Delaware

Delaware updates sea level rise planning scenarios

Date

The First State is at greater risk for sea level rise because of its low-lying topography. The state has new metrics used to project the impacts of climate change in the state.

Article by Mark Eichmann, WHYY
November 27, 2017

SP28 Digital Elevation Model of Delaware

The Delaware Geological Survey led a multi-agency, state and federal effort (including DelDOT, DNREC, USGS, and NOAA) to secure funds from the Hurricane Sandy Relief appropriation to collect new, high-quality LiDAR for the entire state of Delaware. LiDAR, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, is a remote sensing method that uses light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure distances from a source to a target object. Typically, a LiDAR device is attached to the bottom of a plane and is pointed at the ground.

East Dover Groundwater Flow Model

Project Contact(s)

In 2015, staff of the DNREC Water Supply Section made DGS aware of a situation east of Dover where there is potential for overpumping of the Columbia aquifer by the City of Dover’s Long Point Road wellfield (LPRW) and numerous large-capacity irrigation wells in the surrounding area (Figure 1).

RI80 Investigation of Submarine Groundwater Discharge at Holts Landing State Park, Delaware: Hydrogeologic Framework, Groundwater Level and Salinity Observations

Monitoring wells and groundwater sensors were installed and monitored in and around Holts Landing State Park on the Indian River Bay, eastern Sussex County, Delaware, between October 2009 and August 2012. Data from test drilling, geophysical logging, geophysical surveys, and well testing characterized the hydrogeological framework and spatial and temporal patterns of water pressure, temperature, and salinity in the shallow, unconfined Columbia aquifer. The work revealed a plume of freshened groundwater extending more than 650 ft into the bay from the shoreline.