Communities can be significantly more resilient to extreme weather events like flooding when they have accurate and timely information about any flooding or other problems that might be coming their way. And while there are stream gauges and other predictive measures in place around Vermont, there are many gaps of information that need to be filled. The state needs a more comprehensive and connected network of sensors to provide this missing data. 

UVM researchers are working with partners to establish a statewide weather monitoring network, or Mesonet, to meet this need. The Mesonet program will leverage existing “Summit to Shore” monitoring stations that run from the top of Mount Mansfield to Lake Champlain. 

And it will establish additional sites in key high-elevation areas, where there is less monitoring. These areas receive more rainfall and retain more snow, a combination that can significantly add to extreme flooding events during the snowmelt season. 

A statewide mesonet that helps experts better understand and predict these threats will go a long way to inform community resilience efforts.

“The data in these weather monitoring networks can potentially save lives.”  - Josh Beneš, UVM Water Resources Institute

UVM's Water Resources Institute (WRI) is leading this project.  WRI's collaborators on this project include:

• Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)
• Vermont Emergency Management
• Forest Ecosystem Monitoring Cooperative (FEMC)
• Vermont State University’s (VTSU) Atmospheric Sciences Program
• UVM Climate Measurements Center of Excellence (CMeC)
• Vermont Agency of Transportation
• USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service
• National Weather Service

Watch a WCAX-TV story about this project: