CISA Integrating Climate Science & Decision Making in the Carolinas

CISA: Carolinas Integrated Sciences and Assessments, A NOAA RISA Team

CISA Videos

These videos cover topics related to water use, community water and wastewater system management, water planning, conservation initiatives, and ecosystems. Interviewees represent resource agencies, NGOs, and the private sector. The documentary-style videos define abstract concepts such as drought and climate variability through interviewees' easy to understand, on-the-job observations.

SC map showing where videos filmed
CISA interview sites.

Available Videos

1. Francis Beidler Forest

Tags: climate change, natural resources (2:46)

Mark Musselman, Land Manager at the National Audobon Society, explains how interannual climatic variability affects Francis Beidler Forest, and how climate change threatens to intensify the fluctuation of water availability.

2. A Water Retention System at the Farmers Exchange

Tags: drought, commercial water use (2:46)

Bynum Poe, the owner of the Farmers Exchange in Rock Hill S.C., talks about the water retention system he built during the last drought to conserve water.

3. Low Falls Wholesale Nursery

Tags: climate, irrigation, commercial water use (1:23)

George Stoudenmire, owner of Low Falls Wholesale Nursery, talks about how climate in South Carolina affects his business.

4. City of Columbia Water Works

Tags: community water systems, drought, water use (3:31)

Jon Sherer, Water Works Specialist, talks about the City of Columbia Water Works plant, as well as how seasonal changes and drought affect water consumption.

5. The Congaree Riverkeeper

Tags: water quality, climate variability and change (1:28)

Bill Stangler explains his role as the Congaree Riverkeeper.

6. Rocky Shoals Spider Lily

Tags: natural resources, climate variability (2:33)

Bill Stangler, the Congaree Riverkeeper, talks about the Rocky Shoals Spider Lily found on the Broad River in South Carolina.

7. Catawba-Wateree Water Management Group

Tags: community water systems, planning (2:43)

Jimmy Bagley, Deputy City Manager of Rock Hill, describes the role of the Catawba-Wateree Water Management Group in water resource planning and cooperatively facing the challenges of water resource management.

8. American Rivers, Protecting Waterways

Tags: natural resources, water quality, climate change (3:04)

Gerrit Jobsis, Southeast Regional Director of American Rivers, describes the organization's role in protecting water supply and quality and the challenges presented by growth, competing demands on water, and climate change.

9. SC State Climatology Office

Tags: climate, drought (2:59)

Hope Mizzell, SC State Climatologist, describes how the South Carolina meets the public's climate data needs and administers the SC Drought Response Act, particularly the role of the Drought Response Committee.

10. Managing Water in Mt. Pleasant

Tags: community water systems, planning (3:33)

Clay Duffie, General Manager of the Mt. Pleasant Waterworks, talks about conjunctive use (groundwater and surface water), aquifer storage, and the importance of revenue and water resources planning in a rapidly growing community.

11. Anderson Regional Joint Water System

Tags: drought, water quality, land use (2:53)

Scott Willett, Executive Director, discusses how interannual climate variability, lake management, and land-use create challenges for managing water quantity and quality.

12. The Flood Factors Song

Tags: flood characteristics (3:37)

David Shelley, Park Ranger at Congaree National Park, performs his original song "Flood Factors" on the dulcimer. The song is sung to the tune of "Funga Alafia," a popular West African drumming song that is also adapted as "Little Liza Jane" in traditional American music.

13. South Carolina DHEC's New Project

Tags: state water planning and permitting (1:41)

David Baize, from South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, talks about the agency's upcoming project developing surface water models.

14. Water, Climate Change and Congaree National Park

Tags: climate change, ecological impacts (3:25)

Park Ranger, David Shelley, describes the vital role of water in Congaree National Park and discusses potential impacts from climate change.

15. The Future of Wastewater Facilities

Tags: climate-water-energy nexus, wastewater, nutrient recovery (2:22)

Rebecca West, the Chief Operating Officer of Spartanburg Water, discusses the future of wastewater facilities in energy recovery.

16. Historic South Carolina Floods in Columbia, SC

Tags: flooding (0:49)

The October 2015 Flood Event in South Carolina caused loss of life and destroyed property and infrastructure from the coast to the Midlands. This video documents the magnitude of the historic event in the Columbia area by directly comparing footage taken during the flooding with footage taken two weeks later, after waters receded.

17. Lost Lakes

Tags: flooding, economic impacts (2:02)

The residential community of Arcadia Lakes was once characterized by the catchy slogan “Seven lakes, one town,” but the Mayor of Arcadia Lakes, Mark Huguley, explains how two dam failures during the October 2015 Flood Event severely altered some of Arcadia’s biggest lakes and caused irreparable damage to private property.

18. Flying Ahead of Troubled Waters

Tags: conservation, sea-level rise, climate change (3:47)

Swallow tailed kites are an iconic species of bird known for their aerial acrobatics and social nature, but they are also extremely vulnerable to changes in habitat. Once a common sight during summers throughout the Southeast, now this species is only found in a handful of areas, including Florida and South Carolina’s Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge. Dr. Maria Whitehead of The Nature Conservancy and Craig Sasser of Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge explain how they are collaborating to conserve the kites’ habitats in South Carolina.

19. Tackling Water in a Tourist Town

Tags: water management, drought (3:22)

Each summer over 100,000 visitors flock to the coastal city of North Myrtle Beach, generating immense demand for fresh water. North Myrtle Beach Public Works Director, Kevin Blayton, reveals how this town tackles seasonal water demand and the challenges of climate variability.

20. Finding Signs of Rising Seas

Tags: sea-level rise, climate change (3:04)

Can we see signs of rising sea level in the Carolinas? Dr. Chris Marsh, the director of the Low Country Institute, explains how plant species on the immediate coast are distributed with respect to salt-water tolerance and shows how changes in the compositon and health of plant species can provide evidence of sea-level rise along South Carolina's southern coasts.

21. Supplying Stakeholders on the Savannah

Tags: water management, climate change (2:51)

From supplying drinking water in the upstate to sustaining fisheries in the low country, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers manages water for the entire Savannah River Basin. Jason LaVecchia, a water manager for the Savannah District of the Corps, explains how they must balance the needs of the basin’s many stakeholders in the context of climate variability and change.

Videos by Chandler Green.