GoMRI Newsletter: Spring Issue 2014
Download Full Issue (PDF)
Above the Fold
– “2014 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill & Ecosystem Science Conference”
– “Florida Oceans Day”
– Frequently Asked Questions by Dr. Chuck Wilson
– Note from the Research Board Chair
– Education Spotlight
– GoMRI Researcher Interview with Dr. Demetri Spyropoulos and Lexi Temkin
Community Happenings
Science Corner
Published Science Highlights from the GoMRI Program
Study Confirms Methane-Eating BacteriaContributed to Carbon Entering Food Web
Cherrier, J. Sarkodee-Adoo, T. P. Guilderson, and J. P. Chanton
Environmental Science & Technology Letters, 2014, 1, 108-112
Study Reveals Recovery and Loss in Oiled Louisiana Marshes
Brian R. Silliman, Johan van de Koppel, Michael W. McCoy, et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2012, 109 (28), 11234–11239
Modeling Study Adds Evidence that Oil Compounds Traveled to West Florida Shelf
Robert H. Weisberg, Lianyuan Zheng, Yonggang Liu, et al.
Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography, 2014, In Press
Study Indicates “Memory” of Benzene Remains in Marsh Sediment and Affects Its Future Degradation
Jiou Yu, Rui Tao, and Kewei Yu
Ecological Engineering, 2012, 40, 6-10
Study Demonstrates Substantial Role of Mississippi River in Oil Transport
Vassiliki H. Kourafalou* and Yannis S. Androulidakis
Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 2013, 118 (8), 3823-3842
To see all GoMRI publications, please visit the GoMRI Publication Database.
Video Clip of the Quarter
Check out this video from Project GOO (Gulf Oil Observers) – a citizen science initiative involving high school students, teachers, and other volunteers in the collection of oil samples and other data along the shores of the Gulf of Mexico!
GoMRI Newsmakers
Congratulations to the following members of the GoMRI community!
Dr. Nancy Rabalais, Director of the GoMRI Coastal Waters Consortium, was recently conferred as an American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fellow. The Fellows program recognizes AGU members who have made exceptional contributions to Earth and space sciences as valued by their peers and vetted by section and focus group committees. Dr. Margaret Leinen, the newly-inaugurated AGU President and Vice Chair of the GoMRI Research Board, presided over the ceremony.
The 2014 Clair C. Patterson Award, provided by the Geochemical Society, was recently awarded to Dr. Christopher Reddy in recognition of his contributions to environmental chemistry. A marine geochemist with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and a co-Principal Investigator with the GoMRI-funded consortium Deepsea to Coast Connectivity in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico (Deep-C), Reddy studies the effects of environmental pollutants with emphasis on major oil spills. This award was created in honor of Clair C. Patterson who developed the method to calculate the age of Earth as 4.55 billion years old – a figure that remains the most accurate measurement to this day.
The University of Miami was recently awarded two Outstanding Achievement awards, in the categories of Science/ Technology and the Natural Environment/Green, by the Interactive Media Council for excellence in the design, development and implementation of the Consortium for Advanced Research on Transport of Hydrocarbon in the Environment (CARTHE) website. The CARTHE website was created through a collaboration between the UM Rosenstiel School, where CARTHE is based, and the UM School of Communications. The interactive website serves as a web portal devoted to information and science education for scientists, students, members of the press and the general public.
GoMRI and Sea Grant Partner
In an effort to increase engagement with people who will directly benefit from oil spill research, GoMRI has partnered with the four Sea Grant college programs in the Gulf of Mexico. The key groups for this outreach project are those whose livelihoods depend on a healthy Gulf of Mexico or who are involved in the management of Gulf of Mexico coastal, marine, and human resources. Other professionals, such as environmental non- profit staff and university scientists, will also be impacted through this outreach program and will benefit from the large volume of new information produced as a result of GoMRI research. Specialists with the four Sea Grant college programs will translate and deliver findings from GoMRI research into useable products and information. They will also solicit input from the key groups, university scientists, and environmental non-profit staff. The input will be delivered to the GoMRI Research Board to be incorporated into future GoMRI actions.
Sea Grant has funded research, extension, outreach and education activities throughout the Gulf of Mexico for more than 40 years. The four Sea Grant college programs support about 100 extension and education professionals working in the areas of healthy coastal ecosystems, sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, resilient communities and economies, and environmental literacy and workforce development. The Sea Grant extension, outreach, communications, legal and education specialists have strong grassroots connections with coastal communities around the Gulf of Mexico. Four full- time Sea Grant specialists will exclusively focus on oil spill science outreach, and a part-time coordinator will support the GoMRI/Sea Grant outreach program.