The Sandhills region of Nebraska is one of the most unique biophysical systems in North America. The largest area of stabilized sand dunes in the western hemisphere, the Sandhills contain unfragmented grassland habitat and unparalleled ground water resources. Due to the inherent fragility of soils, the region escaped large scale conversion to row crop agriculture and instead cattle ranching on native grasslands comprises 95% of the land use. We are asking questions about the adaptation, resilience and sustainability of the natural and social systems in this region in the face of stressors like weather extremes (e.g. drought) with associated declines in soil stability, biodiversity and productivity. In addition, stressors to the social system include population decline, single industry dependence, public service scarcity and consolidation, urban pressure, and diminishing local governmental control. Initial efforts revolve around using satellite imagery and drone photography to study landscape change in wet vs. dry years. In addition, we are conducting ethnographic interviews in order to describe local logics of place, identity, action, and relationships to provide resources for dialogue among neighbors and with urban communities regarding the challenges and opportunities for adaptation and resilience.
Results/Conclusions
Using Landsat imagery, we documented changes in NDVI that correlated with monthly as well as yearly precipitation, especially for 2012, the driest year in the past three decades. In addition, the upland dunes showed more responsiveness to variation in precipitation than did the ground water-fed lowlands. This buffering of drought-related declines in vegetation cover in lowlands may be key to the sustainability of livestock production in this region. Ethnographic interpretations describe acute risk awareness by landowners and patterned expressions of shared strategies for minimizing risk ecologically, economically, as well as socially and culturally. Integrating these natural system and social system dynamics in the Sandhills can contribute to a growing body of theory in ecology as well as suggest mechanisms by which communities can be resilient in the face of growing climate extremes and environmental change.