Wave Energy Test Site Set for Possible Mooring Deployment in August

Researchers from Oregon State University are preparing to launch of the first ocean wave energy test site off the Oregon coast, known as the OSU Wave Energy Small-Scale Test Berth Site. The researchers have been developing wave energy extraction devices for the past two years with a $270,000 grant from the National Science Foundation and additional money from Oregon Sea Grant.
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• A Washington Sea Grant researcher discovered a reef of glass sponges for the first time in U.S. waters off of the Washington coast.


• The sponges are part of a deep sea oasis some 650 feet below the surface, and are rich with marine life, housing a diversity of starfish, crabs, shrimp, rockfish, worms and snails.


• Captured in the fossil record, they were thought until fairly recently to have gone extinct 100 million years ago.


• An intriguing twist on the researcher's finding was the presence of natural gas, or methane. The methane is seeping out of the ocean floor, feeding strand of bacteria which the glass sponges feed on.

• The warm days of summer regularly trigger explosions of toxic algae in Green Bay and other Great Lakes waters.


• Using two satellites soaring 435 miles above Earth, a Sea Grant researcher is seeking new perspectives on the unpleasant phenomenon.


• The research will help water quality managers and municipal, industrial, and agricultural officials better understand what causes excessive algal blooms and what can be done to control them.


• Remote sensing cannot replace traditional, in-the-water measurements of water clarity or suspended solids, but it can tremendously multiply the value of those efforts.


• The researcher has so far produced a series of maps of Green Bay, from 2000 to 2006, that are color coded for Secchi depth, chlorophyll-a concentrations, suspended solids, and turbidity.


• The ultimate goal is to deliver near-real-time data and maps via the web. From such data, maps of monthly and yearly averages can be produced, showing recurring trouble spots and, hopefully, improvements over time.

• Researchers have been cataloging native and non-native species as part of a $25,000 multi-state, weeklong survey, coordinated by the Massachusetts Bays Program and the MIT Sea Grant program.


• When surveying was last done in 2003, 34 non-native organisms were revealed, including some identified for the first time.


• In August 2007, many of the same researchers catalogued marine organisms, collecting samples from ports where both large and small foreign vessels dock. Along with the sampling, researchers also recorded water temperature and other environmental conditions.


• While they take note of new arrivals, researchers also hope to educate the public about consequences of non-native species arriving on our shores, and what boaters and others can do to help prevent it.

• Smart growth, with an emphasis on water quality through more efficient stormwater management practices, was the main goal of a three-day Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Smart Growth office site visit hosted by the Delaware Sea Grant Program in Lewes.


• Managing stormwater with the use of green streets technology is a model county planners and developers should consider as growth continues to spiral in many counties, according to Jim Falk, director of Delaware Sea Grant's Marine Advisory Service.


• The end result of the three-day session will be a set of stormwater management designs county officials could consider as they implement the new comprehensive plan for growth.


• "These options could be applied elsewhere in the state as well," according to Falk.


• The state is in the process of updating its stormwater regulations.


• In addition, he hopes to be able to coordinate a stormwater management demonstration project to give people a firsthand look at the green streets concept. "We want people to realize there are other alternatives out there," says Falk.

• Florida Sea Grant has enlisted the help of junior anglers with a high-tech tracking project that may provide clues about where redfish go when released at fishing tournaments.


• Redfish are one of Florida's most popular saltwater game fish.
  
  
• Sea Grant Extension Agent Betty Staugler is coordinating an ongoing effort to tag and track redfish caught by anglers 10 to 16 years old during the spring WaterLIFE Kids Cup tournament.


• Sixty-six redfish were caught and each was fitted with an external tag before being released. Scientists from Mote Marine Laboratory and Progress Energy also surgically implanted sonic tags in 20 of those fish before release.


• The tags transmit sounds that can be detected by underwater sensors set up throughout Charlotte harbor.


• Data from the underwater sensors is then posted to the web at: http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/kidscup/index.html. The web technology allows young fishermen to follow the movements of their unique fish.