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January 24, 2008

Three profs discuss climate change impacts on local water during Feb. 8 public forum

By Jennifer McNulty (831) 459-4399; jmcnulty@ucsc.edu

The subject of water will be on tap during a free public forum on the impacts of climate change on local water supplies.

The forum, "Warming Up to Water: Climate Change Impacts on Local Water Supplies," will take place Friday, February 8, from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Council Chambers of Capitola City Hall, which is located at 420 Capitola Avenue.

The gathering will feature multimedia presentations by three UCSC professors who are conducting cutting-edge work on water-related issues:

• Lisa Sloan, professor of earth sciences, will present an informative yet accessible slide show about her groundbreaking research on anticipated microclimate changes caused by global warming.

• Andrew Fisher, professor of earth sciences, has been called an "unsung community hero" for the level of resource conservation and restoration made possible by the work of his graduate students. Over the years, Fisher's students have monitored Soquel Creek and other local waterways, providing data that would otherwise have been prohibitively expensive.

• Brent Haddad, professor of environmental studies, is the director of UCSC's new Center for Integrated Water Research, a first-of-its-kind facility dedicated to issues of water supply and quality.

"The global information gathered and published by the United Nations makes headlines, but most people don't realize that cutting-edge research on natural resources happens right here in Santa Cruz County," said Barbara Graves, vice-chair of the Capitola Commission on the Environment, which is co-sponsoring the forum with UCSC, the Soquel Creek Water District, the Santa Cruz Water Department, the Central Water District, and the County of Santa Cruz.

The forum will highlight new information, added Bill Kocher, director of the Santa Cruz Water Department. "It's important to share the latest data with the public, so we can all make informed decisions together," he said.

Bruce Daniels, president of the Soquel Creek Water District, added: "The fresh water supply of California's central coast could be at serious risk from global warming, and UCSC scientists are volunteering to help quantify these impacts for our community."

In addition, UCSC is a partner with two local water providers in the construction of a demonstration desalination plant that will help water agencies quantify the environmental impacts of supplemental water supplies.

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Media contacts: Donna Blitzer, director of UCSC government and community relations, (831) 459-3938 or dblitzer@ucsc.edu; Juliana Rebagliati, planning director for the City of Capitola, (831) 475-7300 or rebagliati@ci.capitola.ca.us; Bruce Daniels (831) 462-4303 or bruce.daniels@alum.mit.edu; Bill Kocher (831) 420-5205 or bkocher@ci.santa-cruz.ca.us; John Akeman, staff to the Capitola Commission on the Environment, (831) 475-7300 or jakeman@ci.capitola.ca.us.

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