preserve, protect and promote the cultural, natural and historical heritage of Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester counties.” |
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61st Annual Skipjack Race on September 7th Come join the Deal Island-Chance Lions Club and Skipjack Heritage, Inc. for this year's annual Skipjack Race on Labor Day. The annual Labor Day Festival has been cancelled, but the new Skipjack Museum will be open to visitors. When: Labor Day, September 7th - Blessing of the Fleet will take place around 8am Where: Deal Island Harbor |
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Storm and Flood Preparedness Resources |
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With hurricane season upon us, we've compiled a list of resources to help everyone prepare for potential flooding and storm impacts this fall. Special thanks to Kate McClure, Maryland Sea Grant Extension, for compiling this list for DIPP. |
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