The northeastern U.S. has experienced dramatic changes in precipitation over the past century. A study co-authored by Dr. Brian Beckage found that annual extreme participation was 53 percent higher from 1996-2014 than it was from 1901-1995. Although coastal areas experience more extreme and total precipitation on average, the increase was largely uniform across the the northeast. See also interview with State Climatologist Lesley-Ann Dupigny Giroux.

Is New Jersey’s water safer than Vermont’s? The Garden State recently revised its standards for safe levels of PFOA, a manufactured chemical found in household and commercial items to 14 parts per trillion—6 parts per trillion lower than Vermont’s safe standard, according to VPR. Last year, PFOA levels in drinking water around the Bennington area last year were found to exceed state standards, and a Department of Health report noted that residents’ blood levels of the chemical were strongly correlated with levels found in contaminated wells.

Norwich University Geology Professor Laurie Grigg’s work has long focused on climate change, including her recent contribution to a  global pollen and charcoal database to document vegetation and fire responses to abrupt climate change during the last glacial period. Professor Grigg’s is now examining lake sediment to determine how aquatic ecosystems have acclimated to climate changes over the last ten centuries using a federal grant.

EMERGENCY ROOM TICK VISITS

For 2017, tick-related emergency room and urgent care visits in Vermont have been consistently above average. The adult ticks will remain active through November. Ninety nine percent of tick borne disease in Vermont are caused by the blacklegged tick. Encounters with blacklegged ticks can occur anytime during the year when the temperature is above freezing.

And speaking of ticks, the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department’s multi-year long study gauging the impact of winter ticks on the state’s moose has ended. After its first year, eighteen of the thirty radio-collared moose calves survived their first winter, with the twelve that died exhibiting signs of winter tick infestation and severe weight loss. As for the adults, twenty-seven of the study’s thirty collared cow moose survived, with fifteen producing calves in the spring.

NEW BOOKS

Vermont author and photographer Peter Miller has returned with a new book exploring the state’s deteriorating rural culture. Vanishing Vermonters features interviews from rural citizens about rising taxes and skyrocketing energy costs. Other notable voices heard within the pages are former governor Howard Dean, author Bill Schubart, and the founders of Heady Topper, Jen and John Kimmich.

Conscious, or concerned, about what you’re eating and where it comes from? Then pick up the recently released The Vermont Non-GMO Cookbook by Vermont resident Tracy Medieros. Besides recipes, the book provides tips and strategies for finding organic, non-GMO foods. That’s fitting for Vermont, since the state was the first to pass a mandatory GMO labeling law, though it was later overridden by a federal labeling mandate.

The young adult historical fiction novel, The Grafton Cavaliers by Thomas E. Fontaine was newly published by the Grafton Historical Society. Based on the adventures of two young men from Grafton who volunteered for a cavalry unit in 1862, the book tells stories about the unit comprised only of college students. It is currently being offered at a discounted price for VT and NH schools to use in their classrooms.