Notes from Breakout Group

Contribution of SAPOZEO to identified abiotic, biotic, and education issues

Report by Bill Martin, Eastern Kentucky University

We attempted to address the question:   How can our region contribute to the key issues dietermined by the Science and Human Dimensions Committee regarding abiotic, biotic, and education.?     I have also added some points on human impacts of our region and a general, over-simplified socio-economic profile of the Southern Appalachian-Interior Low Plateaus-Ozark/Ouachita regions:

I. Distinct socio-economic profile

    a. extensive ,developed areas that remain rural in character and action; KY and TN two of leading

states with most farms

    b. several counties in the region lead the nation in poverty, low literacy rate, poor health

    c.  increasing number of immigrants (chiefly Hispanic) occupying rural areas and cities

    d. minorities include these immigrants, Native Americans, blacks who have lived in the same area for generations, and the mostly ignored, somewhat isolated rural communities (and mostly white) of the rugged mountains and plateaus.

    e. educational levels trail the nation

II. Human impacts

a. long-standing with human presence throughout the Holocene;  human agriculture practiced in this region for 100s of years, not just associated with European settlement and immediate years preceding;  extensive burning by Native Americans, followed by more intensive and extensive burning of forests beginning in the 1700s.

b. Old-growth forest examples as typically scattered,. small (<1000 acres), but numerous remnants throughout the region; large tracts preserved on federal lands

c. large areas of continuous forest cover for the eastern U.S.  , e.g. Cumberland Plateau and Mountains >80% cover over most of that physiographicregion.

     d. extensive mining, logging, agriculture in a very short historical time: late 1700s to present.

     e. forests heavily exploited and modified by logging, burning, grazing of livestock

     f.. in Interior Low Plateaus, high conversion of forest to non-forest

     g. conversion of forests and fields at an unsustainable rate that must be monitored and quantified.

     h. region with high percentage of land in private ownership and a region with shifts in patterns of ownership, e.g., in ag areas shift from farmers owning rural land to urbanites moving to rural areas; needs to be monitored and quantified

III.  ABIOTIC

 Geologically and physiograhically distinct .  Examples include a) geologically-ancient Appalchian and Ozark highlands; b) Ordivician and Mississippian limestones with extensive, globally-recognized cave systems and associated karst landscapes; c) geologically complex Ridge and Valley physiographic province with folding, thrusting, faulting of Paleozoic sediments;  d)coal-bearing seams of the interbedded strata of the Appalachian (Cumberland) mountains and plateaus;  region non-glaciated and vast highlands represent some of oldest landscapes while providing the highest elevations in the eastern U.S.

Climate:  warm, temperate, continental with 4 distinct seasons, and prolonged spring and fall; major influences of the warm, moist air of the Gulf of Mexico especially during growing season of over 150 days; coldest weather dominated by Canadian air masses;  violent weather of thunderstorms and tornadoes;  pronounced west to east continental climatic and microclimatic gradients.   Atmospheric pollutants relatively high due to high humidity, stagnant air masses, substantial vehicular traffic and numerous large, coal-burning power plants (some of worst  airpolluters in U.S.).

Water :  Usually plentiful;  occassional regional drought;  limited irrigation    Numerous streams, rivers and lakes with virtually all lakes manmade.     For example, Kentucky has over 80000 miles of streams; most surface water of lower 48.    Large lakes created in 20th century  chiefly by  TVA, USACE.    Waters widely polluted by sediments, and numerous chemical chemicals.    Quality also affected by agricultural activity, urban landscapes and connections, mining, and logging.

Soils:  diverse (hundreds/thousands of soil series and several Soil Orders: chiefly Ultisols, Alfisols, Inceptisols, Entisols) .   Residual, colluvial, alluvial, eolian (loess) soils.    Extensive areas of old, but highly productive soils and old, inherently infertile soils

IV.   BIOTA

Biological diversity is the highest in United States and Canada.   Numerous distinct ecosystems ranging from high elevation heath balds to numerous forest communities/ types to rock outcrops.

Deciduous forests dominate with increasing pine in Ozarks/Ouachitas.  Evergreen forests a small percentage of landscape.        Geographic center of deciduous forest diversity and development; major forest types: mixed mesophytic, mixed oak with several dominant oaks,  oak-hickory, oak-pine.    Bottomland hardwood forests are major wetland ecosystems.   High elevation forests of northern hardwoods, and spruce (formerly spruce-fir)

Aquatic ecosystems are biologically diverse and extensive; stream ecosystems unique with Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers recognized centers of diversity and evolution, especially mussel and fish faunas.   Other rivers such as Clinch (VA, TN), Green (KY) are being recognized for their diversity and importance

Cave ecosystems are unique with diverse and endemic fauna; important bat habitats

High endemism and species at risk especially invertebrates, aquatic organisms (esp. mussels), salamanders, amphibians, cave organisms, plants with specific habitat requirements

Biota generally considered resilient.     However, long history of invasive species that have affected these systems, e.g.,  chestnut blight of 20th century.    Several aquatic and terrestrial invasive species are threats.      Forest diseases and decline need monitoring.    Invasives generally widespread and expanding.

V.  EDUCATION

Numerous small colleges and several regional universities in rural areas.

Land-grant institutions have a long history of providing education, training, community outreach through university system and extension services.

Extensive non-formal education possible because region is a desirable tourist destination

There are organized environmental education initiatives now developing, e.g. Kentucky Environmental Education Council and Kentucky University Partnership in Environmental Education, Parks as Classrooms, K-12 online mapping program (Tennessee, a National Geographic and NBII partnership

Natural areas ranging from small parks and preserves to large national parks and forests are readily accessible and available to most school systems; these natural areas and school systems are dispersed across the region .

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