Federal Partner: National Park Service

Region 1 Technical Cultural Landscape Preservation Assistance and Training

Project Description: This project will provide NPS Region 1 parks with advice on meeting the requirements of Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHAP); support development of digital modeling as a research tool for preservation planning; provide assistance to parks based on prior research completed by the Recipient; train students in landscape preservation and disseminate research findings; and provide Women’s Rights National Historical Park with research and recommendations for the treatment of the historic landscape associated with the Hunt House.

Lead Principal Investigator: Mr. John Auwaerter, SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Co-Principal Investigator: Dr. Aidan Ackerman, SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Partner Institution: SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Mr. Robert Page

Federal Involvement: a. Develop work plans and schedules jointly with the Recipient.
b. Participate in developing a research plan and report outline.
c. Provide background information, research documents, policy statements and management guidelines to support the project.
d. Work in partnership with the Recipient to address review comments, hold project meetings and site visits, and to edit and prepare final research findings.
e. Serve as liaison between NPS Region 1 parks and the Recipient.
f. Support training of students working on the project in NPS policies, methods, guidelines, and standards as determined by the project team.
g. Provide financial assistance as stipulated in this agreement.

Project Type: Technical Assistance

Project Discipline: Cultural Resources

Project Sub-Discipline(s): Cultural and Historic

Start Year: 2023

End Year: 2025

Initial Funding Amount: $109,000.00

Federal Grant Number: P23AC01998

Location: Multiple locations in New York State and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

National Parks or Protected Areas:

  • Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt NHS
  • Martin Van Buren NHS
  • Flight 93 National Memorial
  • Women’s Rights National Historical Park

State(s): New York

New York Counties: Seneca

Student and Other Involvement:

  • Masters Students: 1
  • Undergraduate Students: 2

Summary of Student Involvement: Women’s Rights: Karlene Kristich, Master of Landscape Architecture student, full-time internship, summer 2024; Research Project Assistant, AY 24-25
Home of FDR and Martin Van Buren: Tristyn Moyer, Bachelor of Landscape Architecture, Research Aide, digital modeling of river view at Home of FDR and orchard at Martin Van Buren
Flight 93 NM: Max Stamberger, Bachelor of Landscape Architecture, Research Aide, digital modeling of memorial groves to support ongoing NPS rehabilitation/replanting project.

Summary of Other Involvement: Principle and Co-Principle investigators: Mentoring and guiding student researcher/aides; Section 106 advising and other technical assistance related to prior NPS research projects.

Landscape Preservation Planning Assistance to Interior Region 1 Parks

Project Description: This agreement will provide students with training in the theory and
practices of cultural landscape preservation planning. As an ancillary benefit, Region 1 parks will receive technical assistance in planning for the preservation of their historic landscapes.

This project will provide NPS Region 1 parks with advice on
meeting the requirements of Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act; support development of digital modeling as a research tool for preservation planning; provide assistance to parks based on prior research completed by the Recipient; train students in landscape preservation and disseminate research findings; and provide Colonial National Historical Park with research, graphics, and text that will document the evolution of the Yorktown National Cemetery landscape and evaluate its historic character and significance.

Lead Principal Investigator: John Auwaerter, SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Co-Principal Investigator: Prof. Aidan Ackerman, SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Partner Institution: SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Bob Page

Federal Involvement: Monitoring and oversight include review and approval of financial status and performance reports, payment requests, and tasks identified below. Additional monitoring activities may include site visits, conference calls, and other on-site or off-site monitoring activities. At the Recipient’s request, NPS may also provide technical assistance to the Recipient in support of the objectives of this agreement. In particular:
a. Develop work plans and schedules jointly with the Recipient.
b. Participate in developing a research plan and report outline.
c. Provide background information, research documents, policy statements and management guidelines to support the project.
d. Work in partnership with the Recipient to address review comments, hold project meetings and site visits, and to edit and prepare final research findings.
e. Serve as liaison between NPS Region 1 parks and the Recipient.
f. Support training of students working on the project in NPS policies, methods, guidelines, and standards as determined by the project team.
g. Provide financial assistance as stipulated in this agreement.

Project Type: Research

Project Discipline: Cultural Resources

Project Sub-Discipline(s): Cultural and Historic

Start Year: 2024

End Year: 2026

Initial Funding Amount: $122,000.00

Federal Grant Number: P24AC00946

Location: NPS Region 1 (technical assistance) and Yorktown, Virginia (research project)

National Parks or Protected Areas:

  • Yorktown National Cemetery
  • Roosevelt-Vanderbilt NHP
  • Women’s Rights NHP
  • Fort Stanwix NM

State(s): Virginia

Virginia Counties: York

Student and Other Involvement:

  • Masters Students: 1
  • Staff: 1

Summary of Student Involvement: William Blackley, Master of Landscape Architecture student: full-time summer internship, Summer 2025; 10-hr research project assistant, academic year 2025-2026.

Summary of Other Involvement: Principal Investigator: mentoring and assisting graduate research project assistant in research, writing, and graphics for Yorktown National Cemetery.

IRA-Seagrass habitat suitability modeling and pilot restoration at CACO

Project Description: This project entails three specific objectives related to mapping, modeling, and restoration of seagrass meadows. Objective one entails the development of a GIS-based habitat suitability model that identifies factors preventing the recovery of eelgrass into previously suitable habitat at CACO and identifying potential areas for large-scale restoration of seagrass at the park. The second objective involves the application of habitat suitability models for CACO, FIIS and ASIS to identify specific optimal areas for restoration activities due to occur in 2025. Objective three, involves implementing pilot restoration at CACO through the collection of local seed across known resilient populations and field plantings with both local and outsourced seeds, followed up with genotype performance monitoring and evaluation post pilot restoration.

Lead Principal Investigator: Dr. Alyssa Novak, Boston University

Partner Institution: Boston University

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Holly Plaisted

Start Year: 2024

End Year: 2027

Initial Funding Amount: $235,048.00

Federal Grant Number: P24AC02302

Amendments

  • Amendment Number: 01, Year: 2025, Amount: $9,552.00

Developing Nature-based Solutions to Prevent Widespread Flooding at GATE’s Jamaica Bay

Project Description: Parks provide storm protection and as such are part of planned adaptation strategies. USACE Coastal Storm Risk Management (CSRM) plans in New York City are aimed at benefiting the flood-vulnerable coastal neighborhoods that surround and rely upon Gateway National Recreation Area and adjoining New York City Parks. Scientific evaluation of nature-based solutions (NBS) for CSRM is needed to understand alternatives to avoid, reduce and, when unavoidable, mitigate for CSRM impacts on park resources. Stevens Institute of Technology will support modeling and evaluation of NBS for Jamaica Bay. Modeling of a novel sediment restoration NBS(shallowing and narrowing shipping channels through sand replenishment) will serve as an alternative to the proposed storm surge barriers that can reduce flooding without causing induced flooding. This project will also evaluate NBS options to mitigate flooding induced by the proposed storm surge barrier system.

The objectives of this project are:
1. Evaluate nature based solutions for Jamaica Bay as alternatives to the proposed Jamaica Bay Storm Surge Barrier, seawalls, buried seawalls and levees for reduction of storm risks.
2. Evaluate risks of induced flooding from nature based soutions and the proposed storm surge barrier.
3. Publish research in peer-reviewed journals.
4. To develop a community of practice to facilitate information sharing and disseminate project results.

Lead Principal Investigator: Dr. Philip Orton, Stevens Institute of Technology

Partner Institution: Stevens Institute of Technology

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Karen Edelman

Start Year: 2024

End Year: 2026

Initial Funding Amount: $129,999.00

Federal Grant Number: P24AC02485

Document, Evaluate, and Prescribe Treatment, Defense of Rose Ridge and Houck’s Ridge Cultural Landscape, Gettysburg National Military Park

Project Description: This project will provide Gettysburg National Military Park with the research, written and graphic documentation, and resource management prescriptions to support the preservation, restoration, and rehabilitation of the historic Rose Ridge-Houck’s Ridge cultural landscape within the Gettysburg Battlefield. The project will document the historic development of the cultural landscape occupied by the Rose, Warfield, and Snyder farms during the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863, encompassing approximately 400 acres. It will also document the existing conditions of the landscape, including current park uses and resource values; analyze and evaluate the cultural landscape, including an inventory of landscape features that identifies those that are historically significant and those that are not; and provide recommendations for the future management of the cultural landscape that address enhancement of the landscape’s historic character and improvement of its contemporary use and natural resources.

Lead Principal Investigator: John Auwaerter, SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Co-Principal Investigator: Dr. Daniel Cronan, SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Partner Institution: SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Robert Page

Project Type: Research

Project Discipline: Cultural Resources

Project Sub-Discipline(s): Cultural and Historic

Start Year: 2022

End Year: 2026

Initial Funding Amount: $128,500.00

Federal Grant Number: P22AC01897

Amendments

  • Amendment Number: 01, Year: 2025, Amount: $0.00

Location: Gettysburg National Military Park

National Park or Protected Area: Gettysburg National Military (NPS)

State(s): Pennsylvania

Marsh Restoration in Assateague Island National Seashore

Project Description: The overall goal of this effort is to provide adaptive planning tools and enhance landscape-level partnerships to meet coastal marsh restoration and adaptation goals across the NPS- Northeast Region. The work proposed at ASIS is one component of a collaborative effort across the northeastern coast focused on coastal marsh resilience. Coastal marsh habitat will be restored using specific techniques. Monitoring data will be collected and analyzed to assess restoration success and adaptive management needs. Results and lessons learned will be shared broadly across the region to inform future restoration strategies for climate mitigation.

Project Objectives:
1. ASIS will collaborate with the Maryland Coastal Bays Foundation to restore
hydrology to approximately 500 acres of ditched marsh using low impact restoration techniques.
2. Document restoration techniques and ecosystem response to restoration treatments.
3. Compile and share results that will support the development of a coastal marsh adaptation “toolbox” to inform marsh restoration and adaptation strategies at parks across the region, based on collaborative workshops, lessons learned, and relevant research.

Lead Principal Investigator: Dr. Roman Jesien, Maryland Coastal Bays Program

Partner Institution: Maryland Coastal Bays Program

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Bill Hulsander

Start Year: 2024

End Year: 2029

Initial Funding Amount: $700,000.00

Federal Grant Number: P24AC02520

Amendments

  • Amendment Number: 01, Year: 2025, Amount: $300,000.00

Integrating Geospatial Capacity with Management and Operations in NPS Interior Region 1

Project Description: The goals of this project are to develop core geospatial functionality
and content for NPS Interior Region 1 (IR1) parks and programs to support park operations & management, federal geospatial mandates, and contributions to Servicewide datasets for wide, public access.

The project aims to develop authoritative geospatial data for the National Parks of IR1, along with web tools for creating and managing this data, and related applications to enhance park operations, management, resource protection, and interpretation. Additionally, it seeks to enable contributions from NPS IR1 to Servicewide datasets, which will aggregate into comprehensive geospatial datasets accessible across the National Park Service (NPS) and the Department of the Interior (DOI), ultimately benefiting public use. The initiative will also provide guidance and technical support to NPS IR1 staff to ensure effective collaboration in achieving these objectives.

Lead Principal Investigator: Yeqiao Wang, University of Rhode Island

Partner Institution: University of Rhode Island

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: David Gadsby

Start Year: 2024

End Year: 2026

Initial Funding Amount: $114,802.81

Federal Grant Number: P24AC02126

Amendments

  • Amendment Number: 01, Year: 2025, Amount: $201,000.00

IRA Coastal Marsh Resilience and Adaptation

Project Description: To plan for inevitable future changes to coastal marshes and guided
by the Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD) and other planning frameworks, park managers need to draw upon the best available scientific information in order to identify potential interventions for marshes themselves as well as likely impacts to other natural and cultural resources and infrastructure as a result of marsh and coastal system changes, and how to prepare for and possibly mitigate those impacts. This project will provide
guidance to park managers to make informed, science-based, decisions regarding marsh conservation, restoration and migration planning with input from federal, state and local agencies, Tribal Nations, universities, non-government organizations, community partners and other collaborators (hereafter referred to as Collaborators), using available data, tools and other information for nine Northeast National Park Service (NPS) units. Existing science products and foundational climate and monitoring data will be synthesized and applied in the process, along with inputs from Collaborators and qualitative judgements captured through workshops. The synthesis, including options for pro-active adaptation planning and management, along with planning and implementation insights, will be shared across the project team and with the broader community and public.

The overarching purpose of this project is to inform planning and
decision-making at nine NPS units to assist with the prioritization, implementation and evaluation of salt marsh management actions. For each of the nine units, engagement, interactions and information sharing will be conducted to: 1) identify coastal marsh areas and their key ecological and socio-economic benefits, 2) assess vulnerabilities of coastal
marshes and other natural and cultural resources and infrastructure given climate change projections and develop potential options for pro-active management and planning to minimize and/or mitigate potential impacts, 3) summarize other ongoing projects associated with the broader Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) Northeast marsh resilience project and, where possible, evaluate ongoing restoration efforts to incorporate results and lessons learned into guidance for future efforts, and 4) broadly communicate and
develop a variety of outreach materials for this project as it progresses.

To reach a broad audience for the nine units, from Virginia to Maine, the project team will employ a multi-faceted approach to manager and Collaborator engagement, and provide continuous interactions to build strong and sustained relationships. Three sub-regional workshops will be held near the beginning and end of the four-year performance period, to bring together managers and Collaborators to share insights, strengths, costs, benefits, and challenges of planned or implemented marsh RAD and other approaches and support NPS managers in developing unit-level plans and actions and encouraging more landscape-level salt-marsh conservation planning. The Recipient will provide wide- reaching, regular communications and information sharing through a combination of email, video conferences, webinars, social media, cloud sharing and a project website, and a comprehensive final report will provide a synthesis of all information gathered and present science-based options to support managers in developing park-level approaches for achieving both region-wide and individual unit goals, share related research and
workshops, highlight new insights, discuss lessons learned and develop informed guidance for future projects.

Lead Principal Investigator: Dr. John Walsh, University of Rhode Island

Partner Institution: University of Rhode Island

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Brian Mitchell

Start Year: 2024

End Year: 2028

Initial Funding Amount: $323,943.34

Federal Grant Number: P24AC02112

Amendments

  • Amendment Number: 01, Year: 2024, Amount: $349,876.58
  • Amendment Number: 02, Year: 2025, Amount: $560,068.79

Assessing Salt Marsh Migration Areas for Northeast Coastal National Parks

Project Description: Salt marshes throughout the Northeast are getting wetter or tending toward submergence. The loss of salt marshes can negatively affect the important socio-ecological functions provided by these marsh ecosystems (e.g., soil carbon sequestration, storm surge and flood buffering, and habitat for at-risk fish and wildlife species). One strategy for protecting salt marsh resources is to facilitate the natural process of landward marsh migration in response to sea level rise (SLR). High-resolution migration modeling, with consideration of anthropogenic constraints or validation of such models using field survey data, is lacking for national parks in the northeast, and existing migration models are of limited value for developing strategies to plan for natural marsh migration and/or facilitate marsh migration within northeastern parks. The proposed research would analyze salt marsh migration potential at the highest resolution possible at nine coastal
NPS parks. Fieldwork will be conducted to develop data for model validation at selected parks, and results of the work will inform climate change-related planning and management while also providing the basis for facilitated migration planning

Salt marshes and adjacent coastal landscapes are high visibility NPS resources, which receive high visitor use and have engaged interest from many partners and stakeholders. Materials produced as part of marsh migration study will improve the knowledge of the condition and projected changes to these important public resources to increase public understanding and enjoyment and indirectly promote scientifically sound management and spatial planning decisions within park boundaries.

This project would involve three primary tasks including: modeling
marsh migration, evaluating anthropogenic constraints to marsh migration, and
evaluating the results of the marsh migration models. Salt marsh migration will be modeled with the Sea Level Affecting Marsh Migration (SLAMM) tool using the best available data for each park, and for sea level rise scenarios to be determined during the study. Areas adjacent to existing salt marshes will be evaluated for anthropogenic constraints to marsh migration based on land use and land cover, infrastructure, park management zoning, and parcel ownership (e.g. public vs. private). Results of the anthropogenic constraint assessment will be combined with the potential expansion areas based on the modeling results to provide more realistic assessments of the potential for salt marsh migration. Available field-surveyed elevation data for the marshes within the parks, along with new field surveys conducted for a subset of parks, will be used to evaluate the accuracy of the DEMs and ground slope in marsh and upland settings and determine the effectiveness of our DEM “cleaning” method. SLAMM models will be run with the best refined DEM and slope products, and Monte Carlo simulations will be run to provide a level of confidence for the migration models.

GIS datasets and mapping of potential marsh migration areas in and around the parks along with an assessment of anthropogenic and management constraints as provided by this study will provide important insights into the likely pathways along which salt marshes will migrate naturally. This information is critical in planning for changes to the landscape related to sea level rise, and essential data for selecting potential routes to facilitate migration and conserve the socio-ecological services these marshes provide as sea level rise and we lose existing marsh area

Lead Principal Investigator: Dr. Jason Parent, University of Rhode Island

Partner Institution: University of Rhode Island

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Brian Mitchell

Start Year: 2024

End Year: 2027

Initial Funding Amount: $299,999.99

Federal Grant Number: P24AC02109

Amendments

  • Amendment Number: 01, Year: 2025, Amount: $9,979.67

Supporting NPS Efforts to Improve Operational Resiliency of Coastal Parks

Project Description: The goals of the project are to advise NPS staff and contractors on conceptual climate change adaptation planning for vulnerable sites and resources that can be set to engage with park stakeholders and Tribal governments, inform agency decision makers, and fulfill compliance requirements prior to damage caused by a major storm event; and provide support on development of a process to allow or facilitate a proactive shift into alternative management strategies that may include such actions as changing use and/or access to certain resources, new or expanded models for shared stewardship of sites, and divestment or discontinuance of active management and repair of resources.

The expected objectives and outcomes are to 1) share lessons learned
with NPS staff, contractors and external researchers on experience from task agreement P18AC01352 to plan for the resilience and adaptation of facilities, including historic structures and visitor use amenities via a webinar presentation and discussion; 2) advise on development of a classification rubric on wise investment decisions for public facilities and pilot park applications and 3) advise on perspectives gained from the established
integrated (across natural resources, cultural resources and facilities) coastal climate change vulnerability assessment method developed by URI and NPS.

Lead Principal Investigator: Glenn Ricci, University of Rhode Island

Partner Institution: University of Rhode Island

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Brian Mitchell

Start Year: 2024

End Year: 2027

Initial Funding Amount: $45,035.13

Federal Grant Number: P24AC01904

Amendments

  • Amendment Number: 01, Year: 2025, Amount: $209,999.99