Grant: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)
University of Windsor
$110,564.00
Shallow draft vessel for nearshore research in the Great Lakes
FY 2013-14
Summary
The Great Lakes are critically important to Canada as a source of freshwater, for transportation, recreational activities, commercial fishing and essential habitats for wildlife and fish. Yet these complex ecosystems face a range of stressors, from habitat destruction and invasive species to climate change and pollution, that threaten the health and essential ecosystem services they provide. These lakes, supporting tributaries and surrounding land, are going through massive changes that include algae blooms, changes in biodiversity and food web structure, and even water levels. The University of Windsor is uniquely placed in the center of the Great Lakes and has long had a research focus that studies the mechanisms and processes that structure these large lakes. Through a very strong aquatic science program that stretches across faculties and departments to the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research (GLIER), the University has a mandate to train highly qualified personnel in the science, management and conservation of this important ecosystem. A key component is an active field research program, which includes a large number of cutting-edge instruments that are deployed in the Great Lakes to collect long term data sets on nutrient levels, algae density, contaminant concentrations and fish movement. In 2013, a key boat that allowed Windsor researchers to study nearshore and shallow water habitats was lost. This proposal seeks a 26 foot, shallow draft research vessel that will provide a critically needed research and training platform for Great Lakes research. Such basic infrastructure will be used by a wide variety of students, post-docs and faculty working at all trophic levels, as well as support the existing lake monitoring infrastructure. The boat has a large front working deck and hoist capacity of 350Kg, both valuable for lake work. The dual outboard engines provide towing capacity as well as safety-related redundancy. The proposed boat will allow Windsor faculty and HQP to continue to carry out internationally recognized research on the Great Lakes and support growing national and international research collaborations with other university, provincial and federal scientist and industry partners.
Program
Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)
Recipient
Location
Ontario, Canada
Recipient Type
Academia
Type
Grant
Source
NSERC's Awards Data
As published
Application id
458826-2014
Name nom
Fisk, Aaron
Department département
Great Lakes Inst. for Environmental Res. (GLIER)
Organization id
37
Institution établissement
University of Windsor
Province en
Ontario
Province fr
Ontario
Country en
CANADA
Country fr
CANADA
Fiscal year exercice financier
2013
Competition year année de concours
2014
Award amount
110564
Program id
EQPEQ
Program name en
Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)
Program name fr
Outils et instruments de recherche - catégorie 1 (<150 000$)
Group en
Discovery grants programs
Group fr
Programmes de subventions à la découverte
Committee code
1503
Committee name en
Evolution and Ecology
Committee name fr
Évolution et écologie
Area of application code
403
Area of application group en
Environment
Area of application group fr
Environnement
Area of application en
Inland waters
Area of application fr
Eaux intérieures
Research subject code
4700
Research subject group en
Evolution and ecology
Research subject group fr
Évolution et écologie
Research subject en
Evolution and ecology
Research subject fr
Évolution et écologie
Partie
1
Nb partie
1
Application title
Shallow draft vessel for nearshore research in the Great Lakes
Keyword
NSERC
Application summary
The Great Lakes are critically important to Canada as a source of freshwater, for transportation, recreational activities, commercial fishing and essential habitats for wildlife and fish. Yet these complex ecosystems face a range of stressors, from habitat destruction and invasive species to climate change and pollution, that threaten the health and essential ecosystem services they provide. These lakes, supporting tributaries and surrounding land, are going through massive changes that include algae blooms, changes in biodiversity and food web structure, and even water levels. The University of Windsor is uniquely placed in the center of the Great Lakes and has long had a research focus that studies the mechanisms and processes that structure these large lakes. Through a very strong aquatic science program that stretches across faculties and departments to the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research (GLIER), the University has a mandate to train highly qualified personnel in the science, management and conservation of this important ecosystem. A key component is an active field research program, which includes a large number of cutting-edge instruments that are deployed in the Great Lakes to collect long term data sets on nutrient levels, algae density, contaminant concentrations and fish movement. In 2013, a key boat that allowed Windsor researchers to study nearshore and shallow water habitats was lost. This proposal seeks a 26 foot, shallow draft research vessel that will provide a critically needed research and training platform for Great Lakes research. Such basic infrastructure will be used by a wide variety of students, post-docs and faculty working at all trophic levels, as well as support the existing lake monitoring infrastructure. The boat has a large front working deck and hoist capacity of 350Kg, both valuable for lake work. The dual outboard engines provide towing capacity as well as safety-related redundancy. The proposed boat will allow Windsor faculty and HQP to continue to carry out internationally recognized research on the Great Lakes and support growing national and international research collaborations with other university, provincial and federal scientist and industry partners.
