Accelerating anthropogenic land surface change and the status of Pleistocene drumlins in New England.

ABSTRACT: Drumlins are glacially derived landforms that are prominent in the landscape over much of southern New England. We carried out a comprehensive ground-based survey in a three-town study area in eastern Massachusetts with the goals of establishing the extent to drumlins have been altered and assessing the associated environmental consequences and probable driving factors. Results show that many drumlins have been significantly altered through levelling and truncation (creation of steep cut and fill slopes), with projects involving movement of 1-1.5×10(6) m(3) of earth materials not now uncommon. Stormwater and wetlands infractions were documented at all the larger excavation sites and resulted in enforcement actions and fines in many cases; the broader environmental consequences of the loss/

SUBMITTER: Woodcock DW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3467288 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature