Melting Greenland ice could amplify sea-level rise in Boston

It's been a debate among climate scientists for years: How much will sea levels rise from climate change?

A new study led by the Colorado-based National Center for Atmospheric Research shows the melting of the Greenland ice sheet this century may result in far higher sea levels in Boston and other Northeastern cities in the United States and Canada.

The study, published in Geophysical Research Letters, says that if the Greenland ice sheet melts at moderate to high rates, ocean circulation patterns may shift and cause sea levels off the Northeast United States to rise about 12 to 20 inches more than in other coastal areas.

"If the Greenland melt continues to accelerate, we could see significant impacts this century on the northeast US coast from the resulting sea level rise," says NCAR scientist Aixue Hu, the lead author. "Major northeastern cities are directly in the path of the greatest rise."

Scientists need public's help to stop the lily beetle
Take a look at your garden lilies. If you see a gorgeous red beetle on them, worry.

The beetle, an invasive visitor, has cut a deadly swath through the region's lilies over the past 17 years. The bugs can be found on the stalks of Asiatic, Oriental, Easter, tiger, and Turk's-cap lilies. (Day lilies, which are not true lilies, are safe.)

Thousands of gardeners from Maine to Connecticut have stopped trying to grow lilies since the bugs were discovered in Cambridge in 1992. The adults, about a quarter of an inch long, look like a skinny lady bug. If you squeeze them, they squeak - a defense mechanism to deter predators. Today, they are in every New England state.

University of Rhode Island researchers have found a possible solution in a European wasp that is a natural enemy to the lily leaf beetle, and about 10 years ago began releasing them in isolated pockets throughout New England. The wasp lays its eggs in beetle larvae, killing them.

And now, the researchers need samples of larvae from the region's gardens - particularly those in and around Wellesley - to see if the wasps are taking hold. For details on how to help, go to http://cels.uri.edu/pls/biocontrol/index.html