Elevated fire risks, dead grass in front yards, and poor crop yields – many Connecticut residents are seeing and feeling the aftermath of an extreme drought, the likes of which have not been seen in nearly two decades.
Miriah Kelly, assistant professor of environment, geography and marine sciences, was tapped by The Middletown Press to discuss this summer’s dry conditions in Connecticut and their socioeconomic consequences in comparison to those of last year’s heavy rainstorms.
“[These extreme conditions] have implications on the infrastructure, the types of crops, the placement of crops, the viability of crops, the timing of crops, without being able to really plan and anticipate for these extremes,” Kelly said.
Kelly’s teaching and research focuses on the human dimensions of ocean and coastal climate change issues. Last year, she and two other faculty members attended COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, to observe deliberations on climate change and preventing environmental crises.
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The Department of the Environment, Geography and Marine Sciences provides students with hands-on learning experiences both in and out of the classroom, especially in the form of student-faculty research collaborations or faculty-supervised research projects. Learn more here.
