SOCAN & Partners
SOCAN aims to enhance collaboration across the Southeast region. As often as possible, SOCAN aims to work with partners in the Southeast to conduct ocean acidification research. Below are projects SOCAN is currently working on to support ocean acidification research in the Southeast. Follow the link to the project pages to read in more detail about these collaborations. Check back periodically for project updates.
This project is the first dedicated coastal acidification monitoring and data synthesis analysis that SOCAN has been involved in. This is also a first for Coastal Carolina University (CCU). Together, CCU and SOCAN will start sampling in the summer of 2022 to validate carbonate chemistry water samples against existing pier pH sensors. These sensors have been collecting pH data for 8-12 years. The aim of the project is to show that historical data can be used to determine long-term trends in acidification and help provide valuable information to decision makers on habitat restoration, shellfish harvest, aquaculture leasing, and water quality control.
A SOCAN-GCAN collaboration across the Southeast and Gulf of Mexico regions to support the efforts of the National Coastal Communities Vulnerability Assessment and the National Monitoring and Prioritization Plan. Click here to learn more about this project.
SOCAN members collaborate to service the acidification monitoring sensors that are mounted on a buoy within the Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary. Acidification data is also synthesized and evaluated by SOCAN members. This mooring is unique to the South Atlantic Bight and is a key near-shore asset for monitoring relatively shallow shelf waters for increasing acidification and potential impacts to organisms that inhabit the soft-coral bottom environment. Click here to learn more about this project.