In this episode of the GeoTrek Podcast, we bring you exclusive insights from the 2024 Texas Groundwater Summit, where industry experts and thought leaders gathered to discuss the latest trends, challenges, and advancements in groundwater management in Texas. Join us as we sit down with special guests from the summit to explore the critical issues surrounding groundwater sustainability, drought resilience, and the future of water resources in the Lone Star State. Our guests share their perspectives on the importance of innovative technologies, regulatory updates, and collaborative efforts in securing Texas' water future.

Our guests are:

Jeremiah Long, Senior Video Producer, Blue Leopard Agency

www.blueleopardagency.com

Shay Hlavaty, Communications and Outreach Manager, Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District

www.bseacd.org

Taylor Christian, Team Lead on the Texas Water Data Team, Texas Water Development Board

https://txwaterdatahub.org/

Jodi Ruonavar, Vice President of the Board of Directors, Porter Special Utility District

https://portersud.com/

Sarah Rountree Schlessinger, CEO, Texas Water Foundation

https://www.texaswater.org/

https://www.texasrunsonwater.org/

Amy Bush, Hydrologist, P.G., RMBJ Geo

hydrogeek@gmail.com

After making landfall in Florida as a hurricane, Tropical Storm Debby stalled out along the South Carolina coast, bringing days of heavy rain impacts to the region. This podcast investigates the science behind the increasing number of slow-moving tropical cyclones impacting the U.S. over the past decade.

Forecasters, scientists and disaster relief specialists weigh in on what we can expect this upcoming hurricane season and how we can be better prepared. We also take a look at the connection between AI and weather forecasting.

☀️ Listen to our first full episode and interview, featuring Liz Chamberlain, a National Science Foundation postdoc, and scientist with extensive experience doing fieldwork in marine sedimentology. Liz shares insights from South Louisiana and Bangladesh—did you know that rivers naturally want to change their courses, meaning the infrastructure we build along rivers to control them is literally “fighting nature?” Dr. Chamberlain also provides some useful advice for young professionals and aspiring scientists interested in fieldwork.

Welcome to Geotrek! Hosted by Dr. Hal Needham and presented by CNC.

My favorite meteorologist, Carl Parker from The Weather Channel, joins us for a discussion about climate change impacts on tropical weather, advice on science communication, and the importance of having empathy with those impacted by extreme weather events.

Melissa Beaudry, Senior Resilience Planner at Halff, provides insights on how to help communities improve resilience plans.

This podcast features interviews with four professionals focused on making Gulf Coast communities more resilient from coastal hazards. They were recorded at the Gulf of Mexico Conference, which brought together more than 1100 professionals to share the latest research and best practices, in Tampa, Florida.

On September 8, 2023, a 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck the Atlas Mountains of Morocco, in northwest Africa, inflicting more than 2,900 fatalities. This podcast provides on-the-ground interviews from the Kingdom of Morocco, including interviews with earthquake survivors in an earthquake tent village, and perspectives about the pros and cons of traditional versus modern building styles for disaster resiliency.

This podcast highlights interviews with seven participants from the CNC Connect Conference in Mobile, Alabama, from Jan 8-10, 2024. The conference brought together hundreds of professionals in the insurance services and extreme weather response industries. We also interview seasonal hurricane forecasting expert Phil Klotzbach to get a sneak peek of what we may expect next hurricane season.

After striking the Gulf Coast as a cat-5 hurricane in 1969, Camille inflicted the deadliest disaster in Virginia's history, killing 114 people in catastrophic floods and landslides near Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. This podcast interviews three storm survivors on live interviews recorded at the Nelson County Historical Society's Oakland Museum.

This episode provides the top 10 memories from the GeoTrek podcast during the past calendar year (2023).

Stakeholders at the 22nd Bell County Water Symposium came together to discuss the future of water in Central Texas, in an area that has observed severe droughts and explosive population growth in recent decades.

Kainoa Horcajo, Director of Community Development with Global Empowerment Mission Hawaii, provides insights on the impacts of the catastrophic wildfires that struck Maui this past August.

Historic Hurricane Beryl broke many Atlantic basin hurricane records, becoming the farthest east hurricane and the only cat-4 hurricane to form in June, then the earliest cat-5 hurricane on record. This podcast features interviews with Brian McNoldy and Phil Klotzbach, who provide historic context for this record-breaking storm, as well as on-the-ground interviews with storm survivors in Texas.

Firefighting couple Gary Ringate and Kellie Murphy-Ringate share stories and insights from decades of fighting fires in Minnesota. Their perspectives on topics like hazard prevention and having a disaster plan, relate closely to disaster mitigation efforts for other hazards.

Himalayan mountaineer and Mount Everest Expert Pete Athans shares insights from leading expeditions to the world's highest mountains, perspectives on high-altitude weather extremes, and first-hand accounts of how the 2015 earthquake and Covid-19 Pandemic impacted Nepal.

Hurricane Idalia was the first major (cat 3+) hurricane to strike Florida's Big Bend Region since the late 1800s. This podcast documents storm impacts on the region, as well as voices from many storm survivors.

Hurricane Harvey flood victim Rahel Abraham innovated a large, waterproof bag that zips around cars and other large valuable items, like grand pianos. Her Houston-based product is now gaining widespread attention, as it promises to make flood-prone communities around the world more resilient.

Engineering provides many solutions to reduce losses from coastal hazards. But how do we determine optimal solutions, considering design criteria, budgets, and community input? Dr. Bret Webb, Professor of Civil Engineering at University of South Alabama, provides engineering perspectives on coastal resiliency in this episode.

Academic climate experts Daniel Swain, Andrew Schwartz and Julie Kalansky weigh in on perspectives about California's mega-winter, including measuring near record snow depth, analyzing climate patterns, and discussing potential snow/ flood impacts.

The 1755 Lisbon, Portugal earthquake revolutionized building and planning practices around the world. Check out this story along with other insights about landscape architecture from Benjamin George, associate professor at Utah State University.

U-Surge provides the most comprehensive archive of coastal flood data for hurricanes and tropical storms around the world since the mid-1800s, providing insights into the frequency and magnitude of storm surge floods, the world’s most deadly and costly natural disaster. Flood Information Systems analyze the impacts of these floods, by overlaying digital building and infrastructure maps.

Tulsa Meteorologist Michael Seger took an unconventional path in his pursuit of weather work. This podcast tells his back story, which involves years of studying art and some crazy times in South Florida- like hanging out with Aerosmith. He also covers tornado safety and communication in this episode.

Arctic weather outbreaks can inflict large loss of life and financial losses to the economy in the Central and Eastern U.S. Judah Cohen, climatologist at MIT, describes the influence of the Polar Vortex and Siberian snowpack on these weather patterns, as well as some insights on predicting their timing.

The 2022 Christmas Week Blizzard killed 44 people in western New York, making it the deadliest winter storm on record. Meteorologist Don Paul explains the meteorology and impacts of a remarkable storm that inflicted catastrophic impacts on a region accustomed to severe winter weather.

Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) President and CEO, Leslie Chapman-Henderson, shares her vision to reduce property losses through groundbreaking awareness initiatives for homebuilders, homeowners and design professionals.

Julie Shiyou-Woodard, President and CEO of Smart Home America, shares how this non-profit partners with locally-based organizations to foster better building in disaster-prone communities.

Murphy Buggs, Property Claims Manager at CNC Catastrophe and National Claims, shares insights on many different angles of work in insurance adjusting.

The top 10 memories on the GeoTrek podcast in 2022 include stories about hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, southwestern monsoons, outdoor explorations and sinkholes. They contain much geographic diversity, as they were recorded in Florida, Texas, New Mexico, South Dakota and West Virginia. Happy New Year everyone and we’ll see you in 2023!

On February 12, 2014, a sinkhole suddenly opened up under the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky, gobbling up eight vintage sports cars. This podcast explores the story behind the sinkhole in a live recording from the National Corvette Museum.

Sinkholes and caves commonly form in the limestone-rich, karst landscape of Eastern West Virginia. This episode explores the causes of this phenomenon, impacts on buildings and roads, and some surprising stories about the Federal government’s use of classified and declassified bunkers in this region.

Award-winning meteorologist Rob Perillo shares insights about navigating social media, humanizing weather forecasts and reminding listeners to stay tuned for changes.

Award-winning meteorologist Rob Perillo draws from his 33 years of experience forecasting weather to share how meteorologists can better communicate extreme weather risks and how people can better prepare for these events.

This interactive episode answers listeners questions about Hurricane Season 2022. This content provides insights on risk assessment and communication, which relates to other hazards as well.

Jon Stewart shares insights from more than 24 years of working in emergency management and homeland security. His perspectives will help people prepare for and respond to a wide range of disasters, including hurricanes, snowstorms, earthquakes and wildland fires.

This podcast assesses risk at the interface of insurance and real estate with Andrea Pelletier, Client Advisor and Agency Partner at Gulfshore Insurance. While much of the content relates to the industry in Florida, we also discuss why Superstorm Sandy’s transition to an extratropical cyclone saved homeowners money on their insurance deductible in New Jersey and New York.

Join us to dive deeper into the journey Alan Sealls took to become the meteorologist we know and love! Hear about Alan's early life, education, and the path that lead him to where he is now.

Superstorm Sandy devastated the mid-Atlantic and northeastern U.S. states with 72 direct deaths in the region and over $50 billion in damage. This podcast looks back at the storm with interviews from Long Island, New York.

This episode shares insights on how to better communicate complex wind and flood hazards related to landfalling hurricanes, with guests Bill Read, Jonathan Brazzell and Brian and Lisa Flanakin.