Abstracts of Upcoming Meetings

Special Session of the Spring American Geophysical Union
meeting in Washington DC, May 30 - June 3

Biological and Hydrological Impacts of Human Activities in the Mid-Atlantic Region

The Mid-Atlantic region of the United States consists of a toposequence of coastal plains, piedmont and ridge and valley terrain and contains the watersheds of the Chesapeake Bay, Delaware and Pamlico-Albemarle Sound. Within this region a complex landscape has been created by historical land settlement, current agricultural and forestry practices, urban development and suburban sprawl. The storage and flux of carbon, nutrients, water and energy in the land surface and lower atmosphere have been altered to various degrees by these processes with significant impacts on water supply, quality and flooding, micro and mesoscale climate dynamics, and ecosystem processes. An understanding of the dynamics of land use and land cover change and their impacts on land-atmosphere processes, coupled with modeling and strategic monitoring programs, is needed to develop effective management policies for the region. This session will emphasize land use and land cover change in this region, their impacts on biophysical processes, approaches to land use modeling, environmental monitoring techniques and other policy relevant topics.

Sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic RESAC

Special Session of the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) meeting in Washington DC, May 22 -26, on Land Management Planning

The Mid-Atlantic Regional Earth Science Applications Center: an Overview

A brief overview of the RESAC is provided and specific applications are reviewed using examples that emphasize the utility of remote sensing and GIS capabilities. Results of field activities undertaken during the 1999 growing season, for example, are used with a fusion of multi-temporal Landsat-7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper and SPOT panchromatic imagery to classify vegetation types, and to characterize development of the severe drought that took place in the region. Recent advances in land cover mapping of the region are also reviewed. The Mid-Atlantic RESAC expects to expand partnerships with additional regional interests as information is distributed through outreach activities, including the NASA/UMD Earth Science Information Partership. This effort provides an example of how scientific advances can be focused on practical applications that challenge local governments' ability to manage resources.