2022 Research Symposium

Congaree National Park and Friends of Congaree Swamp are hosting the park’s third research symposium on Thursday, January 6, 2022 and Friday January 7, 2022. The symposium will focus on recurring themes in park research and feature a memorial session for Will Graf and Rebecca Sharitz. Participants may attend in-person or via Zoom.

Thursday, January 6, 2022 (UofSC Alumni Center Ballroom)

6:00-7:00 PM – Reception

7:00-7:45 PM – Welcome and Research Reflection
Opening remarks and a review of Congaree National Park research
Acting Superintendent Gregory Cunningham (Congaree National Park), David Shelley (Congaree National Park)

7:45-8:30 PM – Tribute to Will Graf and Rebecca Sharitz
Kimberly Meitzen (Texas State Univ, Dept of Geography and Environmental Studies), Laura Stroup (St. Michaels Univ, Dept of Geography), Loretta Battaglia (Southern Illinois Univ, Dept of Plant Biology)

Friday, January 7, 2021 (SC State Museum Vista Room)

9:00-10:15 AM: Session 1—Cultural History (Chair: Neal Polhemus)
Robert Greene (Claflin Univ, Dept of History): The Black history of Congaree Swamp: From the colonial era to Jim Crow
Mark Kinzer (National Park Service): Old-Growth and old fields: Historic human land use in the Congaree floodplain
Neal Polhemus (Univ of South Carolina, College of Arts and Sciences: Life and death on the edge of the swamp: Black farmers, White hunters, and the closure of the Congaree commons

10:30-11:45 AM: Session 2—Hydrology (Chair: John Kupfer)
Greg Carbone (Univ of South Carolina, Dept of Geography): Historical climatology and future projections in central South Carolina
Ray Torres (Univ of South Carolina, School of the Earth, Ocean & Environment): Wetting and drainage of the Congaree River floodplain
Celeste Journey (USGS, South Atlantic Water Science Center): Water quality in Congaree National Park: New technologies to track contamination

1:00-2:15 PM: Session 3—Geomorphology (Chair: Kimberly Meitzen)
Ellen Wohl (Colorado State Univ, Dept of Geosciences): Geomorphic influences on river corridor resilience to disturbance
Allan James (Univ of SC, Dept of Geography): Legacy sediment in the New World: Theoretical and practical concerns
Enrica Viparelli (Univ of SC, Dept of Civil and Environmental Engineering): Measuring sediment fluxes between the Congaree River channel and its floodplain

2:30-3:45 PM: Session 4—Ecosystems/Ecology (Chair: Loretta Battaglia)
Graeme Lockaby (Auburn Univ, School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences): Biogeochemistry of floodplain forests
Will Conner (Clemson Univ, Forestry and Environmental Conservation Dept): Forested wetlands dynamics across an elevation gradient within a floodplain forest of the Congaree River
Loretta Battaglia (Southern Illinois Univ, Dept of Plant Biology): Floodplain forest change along a post-Hurricane Hugo disturbance gradient

4:00-5:00 PM: Session 5—Panel Discussion (Moderator: David Shelley)
Speakers discuss upcoming challenges and the future of research at Congaree National Park.
Theresa Thom (US Fish and Wildlife Service), Cliff McCreedy (National Park Service, US Biosphere Network), Tim Watkins (National Park Service, Climate Change Response)\