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HAZARDOUS AND CONTAMINATED SITES WITHIN SALT MARSH MIGRATION CORRIDORS IN RHODE ISLAND, USA
Citation:
Burman, E., K. Mulvaney, N. Merrill, M. Bradley, AND C. Wigand. HAZARDOUS AND CONTAMINATED SITES WITHIN SALT MARSH MIGRATION CORRIDORS IN RHODE ISLAND, USA. NEERS Spring 2022 Meeting, Salem, MA, June 02 - 04, 2022.
Impact/Purpose:
This presentation is about hazardous sites within marsh migration corridors in Rhode Island, USA. We find many such sites, with implications for marsh restoration and pollution remediation.
Description:
As salt marshes attempt to migrate upland due to sea level rise, they will encounter land development. Hazardous and contaminated sites (HCSs) -- facilities and infrastructure that store, use, or release harmful substances -- are concerning obstacles to salt marsh migration (SMM) as they can release contaminants. To identify HCSs that migrating marsh may encounter in Rhode Island (RI), USA, we inventoried sites from government sources, assigned contaminant hazard rankings to most sites, and overlayed sites with projected SMM corridors. We found many HCSs across state SMM corridors, especially in urban areas. Common HCSs in and around RI salt marshes include stormwater outfalls, underground storage tanks, facilities that use hazardous materials, and facilities that release pollutants into waterways. These sites pose varying hazards to human and aquatic life if breached. This coastal HCSs inventory can inform both management practices of coastal salt marshes and decisions about which HCSs to prioritize for remediation.
