Spring 2020

FIELDNOTES

Spring 2020

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 1

Letter from the Editors On March 8th, when Governor Inslee issued his “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order, our little world of FieldNotes was turned upside down. We are no strangers to the digital landscape since we publish our journal, blog, and social media online. But moving the whole process from our usual conference room to a Zoom call was a challenge. Of course, there are the logistical challenges of onboarding new editorial board members and soliciting articles, not to mention the trust and collaboration between our FieldNotes family that is forged in-person.

Our editors and authors have answered this difficult call. For many, it was their first time they had done science journalism, but they took to the process quickly. They conducted interviews, bounced ideas off each other, and created impressive pieces of work. This issue isn’t just a collection of stories and research - it is a testament to our editors’ and authors’ talent, resilience, and tenacity of asking questions and seeking truth in a world turned upside down.

As life moves online in this time, so has our journal. For the first time, FieldNotes’ digital issue will have clickable links to supplementary sites and resources. We invite you to explore them - hopefully they create a more enriching reading experience.

Our latest issue highlights the lessons we’ve learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. The reality of this global disruption has reminded us of how intertwined we are with the natural world, whether it’s through preserving the sounds of nature in a national park, or forging community connections to plant 1 million trees. The visibility of science in decision-making has reminded us how important it is to effectively communicate science in all forms, such as children’s books or over a fast-paced TikTok video.

As much as we enjoy observing nature through our windows, we also yearn to be elsewhere. This issue transports us into the marine world, from studying the salt tolerance of shrimp in the beautiful San Juan Islands to sailing far, far out in the Pacific Ocean, the ultimate form of self-isolation.

And finally we ask, where do we go from here? The pandemic has shocked every part of our society, and our responses are telling of the disruptions to come under climate change. Our authors examine how we can build a more resilient city and society, through equitable transit systems or showing us that rapid change is both necessary and can be achieved.

For those of us lucky enough to slow down, we hope that our newest issue inspires reflection. And as the days grow longer (and hotter than usual), we can turn to face the current and forthcoming challenges with adaptability and resilience. We would like to thank the College of the Environment for their continued support and generosity in ensuring that we are able to continue sharing research and enhancing science communication efforts.

Best,

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meet the team

Alanna Greene Co-Editor-in-Chief

Andrew Chin Co-Editor-in-Chief

Ellen Ng Senior Designer, Editor

Madeline Brooks Editor

Ashika Capirala Designer, Editor

Kathleen Gonzalez Designer, Editor

Kaitlan Harbaugh Editor

Chris Mantegna Editor

Allison Phillips Editor

Kylie Sahota Editor

Celine Tang Editor FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 3

TABLE of CONTENTS feature article 6

Gill Histology of Pandalus danae Under Acute Salinity Shock

by Melinda G Wettstein

research communications 12

Ensuring Greener Mobility is Fairer Mobility

by Christopher Randels

15

Of Carbon Dioxide or Calcium Carbonate

by Amy Larson

17

SEA Semester

by Annabel Weyhrich

22

Optimism for Environmental Change in a Post-Pandemic World

by Ashika Capirala and Kathleen Gonzalez

25

How Many Partners Does It Take to Plant 1 Million Trees?

by Chris Mantegna and Kaitlan Harbaugh

28

Standing Up For Silence

by Allison Phillips and Celine Tang

32

“Social” Science

by Kylie Sahota, Madeline Brooks, and Ellen Ng

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COVER PHOTO DYLAN VECCHIONE

community features

eature rticle

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 5

Gill histology of Pandalus danae under acute salinity shock

By Melina G. Wettstein ABSTRACT Thalassinidean shrimp, commonly known as mud and ghost shrimp, are disrupting Washington’s profitable Pacific oyster aquaculture industry by disturbing sediment. As the sediment loosens, the oysters sink, destroying the bed. In an attempt to replace harsh chemicals as pest control, a brine solution to osmotically eliminate these shrimp has been researched.

Shrimp, like many other invertebrates, are osmoconformers and cannot control their internal pressure, so extreme changes in salinity cause acute death. Unfortunately, when this high salinity water is pulled back to the ocean at high tide, subtidal invertebrates, like the coonstripe shrimp Pandalus danae may be impacted. Here we show the death rates of P. danae in varying salinities, and gill dehydration due to osmotic pressure through histology. Mortality rates were high for all salinity treatments. All the gills processed through histology showed intense dehydration. Lethal exposure time varied by salinity treatment, but the amount of dehydration did not. Our results show that runoff from the brine treatments to kill mud shrimp may impact P. danae and other osmoconformers in the subtidal. This study provides information about collateral ecological impacts on other organisms in the brine control method. This study only showed the impacts of acute salinity, and did not take into account the currents or geography of the subtidal in a real ecosystem, which must be further studied.

INTRODUCTION Washington State aquaculture is incredibly important to the economy, contributing $184 million in 2010 (Washington Sea Grant 2015). Unfortunately for the industry, oyster beds are full of pests, specifically thalassinidean shrimp like mud and ghost shrimp (Biffarius arenosus). Burrowing shrimp have an indirect negative effect on survival of oysters by bioturbation and sediment destabilization (Feldman 2000).

The oysters need a solid substrate to attach to and grow on, which is loosened by the mud shrimp as they burrow. It is not uncommon for aquaculturists to pull sinking oysters from sediment in infested beds (Smith 1996). Suspended sediments 6 fieldnotesjournal.org

from shrimp digging negatively impact oyster’s filter feeding mechanisms as well (Feldman 2000). Through a special permit, oyster farmers typically use carbaryl, a pesticide that is the most effective method for removing shrimp from oyster beds (Feldman 2000). On the downside, newly settled subadult Dungeness crabs (Cancer magister) are directly exposed to the acutely toxic chemical spray, causing mass mortality.

For this reason, oyster farmers have been pushed away from traditional pest control methods (Feldman 2000).

In saltwater systems, organisms must either expend energy to maintain their internal salt concentrations, or they must be able to tolerate some variation as the environment changes around them (Shumway 1977). Crustaceans are typically osmoconformers, meaning their osmolarity, or internal salt concentration, is at the same salinity as the water they inhabit (Foster 2010). Changing salinity is dangerous for osmoconformers because they lack the internal mechanisms to balance internal water and salt concentrations, so water diffuses freely in or out of their cells as needed to achieve equilibrium. Any changes cause stress on the proteins, enzymes, and internal processes of the organism. Rapid changes in salinity can lead to either internal damage in a hyperosmotic system or dehydration in a hypoosmotic system.

Because gills are optimized for gas exchange, they have an extremely large surface area and thus high water transport (Freir 2008). This means that in a high salinity shock, this organ is likely the point of failure, especially for crustaceans with gills that are always exposed. In the aquarium industry, reef-keepers often use rapid salinity change to shock or kill crustacean parasites or kill them before introducing new corals into their tanks, as many crustaceans are prone to salinity shock (Lougher 2016). Therefore, applying, high salinity water over oyster beds at low tide could be used for crustacean pest removal.

Researchers and aquaculturists are testing 60 to 80 practical salinity unit (psu) brine solution in a new venture to rid oyster beds of thalassianian shrimp without harsh chemicals—a targeted osmotic attack (unpublished). The oysters can close up to survive, but the shrimp are left exposed to the brine. In an acute high salinity treatment, the targeted

shrimp would be unable to keep its cells, specifically in the gills, hydrated and would die from salt shock. Though the targeted species is eliminated in this treatment, the high salinity water pulse may suddenly flood the subtidal zone during high tide. Because most invertebrates are osmoconformers, they are all susceptible to the brine treatment. The treatment that killed the ghost shrimp could be the downfall of many other crustaceans in the subtidal.

The goal of this experiment was two-fold. First, using the dock or coonstripe shrimp Pandalus danae, we can test the tolerance of common Pacific Northwest shrimp species to the brine treatment being washed back into the ocean.

Though not directly found near oyster beds, P. danae is a model organism for the study because it is widely distributed throughout the Puget Sound, and has morphology similar to many other crustaceans. Then, we can use histology to observe the osmotic issues within the physiology of the shrimp when exposed to the high salinity. Histology examines thin slices of tissue on a microscopic level, and so the osmotic changes in structure post-exposure can be observed. Using histology to determine an osmotic failure has not been done before. Through subjecting shrimp to varying salinities then comparing the gills of all the shrimp, we can test the damage done by the high salinity treatment to other crustaceans.

METHODS Collection P. danae of sizes ranging from 5 to 10 cm were collected with a net from the dock at Friday Harbor Labs, San Juan Island, Washington both during night lighting and during the day.

They were then stored in a flow-through system for a few days to a few weeks until needed, being fed freeze dried shrimp every few days.

Experimental set up Starting with a base of natural sea water, the salinity was adjusted to 35 psu (control), 45 psu, 55 psu, and 65 psu, shrimp were randomly assigned 500 mL solution of the treatment condition (n = 20 per treatment). One shrimp each was added to each container. Signs of movement were checked every 5 minutes for four hours, the rough length of a tidal cycle, when the brine solution would mix with sea water. If the shrimp was entirely unresponsive and no moving limbs could be seen, that organism was considered dead. The gills were removed and placed in salinity adjusted 10% formalin solution. At the end of four hours, all shrimp were measured for length from tip of rostrum to tip of tail, stretched out into a straight line.

Any surviving shrimp were returned to a control tank and observed for any mortality post-experiment.

Histology The extracted gills were prepared for histological analysis.

After being fixed in formalin for 24 hours, the gills underwent a dehydration step in ethanol. Gills were placed in a 50%, 70%, 90%, and 95% ethanol-seawater solution at the experimental salinity. After an hour in 100% ethanol, the gills then went through two one-hour xylene baths to displace the ethanol until the tissue was clear. Tissue was then placed in liquid paraffin at 59°C and put in a 65°C oven for an hour.

The paraffin was changed twice more with hour long intervals between before being embedded into a block with the largest gill surface area down. After setting overnight, the tissue was sliced on the microtome to a thickness of 8 microns. The tissues underwent a standard Eosin and Hematoxylin stain.

Gill histology photos were taken with an INFINITY5-5 camera on a Nikon compound microscope.

In saltwater systems, organisms must either expend energy to maintain their internal salt concentrations, or they must be able to tolerate some variation as the environment changes.

Statistics ANOVA, followed by a Tukey’s HSD post hoc test, was calculated, comparing time of death for each treatment to determine any statistical difference. ANOVA was also calculated to ensure no size bias. Averages and standard deviation, as well as ANOVA and Tukey’s HSD values were calculated in R.

RESULTS At the end of 4 hours in the salinity treated water, all shrimp in the 55 psu and 65 psu conditions had died. The average time of death for the shrimp in 65 psu water was 29.5 ± 12.7 minutes and the average time of death was 37 ± 12.0 minutes for the 55 psu shrimp. These two conditions were statistically the same (P = 0.905). The time of death varied in the 45 psu condition, with one dying as early as 20 minutes into the experiment and some surviving the entire trial by lying on their sides, only to FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 7

DISCUSSION

perish post-experiment. The shrimp for the 45 psu treatment had an average death time of 186.65 ± 67.7 minutes. All of the control shrimp survived the trial. The differences between the 35 psu treatment, the 45 psu treatment, and the 55 psu/65 psu treatments are all statistically significant (P ≤ 0.00004) (Figure 1).

After the trial, the 45 psu shrimp that survived the 4 hours were not able to recover from the treatment. Though some shrimp survived the treatment, they were unable to recover and died. Post-treatment, in the 35 psu control treatment, one shrimp was lying on its side but remained alive, though on its side, beyond the treatment for hours, before dying and subsequently being eaten by another shrimp. This is likely not caused by the treatment, given that it was a control.

All the shrimp in each treatment were the same average size. The average size shrimp among all the treatment groups was 7.48 ± 1.15 cm (Figure 2). Shrimp size was not statistically different across treatment groups (ANOVA, P = 0.89). There was no correlation between shrimp size and how rapidly that shrimp perished (P = 0.45).

Histology on the gills revealed the osmotic issues when the shrimp were exposed to the varying salinities.

The control gills are normal, with an even width throughout the entire gill (Figure 3A). The treatment condition gills— from 45, 55, and 65 psu—all appear relatively similar and completely dehydrated (Figure 3). For all treatments, the main length of the gill is much thinner, but the tip is still inflated.

The 45 and 55 psu gills are comparable in their dehydration.

The 65 psu gills appear slightly more dehydrated than the other salinity treatments, and are significantly shrunken when compared to the control gill.

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FIGURE 2: Boxplot showing the average lengths of Pandalus danae in each salinity treatment. The average for each treatment was between 7 and 8 cm. There is not a significant difference in the sizes, given by the overlap in boxes.

FIGURES MELINA WETTSTEIN

FIGURE 1: Boxplot showing time of death for Pandalus danae for all treatments. The box for the 35 psu treatment is a line because all of the shrimp survived the four hours. The box for the 45 psu treatment has a very large range, yet none of the data is an outlier.

The 55 psu treatment and 65 psu treatment both have very low averages. The overlap between the two times of death is clear. Both treatments have a shrimp that survived later as an outlier, enforcing the idea that the shrimp are unable to survive in these salinities.

As confirmed through the histological study, the shrimp died from gill tissue dehydration and destruction. All gill tissue except the very tip was completely dehydrated and presumed to no longer work for gas exchange. This was consistent through all treatments, despite the varying salinities. This indicates that the complete dehydration of the gills determines time of death, and the salinity impacts how quickly the dehydration occurs. If the dehydration was partial or incomplete, the 45 psu gills would appear in a state between the standard 35 psu gills and the completely dehydrated 65 psu gills. Though some studies have shown other organs as points of stress in prolonged high salinity environments, the gills are the first organ to fail in shrimp. This result is unsurprising because of the extremely high exposed surface area for the gills compared to any other organ.

Due to the impermeable crustacean carapace, the only major potential for crustacean body water loss is through exposed tissue. Though this is an advantage from an osmotic point of view, as the rest of the shrimp is not subject to dehydration at such a large rate, it is a struggle from an oxygen transport perspective. Crustacean gills are very important because the exoskeleton limits any cutaneous gas exchange (Bridges 1980). Thus, failure within the gills explains why death occurred so rapidly, within 15 minutes for multiple shrimp in the 55 and 65 psu treatments. This relationship between cutaneous gas exchange and protection from the osmotic pressure would be another element to determining the high salinity runoff impact for a larger variety of invertebrates beyond crustaceans. Each invertebrate morphology is dramatically different, but these differences could be a source of future research into the impacts of brine water from oyster beds.

Due to osmotic failure, P. danae dies rapidly when exposed to high salinity. In the context of high salinity treatment on oyster beds, the salt runoff would influence the subtidal organisms. As the proposed treatment of 80 psu brine washes into the general water mass, the highly dense salt water may sink below the normal sea water and suffocate the organisms.

This is especially impactful for osmoconformers. While freshwater decapods have the ability to osmoregulate within their tissues, saltwater crabs and shrimp never developed this trait (Foster 2010). In addition, crustaceans tend to do better with gradual salinity increases and do not have a high salinity tolerance (Lougher 2016). This study tested an acute salinity shock, similar to the conditions of the brine treatment, rather than the gradual acclimation needed for survival. Though there is no research of how quickly this salt brine would rush through and stay the subtidal, the large salt input would lead to acute salinity shock with little time for acclimation. The brine treatment mixing with the incoming tide means the subtidal organisms are not subjected to a pure treatment, but the salinity would be within the range of our experimental treatments. The extent of this mixing, and the range of subtidal impacts depends on the bathemetry and the tidal patterns of the area. This is an area for future studies to evaluate the effect of increased salinity. Even in water 10 psu higher than the control, the shrimp struggled and ultimately

died, even when returned to normal seawater. Though able to maintain some bodily processes, they were unable to recover from the intense damage the dehydration caused. The brine solution is outside their ability to acclimate.

Before any large-scale implementation of oyster bed control with brine solution can be implemented, further studies are needed to discern how extent of treatment and tidal mixing would dissipate the pesticide treatment and impact invertebrates, especially vulnerable crustaceans. If a way of removing pests is necessary, the brine treatment and runoff may be the ‘lesser of two evils’ when compared to such a toxic chemical. Juvenile and larval Dungeness crab death is a major issue in using carbaryl, as low population numbers have been directly correlated to oyster beds treated with carbaryl (Feldman 2000). Though the crabs have been proven to do poorly in low salinities, both as juveniles (Reed 1969) and adults (Curtis 2010), very little has been observed for their response to high salinity shock. It is uncertain whether the brine solution would be any better for their populations than the chemical alternatives. If the acute salinity shock is limited when the brine is washed into the subtidal, the ecological impacts could be lesser than the chemicals currently in use. Through a future ecological study, the impact of both chemicals and brine solution should be weighed, both in the oyster beds, and in the subtidal.

If a way of removing pests is necessary, the brine treatment and runoff may be the ‘lesser of two evils’ when compared to such a toxic chemical.

FIGURE 3: Gill histology of the Pandalus danae.(A) 100x magnification of shrimp gills from the 35 psu, control treatment. They are fully hydrated. (B) 100x magnification of shrimp gills from the 45 psu treatment. (C) 100x magnification of the shrimp gills from the 55 psu treatment. (D) 100x magnification of the shrimp gills from the 65 psu treatment. The gills are dehydrated and thin until the very tip.

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 9

PHOTO DYLAN VECCHIONE

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esearch ommunications

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 11

Ensuring greener mobility is fairer mobility: a measurement of income’s effects on low-carbon transportation access in Seattle, WA

by Christopher Randels

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A

FIGURES CHRISTOPHER RANDELS

“As Seattle continues to reduce its emissions and residents’ vehicle miles travelled (VMT), the city will need to determine which populations are bearing the primary costs of this transition.”

nthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are a principal cause of global warming (Schellnhuber et al. 2006). In Seattle, passenger vehicles account for over half of citywide CO2 emissions (Seattle OSE 2016), so reducing emissions in the urban mobility sector can be a key area for climate change mitigation. Emerging trends in micromobility and vehicle sharing provide new opportunities for lower-carbon transport, but not all alternate transportation modes to the single occupant vehicle (SOV) are equal in their emissions reductions, and access to these modes may not be distributed equally within cities. Inequities in transportation access can further exacerbate inequities in health and quality of life outcomes already present if higher income neighborhoods have better mobility access to goods and services (Allen & Farber 2019; Blumenberg 2017).

As Seattle continues to reduce its emissions and residents’ vehicle miles travelled (VMT), the city will need to determine which populations are primarily bearing the costs of this transition. With this study, I sought to measure such cost inequities by creating hypothetical routes to various destinations and services from Seattle’s highest and lowest income neighborhoods across multiple transportation modes: walking, biking, transit, driving, bikeshare (Lime and Jump Bike), carshare (Car2Go/ShareNow), and ridehailing (Uber).

By measuring the costs, emissions, and travel times for a large number of destinations across transportation modes, I sought to answer two questions. First, how different are per-person emissions for the same routes between different travel modes?

Secondly, are there disproportionate barriers for residents of lower income neighborhoods in using greener transportation options, as represented by cost and time?

I used city demographic data to select 10 neighborhoods (Community Reporting Areas) including the five lowestincome (Judkins Park, Pioneer Square/International District, South Beacon Hill/NewHolly, South Park, and University District) and the five highest-income neighborhoods (Laurelhurst/Sand Point, Madison Park, Madrona/Leschi, Magnolia, and Montlake/Portage Bay). I then chose 10 points selected at random from residential areas in each neighborhood to serve as starting locations. For each point, I selected 14 destinations representing important points of interest and services a resident might access in their day-to-day life. Eight of these destinations represented places important to the entire city (e.g. major employment centers, universities, healthcare specialists, and stadiums) and thus remained the same across all neighborhoods. To represent access to local services, I used Google Earth to choose the nearest (that with the shortest straight line distance) post office, park, library, grocery store, supermarket, and super store to the starting location. Location data for these local destinations were gathered from the following sources: US Postal Service, Seattle Public Library, King County Public Library, City of Seattle Parks Department, and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities websites.

Figure 1: Study Area map, including the five highest-income Community Reporting Areas (CRAs) and the five lowest.

In total, I analyzed 1400 routes across 7 different transportation modes and noted the distances, times, and calculated monetary costs and CO2 emissions per route across modes. For walking, biking, transit, and driving, I used a script that called on real-time Google Maps data to determine the shortest route. For shared mobility routes, I used a GPS Location Modifier application to alter my smartphone’s perceived location and see realtime vehicle availability at each starting location across Lime, Jump, ShareNow, and Uber. I then calculated the requisite walking times/distances to access the closest vehicle available and the resulting trip times/ distances using a similar Google Maps script. For Uber, I also noted the waiting time returned by the app and added it to the total trip time. All data were collected between 10:00 am and 12:00 pm or 1:30 pm and 3:30 pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays between November 5th and December 19th, 2019 (excluding holiday weeks) to minimize variances due to weekend events and rush hour traffic. For each route, I used a combination of distance, time, or in-app data to calculate the total trip cost ($) and CO2 emissions. Walking, biking, and bikeshare were assessed without emissions, and the former two modes were assessed to be free. Driving costs were calculated at the 2019 IRS reimbursement rate of 58 cents per mile, and carshare emissions were assessed based on a vehicle MPG of 28 MPG (the average fuel economy of the Mercedes suite of vehicles used by ShareNow).

Figure 2: Emissions of all routes across four transportation modes.

Walking, biking, and bikeshare trips were assessed to be without emissions. Modes marked with different letters are significantly different from each other at p < 0.05.

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020

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Uber trips result in more emissions than any other transportation mode (p < 0.001). In Seattle, emissions for an Uber trip are 88% higher than those for the same trip by private car. This difference is attributed to deadheading, the time during which ridehail drivers navigate to a pickup location without any passengers (Union of Concerned Scientists 2020).

Uber trip emissions could be mitigated by incorporating a lower emission mode, such as walking, for part of the trip.

However, all measured Uber trips never required any walking to a pickup destination. In contrast, some shared mode trips involved walking part of the route to access the vehicle, which in many cases reduced the distance traveled while using the vehicle (and thus total trip emissions). Additionally, all other modes use a vehicle that emits less CO2 per passenger-mile than private cars, further increasing the difference in emissions between these modes.

more centrally-located lower-income neighborhood of Pioneer Square/International District, which had the lowest median time and cost across all mode metrics (except carshare trip cost). This indicates that other metrics, such as density, zoning, and distance to the city’s center, may play a more important role in destination access than income level exclusively. Also important is that the effect of these factors does not impact each destination type equally. For routes to parks, for example, Pioneer Square/International District exhibited some of the highest costs and times across all transportation modes (in spite of the neighborhood’s central location). With further analysis, dense development in this neighborhood means that the nearest park fitting the study criteria was Cal Anderson Park, over 2 kilometers away. This stands in contrast to higherincome neighborhoods like Magnolia and Laurelhurst/Sand Point; with a higher proportion of single family zoning in these neighborhoods, residents’ access to open spaces like parks and recreation opportunities are easier whereas access to goods and services are more restricted.

Although per-neighborhood modeshare data is not published by the City of Seattle, other studies have found that making lower-carbon travel modes more convenient by reducing their associated costs (monetary and time) relative to driving can increase their usage (Shaw 2015; Maghelal 2011; Brown et al.

2013). Elected officials in other cities such as Paris and London have advocated for denser local development and construction of bike infrastructure to encourage non-SOV transportation (O’Sullivan 2020; Reid 2020).

Seattle can follow their example and encourage further modeshift by easing zoning restrictions, increasing local development, and implementing infrastructure Figure 3: Route times for different destination classes between high and low income neighborhoods modifications to make the across modes. In pairs marked with *, route times from higher income neighborhoods were significantly associated costs of choosing greater than low income route times at p < 0.05. In pairs marked with °, route times from lower income alternate transportation modes neighborhoods were significantly greater than high income route times at p < 0.05. closer to those of driving.

Although the divide in modeshare For local destinations, lower income neighborhoods mostly access may not be as clearly determined by income as previously had fewer barriers in using alternate transportation modes than thought, such density-increasing proposals must ensure that higher income neighborhoods, as measured both by trip cost the costs of such improvements (noise, gentrification, loss and time. Access to all destination types (with the exception of neighborhood character, etc.) are not disproportionately of parks) by lower emission transportation modes was easier borne by lower-income communities. By evaluating these in lower income than higher income neighborhoods. However, transformations through an equity lens, city officials can these trends are not distributed equally across neighborhoods ensure that the benefits of greener urban development and within the same income class. For example, South Park, a lower-carbon multimodal transportation options are reaped by lower income neighborhood in South Seattle, had the highest all residents, regardless of income. median time or median cost between all studied neighborhoods across 5 transportation modes (walking, biking, driving, bikeshare, and Uber). This stands in stark contrast with the 14

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Of Carbon Dioxide and Calcium Carbonate

A

s I was sitting in one of my oceanography classes as a junior listening to Sally Jewell, my mind and heart on fire, trying to figure out how to bring more awareness to climate change and ocean acidification, an idea popped into my head. The passion I felt that day fueled me on my journey to illustrate, write, and publish a children’s book on ocean acidification, as well as spend over a year (and counting) researching coral nucleation rates, aragonite crystal morphology and how ocean acidification will change our world.

At first, I had no clue how I was supposed to convey such a nuanced and chemically complicated issue to children. My goal was to make ocean acidificationwhich seems to be left out of a majority of science communication to the general public in museums, articles, and aquariums- accessible to children and their parents. This initial moment of having no clue what or how I was going to do this was familiar; it was exactly how I felt when I first started my research on corals and ocean acidification.

Concurrently to starting this new project, I began my own research on ocean acidification, growing little coral fragments on thin microscope cover slip slides in petri dishes. I had been working up to starting this project for the past year, volunteering in Dr. Alex Gagnon’s lab as the caretaker for the lab’s 400 gallon mesocosm. Corals do not like to stay glued onto smooth glass, but little did I know that would end up being the least of my worries.

Turns out, corals also do not like being put into carefully engineered flow cells (I still don’t know why) that provide them with fresh seawater and constant temperatures.

I spend hours trying to image the calcifying space of the growing edge of the coral fragments, and hope that during that 10 hour window I was taking pictures for, the coral would grow.

The event I was trying to capture is known as nucleation, which is integral to new coral growth.

Nucleation is the formation of brand-new individual calcium carbonate crystals under the tissue that covers the skeleton of a coral. We can predict the rate of

nucleation from math and chemistry (saturation state of calcium carbonate), but we do not know what the rate is inside corals or what impact it has on skeleton growth. Several thousands of photos and days of image processing later, I now had a few different rates captured from 10-hour time-lapse photography and was also able to measure skeleton extension growth rate and the density of the crystals. Much of this project was only possible because of current and previous research done by past undergraduate and graduate students. As one of my favorite African proverbs at my South African parents’ house states “if we stand tall, it is because we stand on the backs of those who came before us.” Thus, I try to improve on the past and present work of my colleagues.

Though I love my corals, I want to stress that true research is not for the faint of heart. I have spent far too many hours doubting myself as a scientist and wondering if I would ever be able to work hard enough to finish the project on time. Learning to manage my expectations (as a wise grad student put it) for myself, others, life being random, biology being even more random, and ideas becoming way more complicated than I thought has been a large struggle and something I still need to improve on.

I have broken so many corals and microscope slides, and I’m going to break more. I still don’t take enough lab notes. The list goes on, but all of that seems to fade away when you watch brand new calcium carbonate crystals form in front of your eyes. I look at pictures of coral skeleton under polarized light for hours each day, and I am still floored by the beauty with each new photo or glance through the microscope eye piece.

The same fascination of watching these microscopic crystals form helped drive my work in creating the book.

My appreciation for my community grew as I told my friends of my book idea. One of them suggested making the CO2 molecule a character, and after that I was on a roll. I was hesitant to portray CO2 as an all-bad evil, because without it the world would be quite different and there probably would be no life. Once CO2 became the main character it was neither bad nor good but simply

by Amy Larsen

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020

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looking for a place where it belonged. It was not just a mysterious substance with a weird name; it now had a face, expressions, and a mission. Writing was the most difficult for me because it was hard to know what was too much or too simple, but after months of drawing, scanning, and putting pen to paper, I finally had a draft. If Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m honest, it came together somewhat unexpectedly and only because of the tremendous help from my professors and their families to smooth out the bumps.

understanding of the bigger picture of chemistry and life in our oceans. As this published book may have a positive impact on the younger generation, I hope that my research on coral growth rates will also contribute to coral reef research, conservation, and restoration around the world.

FIGURES AMY LARSEN

Fast forward more days and hours of coral data analysis and I had found a correlation between skeleton growth and density. This means that nucleation plays a vital role in skeletal growth opposed to just pre-existing crystals growing larger. Unfortunately, nucleation is susceptible to changes in seawater chemistry. Ocean acidification is result of increasing anthropogenic carbon dioxide that reduces carbonate ion in seawater, an essential component to nucleation and skeleton growth.

Additional work is required to determine exactly how future ocean conditions will change nucleation rates, but now we know another piece to the puzzle, that is how corals biomineralize. By creating my childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s book, CO2 and the Ocean Blue, in parallel with my detailed coral skeletal growth research, I now have a better

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Sea Semester: Life At Sea

PHOTOS ANNABEL WEYHRICH

by Annabel Weyhrich

There is nothing more exciting to a marine biology student than an abroad program that studies the ocean by sailing the high seas. Sea Education Association (SEA) Semester is a study abroad program that begins in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, and finishes with 6 weeks of sailing on a Tall Ship, a large, traditionallyrigged sailing vessel. Woods Hole is a globally recognized hub for the marine sciences, oceanography, and scientific exploration. The town is situated on a ferry’s ride away from Martha’s Vineyard. Just sitting in a coffee shop, you can overhear conversations ranging from new fisheries management strategies to cutting-edge geochemical tools. The portion of the program in Massachusetts is spent bonding with your soon-to-be shipmates and studying in preparation for time at sea.

I studied on the Global Ocean program which traveled to the waters off the North Island of New Zealand. Classes included Directed Oceanographic Research, Sustainable Ocean: Conservation and Management; Maritime History and Culture, The Ocean and Global Change, and Leadership in a Dynamic Environment.

Even though these classes continued aboard the ship, time spent at sea was largely focused around developing leadership skills as well as working on directed research projects. At each port, we would go on field trips to immerse ourselves in maritime history and New Zealand culture.

We met our ship, the Robert C. Seamans, and crew in Auckland, New Zealand, and spent the first couple days literally learning the ropes and getting a handle on life at sea. As a mate-in-training, one must understand and be able to issue commands for sail handling, effectively navigate, and be competent in all safety checks. The students are split into three groups for the duration of the trip and a group must be in charge of the ship at all times. That means at 3 am you could be standing lookout in the middle of 45 mph winds with ocean swells peaking at 20 feet. You don’t know whether to be in awe of nature, terrified to be swept away, or delirious from sleep deprivation. After a few weeks into the voyage, the lingo starts to make sense so when someone shouts to strike the jib, you know what sail to lower and where to lower it.

A majority of the trip is spent working to collect and analyze data.

Aboard the Robert C. Seamans is a hydrocast, a meternet, a neuston net, and other fun gadgets. Training is conducted to be able to safely and effectively use these instruments.

The hydrocast is used to collect water samples at various depths and measures conductivity, temperature, and pressure.

The water collected is used to test the pH and Chlorophyll-a contents at those depths. It is terrifying to run the pH test at sea because the instrument used is expensive and there is only one. If a swell rocks the boat and you crack the glass, no one can test for pH for the rest of the trip. The phytoplankton net is lowered 100 meters into the water column to collect plankton which are filtered and preserved to later analyze.

The neuston net skims the surface of the ocean and collects larger zooplankton.

With specimens collected from both nets, species composition was analyzed; to do this we measured total biomass and conducted identification for 100 species out of a random sampling. One night, a crew pulled up a plankton net filled with 57 Large Salps. In other deployments, sea slugs, crab and lobster larvae, lantern fish and more were sorted through and often preserved. At night, these net deployments take place with only the moon and its reflection off the water as a light source. Once the

You don’t know whether to be in awe of nature, terrified to be swept away, or delirious from sleep deprivation.

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 17

deployments hit the water, and the drag gives some resistance, the nets start to glow a ghostly green; they become illuminated with bioluminescence from organisms in the water.

Data collected during these trips are used by students to complete their research projects and are more broadly used by a variety of SEA scientists to complete their own research. SEA was one of the first organizations to start tracking ocean plastic and has the largest database for amounts and locations for ocean microplastics. As opposed to other SEA Semester trips, where many hours were spent picking microplastics out of their 100 count samples, we found minimal amounts. This discovery, or lack thereof, perplexed our lead scientist Dr. Jan Witting. Even though we found very little traces of ocean plastic in New Zealand waters at the time, plastic pollution is still a large concern in the global ocean. One piece of information Dr. Witting made sure to pass on is that, as a scientific community, we need to advocate for stopping plastic at its source. Skimming for plastics at the surface can result in killing off the neuston community, which can be detrimental to the top layer ecosystem.

As researchers, it is important to think

A student with a big Salp axima.

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Sea slug Glaucus marginatus.

about the negative impacts some forms of measuring can have and to protect areas that make research possible.

In terms of personal research projects, our program had the unfortunate event of being stuck in two very serious gales. For many days, we had to strike the sails and ride out each storm. The waves were so large that only the captain and first mate were allowed on deck and each storm pushed

our ship miles off course. During extreme weather, we cannot conduct any measurements for fear of falling over the side or machinery damaging the ship. Once the weather had cleared, we had to sail as fast as possible to make up for lost time, so we couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stop to collect any data. The trip also ended a week and a half early to ensure travel capabilities back to the States due to COVID-19. All of these unfortunate events lead to a lack of data to use in personal research projects, mine being one of them. I was studying the connection between fishing hotspots and Chlorophyll-a concentrations.

Fortunately, one student on my trip was able to conduct a majority of her project.

She was researching the connection between eddies, circular water currents running contrary to main currents, and lobster larvae. During her time at Woods Hole, she found papers surrounding the idea that higher counts of lobster larvae can be found in eddies because of the currentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to protect the larvae until they reach maturity. The two eddies in question were located at

the beginning of the trip before any of the storms. She found an abundance of lobster larvae in the center of each eddy with the concentration dropping as the ship moved farther away from the center.

It can be daunting to walk onto the shipâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s deck and not be able to see land. A shipâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s living quarters, or lackthere-of, can test even the toughest person. However, the moments you share with your crew and the field work you conduct make up for it all.

On one of the first nights after leaving Auckland, my team was in charge of sail handling and conducting safety checks, and it was a gorgeous night.

The moon was full enough to give us

light, but not bright enough to block out the stars. We had just put the neuston net in the water and it immediately lit up with bioluminescence. Out of nowhere, dolphins started circling the net. Their quick movements in the bioluminescence made it seem like the dolphins were glowing in the dark.

Throughout the night, they would play in the front wake of our boat as if they were leading our voyage. We laid down on the bowsprit and looked through the netting to watch them jump through the waves, all the while glowing a greenish hue. You could hear the chirping of the pod on the deck, in the galley, and even in the engine room. Although we experienced various gales, lack

of data, and an early termination due to COVID-19, glowing dolphins and sailing the high seas surely made my SEA Semester experience unforgettable.

The moments you share with your crew and the field work you conduct make up for it all.

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 19

PHOTO DYLAN VECCHIONE

20 fieldnotesjournal.org

ommunity eatures

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 21

BY A S H I K A C A P I R A L A A N D K AT H L E E N G O N Z A L E Z

As COVID-19 rearranges the way our society functions and places strain on well-established systems, it manages to reveal just how deeply those systems are tied to the environment—bringing out connections that we are distanced from and giving us an opportunity to observe our impact in new ways. The future of the environment is shaped by our interactions with it, and our response to rising issues will be at the forefront of creating lasting change.

The effects of the pandemic on society requires us to look from the inside out—literally and metaphorically. Reductions in human activity on this unprecedented scale provide a window into what really happens in response, beyond models and predictions. It’s well known that behavioral changes can lead to reductions in emissions of pollutants, but recent declining trends in atmospheric concentrations in the Puget Sound region, especially nitric oxides (NOx), are a clear indication.

In response to decreased vessel traffic and fewer boat trips, recorded concentrations of NOx in Seattle and Tacoma fell towards the end of March, with the downward trend becoming clearer throughout April. Although the implications of this remain to be seen after stay-at-home orders begin to lift, the effect of a reduction in traffic volume on local air quality is immediately visible.

immediately observable changes: there has been a complete shift as human traffic mutes itself to give way to the sounds of wildlife. “It’s a reminder of just how much noise we create, and what effect that might have on other species.”

W H AT R E M A I N S I M P O RTA N T ?

This leads to the question—where else do we have such a pervasive impact, and where is it becoming visible? What happens to carbon emissions when traffic is reduced to a fraction of the usual? Do wildlife return when we don’t crowd parks? This opens up inquiry within many facets of environmental study, like soundscape ecology, wildlife tracking and monitoring, and atmospheric science, among others. Though avenues of investigation are currently limited by reduced research funding and lab access, and the time spent adjusting to online academic environments post-COVID, these are questions that can still have implications for current research and the future of the human ecosystem.

Dr. Chris Anderson is a professor in the School of Aquatic and Fisheries Sciences, working on investigating the links between the economy and fisheries systems. “Our current situation is going to allow us to observe what people do in extreme circumstances,” he explains. The effect of stayat-home regulations is giving us a real-time opportunity to

OPTIMISM FOR ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE IN A POST-PANDEMIC WORLD:

For Dr. Laura Prugh, a professor in the University of Washington School of Environment and Forestry Sciences studying wildlife ecology and species interactions, this is what stands out the most. “Just highlighting what a huge effect people have,” she says. “It’s fascinating to see how you can actually visualize the changes so quickly.”

The soundscapes of urban and suburban areas are another example of where the drop in human activity has produced

Reductions in human activity on this unprecedented scale provide a window into what really happens in response, beyond models and predictions.

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watch the industry respond to a drastic reorganization of the supply chain. The global fisheries supply chain is tailored to the wholesale purchase of seafood by restaurants, where approximately 70% of seafood in the US is consumed. “The demand for all types of fish has collapsed because people aren’t eating in restaurants,” Anderson says. Without demand, most fish caught domestically don’t enter markets at all.

Beyond studying how the fisheries trade reacts to extremes, our situation also calls for thinking about strategies to maintain capacity when we inevitably return to business. The livelihoods of people involved in the trade—fishermen and restaurant owners, among others—are put at risk by the steep reduction in demand. However, Anderson mentions a bright side: fish stocks aren’t going anywhere, and with reduced catch, are

BANNER PHOTO NASA

what COVID-19 reveals about human impact and maintaining a sustainable relationship with the environment

FIGURE 1: Graph showing the reduction in recorded emissions of NOx (in ppb) measured at two locations in the Puget Sound region between the end of January and end of April.

FIGURE PSCAA / pscleanair.org

actually given a chance to recover populations and thrive.

When trade picks back up again, there will be no shortage of fish. “That’s going to make it less expensive and the quality

is going to be superb, so we might see consumers trying to eat more fish,” Anderson comments. This is optimistic for the fisheries trade itself, but the positive impacts could extend past economics, with fish being a much more sustainable option for the environment as well as human health.

There’s another unique human-environment connection highlighted by recent operational changes: the importance of maintaining our relationship with the environment during times of crisis. Teri King, a marine water quality specialist with the Washington Sea Grant and Program Manager at SoundToxins, works on monitoring harmful algal blooms (HABs) in the Puget Sound. As part of her work with the WA State Department of Health, King runs marine biotoxin tests that are integral to maintaining the food safety of locally

harvested shellfish. “With COVID, HAB monitoring and testing is really, really important, because that allows the shellfish industry to keep harvesting and providing food for our seafood markets,” King says.

“And if there’s harmful [plankton] out there—they don’t care about a pandemic; they’re going to keep growing. If we couldn’t do this, I don’t know what would happen.”

Though King’s group has had to cut back on some testing because of social distancing protocols for field and lab work, it is no less important. It’s incredible to see the immediate response in deeming HAB monitoring mission-critical, with monitors and volunteers still going out to get samples taken and measurements done, all in the company of colleagues on Zoom calls.

The pandemic also drives us to explore the links between human, population, and ecosystem health. The ecosystem is not separate from us and our actions, and interference can have hugely negative repercussions for human health. Wildlife trade is an activity that encourages unnecessary human contact with wildlife and has caused disease outbreaks in the past. The current pandemic’s source produces yet another compelling reason to end the wildlife trade, and illustrates the link between preserving ecosystems to maintain population health.

“I think that’s a really powerful model, and things like this highlight it so clearly,” Dr. Prugh tells us. “So I’m really hopeful that there will be a cultural change that reduces the demand for wildlife products.”

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 23

Wildlife trade isn’t the only area where we can hope for positive changes to occur—some lessons learned from the global response to the pandemic allow us to introspect on how human nature affects our relationship with the environment.

It’s worth thinking about how we can work towards changing our actions to maintain a more sustainable relationship with the environment for benefits on both sides.

Despite the increasing awareness of issues of human impact, many people still fail to understand the environmental consequences their actions have. Dr. Nives Dolsak, Director of and a professor in the School of Marine & Environmental Affairs and adjunct professor of Political Science, illustrates one of the problems with environmental policy response in an article for Forbes: “Climate policies are hobbled by ‘spatial optimism,’ whereby individuals believe that their risk of being affected by climate change is less than for others”. The response of the government and of society to the pandemic was

Optimism inspires positive change, and the future of the environment is shaped by our interactions with it. Its fate resides in the need for behavioral change. unique, in reaction to a crisis with global reach and immediate, devastating outcomes for many. This made it topical, and the issue was addressed with urgency. Environmental issues like climate change, despite their gravity, haven’t yet elicited a response at such a scale and pace in part because many people don’t directly experience or observe their effects.

This is the effect of spatial optimism, a term that describes how people are less likely to change their habits for a cause when they don’t understand the value of said change. Researchers play an important role in combating this by providing relevant findings and communicating them to the public, highlighting the importance of staying informed on current issues from sources vetted for by the scientific community.

Major positive change for the future of environmental sustainability and better individual stewardship hinge on necessary changes to human behavior that the pandemic has shown us aren’t impossible. The magnitude and speed of our response to the ongoing pandemic will have the potential to change standards for future action on environmental issues, and could help remove the spatial optimism barrier that currently hinders motivation for major changes.

Dr. Nick Bond, Washington state climatologist and an instructor in Atmospheric Sciences at the UW, is guardedly optimistic that we can change our habits.

“The people here [Seattle] for the most part have really embraced some of the changes that have been made— and so we’ve shown that behavior can change.” He raises the question, “how do we learn from what has happened to help motivate behavioral changes over the long term that we want to see?”

It can be said that optimism inspires positive change, and there is optimism for any issue. The fate of the environment ultimately resides in the need for a consensus on the behavioral changes necessary to improve current conditions, and the response time taken for these changes to be implemented worldwide.

With the motivation for global change, there is real optimism for making positive differences in the future.

FIGURE 2: A net containing a bloom of plankton. HAB monitoring involves weekly sampling from up to 50 sites to look for harmful algae in the water.

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PHOTO TERI KING

W H E R E D O W E G O F RO M H E R E ?

HOW MANY PARTNERS DOES IT TAKE TO PLANT

1 MILLION TREES? It takes 548 trees a day to plant one million trees in five years—King County and their partners are on pace to meet and exceed that goal by the end of the year.

BY CHRIS MANTEGNA AND KAITLAN HARBAUGH

In 2015, the King County Strategic Climate Action Plan (SCAP) set an ambitious goal: in just five years, one million trees would be planted throughout the county. The task was daunting, and was compounded by the fact that no initial internal funding existed and countless logistical challenges led to a delayed launch to the project. However, as of today, King County has planted 921,111 trees – an impressive 92% of their initial goal. This massive planting effort was ultimately successful because of strong community partners, many volunteers, and unwavering dedication from county employees.

The 1 Million Tree initiative was motivated by mounting impacts of climate change in the Pacific Northwest.

Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is at an all-time high, and tree planting has been one of the main ways that cities and counties have been counteracting emissions. As trees grow, they remove the carbon dioxide out of the air and replace it with oxygen. This exchange of gases is especially critical in urban areas, which are hotspots for carbon emissions.

Jessica Engel, the Program Director of 1 Million Trees, described the many challenges confronting the project when first launched. “Everyone was on board with it, but there was no money or staffing resources attached,” Engel shared.

“We had some staff turnover and it ended up in my lap, and it was really more of a partnership building initiative than I would say anything else.” Forming partnerships quickly became the priority

and community pillars like The Nature Conservancy were crucial in convening resources to support the initiative.

Although large community partners were major contributors to the program, its success was supported by every partner and volunteer that participated. Organizations such as Mountains to Sound Greenway, Forterra, and Vashon-Maury Island Land Trust all contributed funding and supported the planting of the trees; this was amplified by an overwhelming volunteer response. Engel emphasized that: “We really felt that every single tree that went into the ground, whether it was one from a city, or hundreds of thousands from a city, were really important and told the story of how trees are getting planted across our region.”

Early press and site choice showcased larger partners because of their builtin volunteer bases, funding, and critical information on where trees could make the best impact. Those partners drove a surge in the number of volunteers in the Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP) with the bulk of the early plantings done in established green spaces. Plantings were AS OF TODAY, KING COUNTY HAS PLANTED

921,111 TREES 92% OF THEIR INITIAL GOAL

completed in community parks and neighborhood spaces that needed refurbishment or replenishment, as well as new plantings in untouched areas.

The immediate impact of planting

one million trees is difficult to measure when using such an informal process.

There are a variety of partners working with King County that have agendas for their own success in tree planting, and a way to be mindful of their workload was to keep data reporting as informal and expeditious as possible. Engel didn’t want paperwork or reporting to be a burden or deal breaker for agencies and organizations. Every tree planted counts and keeping the participation barrier low meant smaller agencies could participate without overextending their staff or funds. Even though there isn’t a consensus on planting data, there are pockets of valuable qualitative data. Larger agencies, like University of Washington (UW) have dedicated units to proactively manage and track such information.

Sara Shores, an Urban Forest Specialist with UW Campus Grounds Management, can not only show planting location, but tree species as well with the help of visual tracking tools. Student participants in the UW Society for Ecological Restoration were integral in getting the native tree species in the ground that contributed to King County’s count.

Engel is the first to present learning opportunities as well as achievements from the last five years. Partnership building and strengthening have been successes to celebrate, with room for improvement in data collection, and strategy are also key players in developing the foundation being used as a template for the standalone forestry initiative, the 30-Year Forest Plan. Helmed by Kathleen Farley Wolf, the 30-Year ForFIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 25

est Plan shifts focus from the singular goal of tree planting to the multi-benefit outcomes of the broader management of forest cover and forest health to gain climate and human health benefits as well.

Information sharing with the larger 1 Million Tree partners allowed King County to leverage the momentum created by the initiative and think critically about how to translate that momentum into concrete outcomes for the 30-Year Forest Plan. These partners conduct landscape surveys and have specific beneficial information. For example, canopy coverage measurements in urban areas helped to guide King County to priority locations, locations that can make the largest impact on vital projects. “We’re definitely looking at what kind of metrics we can track, what are good measures of success, and how we will prioritize those projects in the 30-Year Forest Plan”, says Engel.

The 30-Year Forest Plan is currently in the fourth of five phases, the analysis phase, where input from partners and stakeholders is evaluated. During the next six months the plan will be finalized to include directly address-

26 fieldnotesjournal.org

THE 1 MILLION TREES INITIATIVE

DEMONSTRATES THE POWER OF

COLLECTIVE ACTION AND COLLABORATION. ing co-benefits like the mitigation of stormwater runoff and salmon habitat restoration. King County has initiatives in environmental and social justice and equity that will be among the highest priorities in the 30-Year Forest Plan.

Equity issues aimed at air quality management, stormwater management, and urban heat islands speak to how trees can be one of the solutions to provide those co-benefits. Targeted tree planting and maintenance in urban areas, where there is a growing push for urban forestry initiatives, are also up for discussion. As Farley Wolf points out, King County’s jurisdiction is in unincorporated areas and those areas are in predominantly rural parts of the county, but that does not preclude plans that can provide more support in urban areas.

“This partnership demonstrates the

power of collaboration. The 1 Million Trees initiative demonstrates the power of collective action. King County recognized that tree planting provides a myriad of benefits, particularly in and near urban areas,” says Mackenzie Dolstad, Senior Manager of the Stewardship Program at Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust.

As the 30-Year Forest Plan moves into its final stages before release, it is impossible not to look back at 1 Million Trees in its totality. Maintaining upwards of 99+ community relationships is no small feat, and Farley Wolf is up to the task. Engel sees King County as the convener of this initiative, not the leader, and as Farley Wolf takes the reins, she too subscribes to the value of community collaboration. After working as a professor for more than a decade, she joined King County to make immediate

PHOTOS KATIE EGRESI

impact with the 30-Year Forest Plan.

“I love being able to serve the people of King County. I am awestruck and inspired by how much work goes on in this region around tree planting, in forest health, and how that all connects to so many other things that are for this region. To be able to bring over 99 partners together to achieve something in such a short amount of time is incredible, and I’m looking forward to those conversations continuing with the 30-Year Forest Plan,” says Engel.

Even though plans for celebrating the successful completion of the initiative have been postponed, both Engel and Farley Wolf look forward to the chance to thank all partners and celebrate together. In the meantime, the SCAP is being updated to reflect the successes of the initiative. Engel will continue her work as a water quality planner. She is working with county property owners to develop a green stormwater infrastructure incentive program for unincorporated King County where she can continue to use her partnership building skills in the community.

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 27

Standing Up For Silence “Silence is not the absence of something, but the presence of everything,” says Gordon Hempton, an avid soundscape researcher and advocate. Living in Port Angeles has given him the opportunity to spend time in the nearby Olympic National Park (ONP) and to learn about and appreciate its exceptionally unique soundscape. ONP is known to some as the Final Forest or the Last Corner, given that it is one of the last places in the Lower Forty-Eight that was settled by pioneers. It is home to eight tribes and is a World Heritage Site. Some of the last undeveloped coastline in the Lower Forty-Eight is found in ONP, along with some of the biggest Douglas-fir, western hemlock, yellow cedar, and subalpine fir trees in the world. Its extreme weather patterns make for a biodiversity hotspot, including many endemic plants and animals.

With the Park’s natural wonders 28 fieldnotesjournal.org

comes its unique soundscape, encompassing the ocean waves, rivers, birds, bugs, bears, falling trees, and many other natural sounds. Hempton describes ONP as “the listener’s Yosemite”.

In recent years, however, a newer, more piercing sound has taken flight.

Coming from the nearby Naval Air Station Whidbey Island (NASWI), Boeing EA-18G Growlers fly over ONP in the Olympic Military Operation Area (MOA) to conduct pilot training (Figure 1). And as their name implies, they aren’t quiet. As transit occurs between the Whidbey Base and MOAs or training occurs within the MOAs, noise echoes in all directions across the park.

Noise from Growlers can vary both in time and intensity; the weekends might not harbor any flights at all, whereas weekdays might bring either a persistent rumble, or intense roars that can prevent

conversations and sleep. The flight of a Growler can be heard for yourself here^.

Lauren Kuehne, a researcher at the University of Washington, first remembers hearing the roar of Growlers over the campsite she was at on the Peninsula. It was startling to hear them at a popular camping destination in ONP, she recalls, but even more startling that it was before 8am.

A few months later, a resident from Lopez Island of the San Juans emailed Kuehe’s research department inquiring about the impact of Growler noise on wildlife. Kuehne recognized the knowledge gap in this area of study and “realized how much potential this had to change a fundamental character of the region.” According to Kuehne, recording air traffic over the park is important to get a clear distinction between commercial flights and military flights to verify claims by

PHOTO UW

by Allison Phillips and Celine Tang

the Navy that military aircraft noise is indistinguishable from commercial flights and is not that loud. Thus, she designed a study to measure the sounds of ONP, and set forth.

Kuehne set up sound monitoring devices in three locations (Third Beach, Hoh Watershed, River Trail) in ONP in June of 2017 and recorded aircraft sounds four times throughout the year, once per season, for two weeks at a time (Figures 2-3). She found that of the 4,768 flight events that occurred, 88% (4,227) were from military operations.

To picture this on a smaller scale, in one day the maximum military flights recorded were 79 at the Third Beach site, 81 at the Hoh Watershed site, and 107 at the River Trail site.

To paint a picture of how this kind of sound affects wildlife in the park, Kuehne first describes what a slight increase in decibels (dBA, measurement of sound) sounds like to us. “Because decibels are logarithmic, an increase in 3 dBA is actually doubling the energy,” she says, “so going from 30 to 33 dBA, a person won’t notice the difference.

However, that same 3 dBA change say, from 70 to 73 dBA - is doubling a lot more energy, and won’t seem at all insignificant.”

Studies have shown changes in wildlife fitness, vigilance, abundance, vocal behavior, and community structure beginning at 35 decibels. The

Hempton describes Olympic National Park as “the listener’s Yosemite”.

FIGURE 1: Map of MOA and noise contour. Courtesy of the National Parks Conservation Association.

maximum loudness from aircraft over ONP was measured at over 82 decibels -- these high levels and the large decibel increases from natural ambience have potential to interfere with many species and their activities.

In addition to consequences for wildlife, aircraft noise pollution also has far-reaching effects on people.

ONP consists of a pristine natural environment that allows people to experience nature to its fullest. As more of the world becomes urbanized, there are fewer opportunities for people to experience a natural environment.

Though it might not be highly noticeable on a daily basis, the constant timbre of sound from a bustling city is an invisible burden. Visitors utilize ONP as a mental or emotional escape. For example, military veterans frequent ONP to experience silence and tranquility, but are oftentimes visited

by Growlers overhead, triggering PTSD

and damaging their mental health -especially considering visitation to the park is thought to be a way to escape the sounds of war.

Local communities living on Whidbey Island next to NASWI have also struggled with increasing noise pollution from Growlers. Residents have to structure their whole day around the military’s scheduled flights, as certain activities such as yardwork, studying, or even sleeping are impossible to do. In addition to being a hindrance to everyday tasks, aircraft noise pollution can be a threat to physical health. Many studies have shown that continual exposure to aircraft noise can result in hearing impairment, sleep disturbance, cognitive impairment, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease. Due to the Growlers and their associated impacts, two lawsuits against the Navy were filed in 2019 by the citizens of Central Whidbey and the

^Listen to Lauren Kuehne’s recording of a Growler flying over ONP by clicking the hyperlink (on our digital magazine) or visiting https://soundcloud.com/user-316341862-466936874/a-june-2017recording-from-the-third-beach-trail-sound-monitoring-site-as-a-growler-jet-flies-over

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 29

State of Washington. These lawsuits are a reminder that communities need to be considered in current and future Growler impact assessments.

However, there are many in the situation who believe it to be unpatriotic to complain about the consequences of the military’s noise pollution. Many residents on the Peninsula view the air traffic as the “Sound of Freedom.” As one Forks resident wrote in an opinion piece on the Forks Forum, “you would not want untrained people on the police force or firefighters, so why do you continually complain about the training of the Navy?”

While true that the Navy needs to train somewhere, proposed solutions do not demand completely shutting 30 fieldnotesjournal.org

down naval operations. Rather, they are attempted compromises to fairly consider all stakeholders in the issue.

One such compromise has been to decentralize the noise pollution from ONP. For example, the Navy could relocate part or all of NASWI’s training to the Mountain Home Air Force Base in Mountain Home, Idaho. However,

Though it might not be highly noticeable on a daily basis, the constant timbre of sound from a bustling city is an invisible burden.

PHOTO LAUREN KUEHNE

FIGURE 2: Sound monitoring devices in the Olympic National forest.

according to the Navy, NASWI possesses ideal flying conditions, the opportunity to train in a coastal region, as well as having access to preexisting military routes. In addition, the Navy claims that conducting their training at NASWI instead of the Idaho base would save about five million dollars each year. In comparison, each Growler costs $68.2 million.

There is a wide array of opinions, in part because every person in this situation is exposed to a different amount of this aircraft noise in their daily lives. People’s varying experiences, personal values, and individual biases have affected their stake in the ONP soundscape issue. As Kuehne describes, “unlike something like air or water pollution, noise is very psychologically-mediated - so people’s reactions to it are incredibly diverse”.

The Navy has indicated that Growler training is essential for contemporary battles, and with this necessity comes increasing demand. In fall of 2015, The Department of Defense issued an additional 36 Growlers to be flown out of the NASWI. Additionally, “there is a proposed increase in Growler training of 62-75% in the MOA starting in late 2020,” says Kuehne, “but without data on current levels, residents, visitors, and land owners/managers have had no real way to evaluate what that increase means.” With an increase in Growlers coming in the near future, monitoring military aircraft noise is essential to measure potential

consequences for humans and wildlife.

Quantitative results from Growler loudness and frequency, like those produced from Kuehne’s study, provide a basis for discussion moving forward in terms of management, legislation, and other methods to protect the ONP soundscape. Rob Smith, director of the Northwest region of the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), works on a multitude of projects that give voice to the national parks, the soundscapes issue being one of them. In agreement with Hempton, Smith notes that information like Kuehne’s study can only go so far. Both mentioned the need for public opinion, personal experience, and legislation. But at the true basis of any of these solutions are trips to ONP itself (or online) to hear with one’s own ears. For Hempton, his personal experience resulted in The One Square Inch project.

The One Square Inch of Silence project is a 1in 2 plot in the Hoh Rainforest of ONP deemed to be one of the quietest locations in the United States. Founded

by Hempton in 2005 on Earth Day, his goal was to protect this one square inch in the hopes that said protection would stretch to other areas of the park. His logic was that if anthropogenic noise pollution could affect the landscape so drastically, then so too could the presence of silence. One Square Inch eventually morphed into Quiet Parks International in 2019, which is now an organization dedicated to developing classifications, standards, testing methods, and management guidelines in order to certify endangered quiet places.

Another vessel for the soundscapes movement is a petition led by NPCA. With a mission to save the wild sounds of the Olympic Peninsula, NPCA aims

to educate the public about the military’s threat to the quiet landscape. The goal of their petition is to urge the U.S. Navy to move their operations to navy bases with less vulnerable ecosystems.

The combination of research, public experience, and public opinion creates the opportunity for legislation to gain movement. Kuehne, Quiet Parks International, and NPCA are among the many facilitating changes to put pressure on government entities. With the loss of a crucially vital soundscape and subsequent ecosystem at hand, it’s time to speak up for silence.

“Do not listen to me as the voice of nature or of silence,” says Hempton, “simply go to a quiet place in nature. Go listen for yourself.”

If anthropogenic noise pollution could affect the landscape so drastically, then so too could the presence of silence.

FIGURE 3: Kuehne installing a sound monitoring device

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 31

Science Sci-comm in the age of social media

Kylie Sahota Madeline Brooks Ellen Ng 32 fieldnotesjournal.org

PHOTO CHRISTIAN DANI / GRAPHICS ELLEN NG

Whether we like it or not, social media is ushering in a new age of communication.

This includes how scientific research and science-related topics are shared with the public. An estimated ~68% of Americans get their news from social media.

Many scientists have followed suit, now using social media to share their work and communicate with peers and the public.

The traditional scientific process involves research being published after months or years, and personal opinions are filtered. By contrast, social media allows an almost instantaneous transmission of upcoming research, interesting findings, and the more pure opinions of fellow scientists from around the world. Studies have shown that using social media also allows scientists to reach a broader audience, and engage with the public in more interactive and rewarding ways than before.

However, science communication via social media is not a panacea; that is, it comes with its own set of challenges. The unregulated sprawl of social media presents its own problems, as “viral-worthy” posts can gain traction without adequate scientific backing. In addition, there arises the possibility of creating a “bubble” among scientists sharing, congratulating, and reposting content only from each other, thus excluding the public and losing the benefits of social media.

With so many distinct social media platforms now available, there are a variety of ways people have commandeered these public outlets of expression for their own scientific interests. We spoke to three creators of science content on social media to learn more about their outlook.

Virtual Geology with Professor Nick Zentner

PHOTO COURTESY OF NICK ZENTNER

A 30-year geology professor at Central Washington University, Nick Zentner is also a viral sensation with over eight thousand subscribers on YouTube who has been live-streaming lectures for over two decades. His audience continues to grow due to the wide scope of his videos which teach both the basics and fresh topics without being condescending to his viewers. Zentner initially engaged with social media because he realized that the public was curious about geology, and knew that he could satisfy a larger audience using a virtual platform. He fondly remembers interactions with adolescent viewers - as young as six years of age - who listen intently to his material and ask

extremely sophisticated questions. He sees that he is able to make a mark on current and future generations through YouTube, and is just happy to talk about geology to whoever cares to listen.

Though he has a deep passion for geology now, Zentner commented that he had “no real interest in science” earlier in his life. He described himself as a college dropout who was more interested in things such as sports and dating. But this all changed when he got a summer job at Glacier Park pumping gas, an in-person experience in nature that revealed his passion for geology.

He quickly returned to the University of Wisconsin and immediately enrolled in Geology 101, setting him on a path that

would inform the rest of his career.

Since the very inception of Zentner’s geological interests were a result of face-to-face, in-person experiences, it supports the notion that these still hold tremendous value. Zentner commented that it is hard to read the energy of his audience on YouTube as opposed to in person lectures, which can make effective teaching difficult. He also claims that social media is the “wild wild west” of science communication since findings can be presented in slanted ways through these platforms.

Zentner says that the most reliable and engaging science communication on social media often comes from people with prior teaching experience. This

Nick Zentner filming a geology lecture

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 33

in-person “apprenticeship” is critical, because you can’t just wake up one day and start teaching something that you know little about.

Zentner also stressed that we are in a “dark ages’’ of science today, with a high distrust of scientists held by the public. He believes that this is because the University system is “essentially a cult” and does not put enough value in people outside the academic world.

But social media could be a step in the right direction in righting these

wrongs. Zentner stated that we need to get more smart-science people involved in social media who are full of respect and curiosity for “non-cult” members. Ideally we would all get out in the community and help each other to create the most valuable connections and interactions, but social media could work similarly in facilitating more personal and honest conversations about science with a broader audience than ever before possible.

Dr. Alistair Dove, the Vice President of Research and Conservation at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta Georgia, is responsible for overseeing all research and conservation activities for Georgia Aquarium. In addition to being one of the leading authorities on whale shark biology, he is also a passionate science communicator, contributing to and editing the marine biology blog 34 fieldnotesjournal.org

DeepSeaNews as well as being an active user on Twitter (@DrAlistairDove).

After obtaining Honors in Zoology and Parasitology and Ph.D in his home country of Australia, Dove moved to the US, where he held various positions at universities such as Cornell, Stony Brook, and Columbia, before eventually joining the Georgia Aquarium team in 2006. Like most going into STEM

careers, Dr. Dove’s initial plans for his future changed over time. His description for this adjustment in career paths in a word? “Serendipitous”.

While running science programs at the Georgia Aquarium, Dove had an epiphany about how scientists were doing a substandard job of communicating to the public. He explained how the mission of aquariums

PHOTO DOROTHEA OLDANI VIA UNSPLASH

Whales on the Web with Dr. Alistair Dove

- education, entertainment, research, and conservation - hinge on how effectively information is conveyed to the public.

In addition, Dove explained how marine science specifically is underrepresented in science media, even though it is every bit as interesting as other flashy topics in popular science. Dove first got into science communication while writing for the blog “Deep Sea News” in 2006, and spoke fondly about his time there, learning from other writers such as Craig McClain and Miriam Goldstein, about developing an individual voice through his work.

In an effort to expand his reach past long form blogging, Dove began using Twitter as a form of science communication. He explained how using Twitter began out of necessity.

Long form blogging was more time consuming and took time away from his work and family, whereas social

media was faster and more effective at reaching a broad audience. Dove commented on the backlash he initially got from his scientific community, as they questioned “What could you possibly communicate about science in 140 characters?” he laughed, “Turns out, quite a lot!”.

Dove, spoke on his past experiences in science communication, pointing out how “Back in those days it was almost sacrilege to say ‘Look, I’m going to talk to the public directly about the science I’m doing, I’m going to skip the PR department, I’m going to skip the journalistic interpretation, or mis-interpretation, of my science, and I’m going to talk directly to the public to share my enthusiasm’”. Now, with this instantaneous platform for sharing anything, at any time, with anyone, skipping that PR department means reaching a broader audience and

engaging the public like never before.

Dove believes that issues exist concerning the use of non-traditional platforms. For instance, social media naturally groups people together within their niche, so there is a constant battle of making sure that bubble is breached and larger audiences are reached. In addition, the limited regulation on social media means “going viral” in the science world could happen with limited substance behind the story.

Traditional science moves at a “glacial pace”, yet topics on social media can spread like wildfire. It’s clear that using social media as a vector for science communication is a double edged sword, but for now those like Dr. Dove are using it to their advantage to spread awareness and engage the public.

ICONS FREEPIK VIA FLATICON

Saving Shrimp with Jake Colvin It is an overcast day on the Oregon coast. Jake Colvin patrols the beach, armed with a clam gun. Ever so often, he stops at one of the holes exposed by the low tide and begins excavating mud with the clam gun. When the hole is large enough, he reaches a hand in and pulls out its resident - a mud shrimp. He carefully turns the animal over, pries its gills open, and removes what appears to be a white roly-poly bug.

The bug is a Griffen’s isopod, a parasitic invasive species that has a castrating effect on its host. First noticed in the late 1980s, the parasite has since decimated mud shrimp populations along the west coast. Oregon is the last

place to still have sizable populations.

Luckily, these shrimp have a secret weapon on hand: the Internet. An Oregon native, Colvin films his shrimpsaving activities and uploads the videos onto TikTok. TikTok has rapidly gained popularity over the last two years to become the latest trending social media platform. Users post short videos of up to 60 seconds, and can add text, visual effects, and music in-app.

Colvin came across the app a year ago, when he had just moved from inland Oregon to the coast. He started posting videos of the animals and fossils he found on the beach. When those

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 35

Colvin (inset) removes an parasite from a shrimp.

the largest TikTok following in Oregon.

The road to viral shrimp saving has not been straightforward, however. Colvin jumped through several different professions before becoming a content creator. Given all that, he is grateful for the TikTok success.

“TikTok feels like the one platform where you can really be yourself…I love ocean animals, and I get to talk about them.”

He also finds the app useful for cross-promotion. A 60-second TikTok can only fit so much information.

However, short videos are easier to consume, so they quickly gain virality.

If leveraged properly, one can use TikTok to promote other ventures. In

Colvin’s case, he directs internet traffic to his YouTube channel. There, he talks about a wider host of marine animals such as whales and seals.

Still, Colvin isn’t called the ‘Shrimp Guy’ for nothing. His YouTube still features shrimp and parasites. The longer videos allow him to provide more information about the Griffen’s isopod and its ecological effects.

Ultimately, Colvin admits that just removing a few parasites will not save the shrimp populations. “But what we can do is raise awareness.”

Readers can find Prof Zentner (@GeologyNick), Dr. Dove (@DrAlistairDove) and Jake Colvin (@jake.pnw) on social media through the highlighted links or by clicking on their names in the article.

36 fieldnotesjournal.org

PHOTOS JAKE COLVIN

videos went viral, Colvin realised he had an opportunity to share something more profound.

“People want to see weird, interesting things,” he explains. “The parasites are a weird, interesting thing...

We can teach people something in a fun way.”

“But [people] aren’t interested in just a thing - they are interested in stories.”

He began producing his parasiteremoval videos, which he narrates like a tale of adventure. He names the shrimp and other animals, transforming them into characters.

The strategy has paid off. As of April, Colvin’s account @jake.pnw had

PHOTO URBANJJ

FIELDNOTES / SPRING 2020 37

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We provide undergraduates with diverse ways to share their environmental research and engage a broader community.

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