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Sampling of Activities in the Region:
Putting Maps & Data on the Web: An Exercise in Mashup Madness was held June 2009 in Groton, CT hosted by the National NEMO Network. From the simplest cut-and-paste techniques to higher tech (but still fairly simple) GoogleEarth and GoogleMaps "mashups," participants learned a variety of exciting ways to display monitoring data, innovative practices, program impacts, or anything else you can dream up. The workshop, developed by UConn CLEAR faculty in collaboration with the National NEMO Network, NOAA Coastal Services Center, the National Association of Counties and NESCI was attended by professionals from NH, NJ, CT and RI.
Participants in the training were asked to complete a brief online evaluation of the workshop. The average workshop rating on a scale of 1 (unnecessary) to 5 (truly splendid) was 4.69. Percentage of participants who suggested offering the training again and would recommend it to a colleague was 100%. All participants said they gained knowledge that would be useful in their programs.
An additional Putting Maps & Data on the Web session was held at the Uniersity of New Hampshire in October of 2009. In collaboration with National NEMO, another Putting Maps & Data session will be held at the 2010 Land Grant - Sea Grant National Water Conference.
NEW NEMO programs are in the works in New Jersy and Puerto Rico. Stay tuned for more information.
In an Integrated Project - Advancing Watershed Nitrogen Management at the Local Level - between URI, UConn and Arizona State University (ASU) have generated two iterations of a N source/sink tool on a google maps interface, the first of which was a collaborative effort of students in a Geographic Information Science class at ASU. A journal article has been submitted to special issue of Ecological Engineering. We are exploring approaches to quantify uncertainty to guide decision making and research. With the NEMO National Network and NRCS personnel we are testing and assessing our tool to improve the usability of geospatial tools by local decision makers.
A series of three Northern New England Low Impact Development (LID) workshops have been held between the summer and fall of 2009. These workshops provided instruction on the use of LID techniques in the design and review of development projects. Participants left with the ability to suggest LID techniques for a green development and retrofit site. They worked through a complete design for porous pavement and bioinfiltration and calculated cost comparisons for LID and conventional treatment.
UConn NEMO developed key information and detailed, site-specific recommendations for the University of Connecticut and the Town of Mansfield to use in development of their TMDL Water Quality Management Plans (WQMP) for the Eagleville Brook watershed, on the University of Connecticut Campus. Through this pilot project, a general methodology will be outlined by which other communities and entities can use impervious cover as a framework to develop standards, practices and regulations to protect water resources from existing and future development.
NEMO U7 Conference is being planned for Regional and National NEMO programs for Sept 2010 in Portland, ME. Climate change and Urban LID will be topics of emphasis for training and discussion.
Informational Session about the Draft Rhode Island Stormwater Design and Installation Standards Manual was held on June 4, 2009 at the University of Rhode Island. This informational session reviewed the contents of the draft manual and provided an opportunity for questions and discussion. The sessions focused on the new standards contained in the manual and explained the Low Impact Design (LID) component as well as presented more technical information on the new standards and stormwater handling Best Management Practices (BMPs).
