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R/IS-11
Shipboard Trial of Primary and Secondary Ballast Water Treatment Systems
Principal Investigator:
David A. WrightStart/End Year:
2000 - 2002Institution:
Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, University of Maryland Center for Environmental ScienceCo-Principal Investigator:
Rodger Dawson, Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, University of Maryland Center for Environmental ScienceTopic(s):
Description:
Through a rigorous shipboard testing program under normal ballasting conditions we propose to demonstrate a comprehensive ballast water treatment system consisting of primary and secondary treatments that will be of immediate practical use to the shipping industry. One primary and two secondary ballast water treatments will be employed in a combination system that will be installed on a vessel in Baltimore Harbor. The primary treatment is a voraxial separator which relies on high centrifugal force to separate suspended particulates from the ballast water inflow. Ultraviolet irradiation and a chemical biocide will be used as secondary treatments to control biota which remain in the "filtrate." Both will be tested singly and in combination with the separator. Samples of treated and untreated ballast water will be analyzed for particulate content and for the viability of remaining organisms including phytoplankton, zooplankton and bacteria. Pigment fluorimetry will be employed to determine phytoplankton viability and a molecular live/dead probe will determine bacterial viability. Viability of zooplankton will be determined as signs of movement and heartbeat. Sizing and taxonomic identification of plankton will also be employed.
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Featured Fellow
Leone Yisrael is a cephalopod-loving scuba diver, cook, and loves to try new activities. She conducts genetic analysis and fieldwork at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center through the Coastal Disease Ecology Lab.
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Developing a habitat model for mysids, an important link in Chesapeake Bay food webs
Mysids are important mesozooplankton prey for many species of fish in Chesapeake Bay and are an important link in transferring energy from lower to upper trophic levels. Mysids also serve as biological vectors for benthic-pelagic coupling due to their diel vertical migration and omnivorous prey-switching behavior, which makes mysids important regulators of food web architecture. Despite their central role in coastal food webs, surprisingly little is known about mysid ecology and dynamics in Chesapeake Bay.
