CoCoRaHS Condition Monitoring Presentation to NC CoCoRaHS Observers February 21, 2014 Today’s Presentation • Weather and Climate in North Carolina • What is CISA? Heather Dinon Aldridge • NC State Climate Office Project Background Amanda Brennan • Weekly Condition Monitoring CISA Communications & Outreach • Q & A NCSU Centennial Campus Research Building III 3 Weather vs. Climate • Weather = short-term occurrence • Climate = long-term weather frequency Durham Bulls Individual Stats (Batting) Player POS AB AVG Luke Scott DH 8 0.375 Henry Wrigley 1B 225 0.342 Chris Gimenez C 152 0.336 Leslie Anderson 1B 323 0.316 Stephen Vogt C 218 0.307 Brandon Guyer RF 85 0.294 Nevin Ashley C 48 0.292 Rich Thompson LF 218 0.289 Cole Figueroa 2B 206 0.286 Jeff Keppinger 2B 21 0.286 Matt Mangini 1B 293 0.276 4 •4 What drives our climate in NC? Latitude Topography NCSU Alumni Reception - Asheville, NC - July 20, 2011 Proximity to Oceans•5 RESULT – We get it all • Insert collage of hazards photos Environmental Protection Agency, RTP, NC - June 14, 2012 6 How do we monitor and detect? • Remote Sensing (Satellite, Radar) • Surface sensors • Proxies – Tree rings – Ice cores – Soil sediment cores • Examples… 9 Temperature (F) 1900 1910 1895 Trend: Temperature Annual NC 1920 1930 1940 2 1950 1960 1970 - 1980 2013 1990 2000 2010 Temperature (F) 1900 1910 1895 Trend: NC Summer Temperature 1920 1930 1967 1940 1950 1960 2010, 2011 2010, 1970 - 1980 2013 1990 2000 2010 Falls Lake, Durham (2007) Is it wetter or drier? Chapel Hill, June 2013 Historical Seasonal Precip Trends Period: 1901- 2007 Winter, summer: decreases Fall: increases 13 Precipitation (inches) 1900 1910 1895 Trend: Precipitation Annual NC 1920 1930 1940 Wettest, 2003 Wettest, 1950 Why??? 1960 1970 - 1980 2013 1990 2000 2010 Precipitation (inches) 1900 1910 1895 Trend: Precipitation Spring NC 1920 1930 1940 Wettest, 2003 Wettest, 1950 1960 1970 - 1980 2013 1990 2000 2010 Precipitation (inches) 1900 1910 1895 Trend: Precipitation Annual NC 1920 1930 1940 Why??? 1950 Driest, 2007 Driest, 1960 1970 - 2013 1980 1990 2000 2010 Precipitation (inches) 1900 1910 1895 Trend: NC Summer Precipitation 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 - 1980 2013 1990 2000 2010 Precipitation (inches) 1900 1910 1895 Trend: Precipitation Spring NC 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 - 1980 2013 1990 2000 2010 Precipitation (inches) 1900 1910 NC Fall Precipitation Trend: 1895 Trend: Precipitation NC Fall 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 - 1980 2013 1990 2000 2010 Precipitation (inches) 1900 1910 NC Winter Precipitation Trend: 1895 Trend: Precipitation NC Winter 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 - 2013 1990 2000 2010 Who uses CoCoRaHS? National Weather Service Meteorologists & hydrologists Emergency managers City utilities (water supply, water conservation, storm water) Insurance adjusters USDA Engineers Mosquito control Ranchers and farmers Outdoor & recreation interests Teachers and students Slide courtesy of Dan Geiger, County Coordinator of Surry County How does NC SCO use CoCoRaHS? • Severe weather events (during and after) • To paint a better picture of precipitation patterns across NC Winter Weather: Feb. 13, 2014 Reports Winter Weather: Feb. 13, 2014 Reports Observations from Feb. 13, 2014 without CoCoRaHS Observations from Feb. 13, 2014 with CoCoRaHS Helps with manual quality control… Carolinas Integrated Sciences & Assessments • CISA is 1 of 11 NOAA-funded Regional Integrated Sciences & Assessments (RISA) programs CISA works to be a regional resource for a variety of stakeholders to incorporate climate information into water and coastal management, public health, and related decision making processes. The Project! • Improve understanding of drought impacts and connecting with decision makers • Citizen science • drought impact reporting and condition monitoring using CoCoRaHS, the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network National Partners • National Integrated Drought Information System • National Drought Mitigation Center Boulder, Colorado Lincoln, Nebraska Drought Impacts in North Carolina Alamance County, 2007 Falls Lake, 2007-08 Brunswick County Pocosin Lakes NWR BUT….We aren’t in a drought! • We had A LOT of precipitation in 2013 and as of last week all but one county in North Carolina is clear of any drought status. Weekly Condition Monitoring Connecting weather and climate with the environment • To better understand the impacts of drought on plants, animals and people, it is very helpful to monitor conditions regularly, whether the weather is wet OR dry. • Your knowledge about the local environment and how weather influences it can reveal much more than can be learned from recording daily rainfall alone. Weekly Condition Monitoring Connecting weather and climate with the environment • CoCoRaHS offers a ‘condition monitoring’ checkbox on the Drought Impact Report form so that you may enter information at regular intervals to share how things look in your area. Weekly Condition Monitoring Connecting weather and climate with the environment • Regular condition monitoring can: • Identify drought at the onset, rather than when conditions become more severe • Identify when conditions begin to improve • Identify any lingering impacts of drought Ideas for Weekly Condition Monitoring Items Questions to Consider Plants Are plants lush and green, or are they droopy and dying? Have you noticed faster or slower plant growth? Animals Do you see animals visiting water sources more regularly, like birds at the birdbath? If you are a fisherman, have you seen any differences in the type and amount of fish you catch? Are the crabs or shrimp further upstream? People Are businesses affected by the weather at all, such as landscaping companies, garden centers, roadside markets, or seafood markets? Are people having to stay inside more because of hotter and/or drier days? Are there any seafood consumption restrictions? Water Quality Is the water in lakes, ponds, or waterways cloudy or murky? Do you see an increase in the amount of plants growing in ponds? Have you noticed any differences in the taste or color of your drinking water? Water Supply Are water levels in rivers, streams or tidal creeks lower or higher than normal? If there are any lakes or ponds in your community, are the water levels lower or higher than normal? Have any water bodies flooded recently? Are there any water restrictions in place, such as whether or not you can water your lawn or wash your car? Soil Conditions Is the soil moist or is it dry and cracking? How does the soil look or feel in your lawn, garden or community? Weekly Condition Monitoring Tell Us What You Know • Everyone is an bit of an expert in one way or another. You might be a business owner, gardener, fisherman, or birder. • Use your local expertise to share information about those things which are of most interest to you. Sample Condition Monitoring Report • Charleston County, December 8, 2013 • The vegetable garden continues to be green and growing. Recently planted seeds are germinating well. Soil moisture continues to be adequate for established plants without any external watering. • Richland County, January 12, 2014 • We have received almost 4" since last Friday, most of it coming last weekend. We have springs in our yard that appear on rare occasions when it's really wet. They showed up over the summer when it was exceptionally wet and appeared again this past week. Sample Drought Impact Reports • Craven County, May 2013 • We are beekeepers. Drought is affecting planted crops (clover and buckwheat), which are drying up. The recent unusually late cold and wind kept the bees from foraging when the spring honey-flow plants were more abundant. Now it is heating up and the planted crops are failing due to lack of rain. • Sampson County, October 2013 • We have had several days of rain in recent weeks. I have not used my irrigation system in 2 weeks…Although some ponds are still below normal level, I have noticed a few of them are rising just a bit. How to Enter Your Weekly Condition Monitoring Report 1. Log into ‘My Data’ on the CoCoRaHS website 2. Select ‘Drought Impact Report’ from the ‘Enter My New Reports’ panel 3. Enter the date you are submitting your report. You do not need to enter an end date. 4. Be sure to select the ‘condition monitoring’ checkbox 5. Enter a detailed description of current conditions in your area. 6. Select the categories that correspond to any specific conditions you are monitoring. You do not need to enter a dollar amount. 7. Click the ‘Submit Report’ button Project Participation We would like you to: • Submit regular condition monitoring reports • Respond to brief quarterly online feedback surveys • Make a 1 year commitment Project Participation We’ll stay in touch • Monthly Newsletters • Cuckoo for CoCoRaHS in the Carolinas blog http://carolinascocorahs.blogspot.com/ Thank You! Questions or Comments? Heather Dinon Aldridge: [email protected] Amanda Brennan: [email protected] .