Research

 

Funding

Projects

Impacts

Publications

Applied Science

Sea Grant invests in high-priority research, addressing issues such as coastal hazards and development in coastal communities; understanding our interactions with the marine environment; aquaculture; seafood safety; and fisheries management. The results of this research are shared with the public through Sea Grant’s integrated outreach program to bring together the collective expertise of on-the-ground extension agents, educators, and communications specialists.

We work with stakeholders, academics, businesses, non-profits, and government agencies to apply sound scientific, policy, and legal research findings to ensure a collaborative effort and informed decision-making for managing the state’s coastal and marine resources.

The goal is to ensure that vital research results are shared with those who need it most and in ways that are timely, relevant, and meaningful.

Funding

Selected projects typically have a funding period up to 2 years under Rhode Island Sea Grant’s 4-year omnibus proposal, which currently extends to 2022. Projects for the 2018-2020 cycle have been selected and are currently revising field plans to accommodate CDC protocols for Covid-19.

This current cycle of research focuses on the impacts of ecosystem change from ocean acidification, increased water temperatures, harmful algal blooms, micro-plastics, and changes in nutrient dynamics both within the water column and benthic communities of Narragansett Bay.

This research will help state coastal managers better understand the current health and response of the environment to these changes in order to develop appropriate policies.

 

PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT FUNDS:

Rhode Island Sea Grant funds promising marine/coastal projects that need to first gain proof-of-concept status. Such projects are often the brainchild of an academic entrepreneur who needs start-up funds to test an idea before seeking more robust funding. Rhode Island Sea Grant looks for promising science investments that may fuel significant benefits from a small infusion of funds.

>> For more information, please download Funding Guidelines

 

CONTACT

For more information or assistance, please contact Alan Desbonnet, Rhode Island Sea Grant Assistant Director, at aland@uri.edu or (401) 874-6813

Focus Areas

Coastal Ecosystems

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Social Dynamics

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Climate

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Fisheries

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Current Projects

2020-2022

Microplastics as Vectors for Organic Pollutants & Marine Disease

 

 

LEARN MORE

Rhode Island Sea Grant Law Fellow Program: Rhode Island Sea Grant sponsors law students as Sea Grant Law Fellows to research and write on ocean and coastal law issues including the resolution of marine resource management and conservation issues.

Established in October 2003, the Rhode Island Sea Grant Legal Program located at the Marine Affairs Institute at Roger Williams University School of Law is one of only four Sea Grant legal programs in the nation.

The Legal Program responds to research requests from state and regional agencies and other Sea Grant constituents on coastal zone management, fisheries, public access, aquaculture, ports and harbors, and other areas of marine law.  The Legal Program is prohibited from providing legal advice or becoming involved in litigation.

The information provided by the program’s students and attorneys is intended for informational purposes only.

For more information, please contact Read Porter, Staff Attorney, Marine Affairs Institute, at rporter@rwu.edu or by telephone at 401-254-5734.

Drivers of Domoic Acid in Narragansett Bay

 

 

 

LEARN MORE

Call for Applications for Class of 2021

Qualified individuals are invited to submit applications to the Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship national competition. Selected finalists spend one year in the Washington, D.C., area working in a Legislative or Executive office on critical marine policy and resource management issues. This 12-month long Knauss Fellowship begins February 1, 2021, and provides a total funding amount of up to $74,000.* Rhode Island Sea Grant may forward the nomination of up to six students annually for this prestigious fellowship to the National Sea Grant College Program, which convenes a final selection panel to review all applications submitted nationally. Applicants must be enrolled in a U.S. accredited graduate or professional degree program in a marine or aquatic-related field in the U.S. or its territories on February 21, 2020.

Applications are due, using eSeaGrant, by 5:00 PM, Friday, February 21, 2020

Knauss Fellowship applications are developed in the eSeaGrant online system. Contact Alan Desbonnet to establish an account and begin your fellowship application.

Applicants will interview with a Rhode Island Sea Grant selection panel during the week of March 16, 2020, at a specific day and time to be established after the application deadline.

For the Fellowship Class of 2021, the selection process and subsequent notification of finalists by the National Sea Grant College Program will be completed in June of 2020. Finalists will be required to participate in “Placement Week,” an orientation program in Washington, D.C., typically held during late November or early December (Sun-Thurs) in 2020. For detailed information about the Knauss fellowship, specifics about the application process, applicant eligibility, and applicant evaluation criteria, visit: https://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

* $47,500 stipend/living expenses + $11,500 for travel, moving costs, health benefits, etc. Host office may provide up to $15,000 for additional office-related travel but this is not guaranteed. Placement Week costs are provided separately through the Knauss Fellowship Program.

If you are interested in applying or have additional questions, please contact Alan Desbonnet, Assistant Director, Rhode Island Sea Grant, by phone: 401-874-6813 or email: aland@uri.edu. For more information visit: http://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

Macroalgae & Kelp Connection to Marine Disease

 

 

LEARN MORE

Rhode Island Sea Grant Law Fellow Program: Rhode Island Sea Grant sponsors law students as Sea Grant Law Fellows to research and write on ocean and coastal law issues including the resolution of marine resource management and conservation issues.

Established in October 2003, the Rhode Island Sea Grant Legal Program located at the Marine Affairs Institute at Roger Williams University School of Law is one of only four Sea Grant legal programs in the nation.

The Legal Program responds to research requests from state and regional agencies and other Sea Grant constituents on coastal zone management, fisheries, public access, aquaculture, ports and harbors, and other areas of marine law.  The Legal Program is prohibited from providing legal advice or becoming involved in litigation.

The information provided by the program’s students and attorneys is intended for informational purposes only.

For more information, please contact Read Porter, Staff Attorney, Marine Affairs Institute, at rporter@rwu.edu or by telephone at 401-254-5734.

Breeding Disease-Free Oysters Side Effects

 

 

 

LEARN MORE

Call for Applications for Class of 2021

Qualified individuals are invited to submit applications to the Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship national competition. Selected finalists spend one year in the Washington, D.C., area working in a Legislative or Executive office on critical marine policy and resource management issues. This 12-month long Knauss Fellowship begins February 1, 2021, and provides a total funding amount of up to $74,000.* Rhode Island Sea Grant may forward the nomination of up to six students annually for this prestigious fellowship to the National Sea Grant College Program, which convenes a final selection panel to review all applications submitted nationally. Applicants must be enrolled in a U.S. accredited graduate or professional degree program in a marine or aquatic-related field in the U.S. or its territories on February 21, 2020.

Applications are due, using eSeaGrant, by 5:00 PM, Friday, February 21, 2020

Knauss Fellowship applications are developed in the eSeaGrant online system. Contact Alan Desbonnet to establish an account and begin your fellowship application.

Applicants will interview with a Rhode Island Sea Grant selection panel during the week of March 16, 2020, at a specific day and time to be established after the application deadline.

For the Fellowship Class of 2021, the selection process and subsequent notification of finalists by the National Sea Grant College Program will be completed in June of 2020. Finalists will be required to participate in “Placement Week,” an orientation program in Washington, D.C., typically held during late November or early December (Sun-Thurs) in 2020. For detailed information about the Knauss fellowship, specifics about the application process, applicant eligibility, and applicant evaluation criteria, visit: https://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

* $47,500 stipend/living expenses + $11,500 for travel, moving costs, health benefits, etc. Host office may provide up to $15,000 for additional office-related travel but this is not guaranteed. Placement Week costs are provided separately through the Knauss Fellowship Program.

If you are interested in applying or have additional questions, please contact Alan Desbonnet, Assistant Director, Rhode Island Sea Grant, by phone: 401-874-6813 or email: aland@uri.edu. For more information visit: http://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

Positive Feedbacks From Hypoxic Events

 

 

LEARN MORE

Rhode Island Sea Grant Law Fellow Program: Rhode Island Sea Grant sponsors law students as Sea Grant Law Fellows to research and write on ocean and coastal law issues including the resolution of marine resource management and conservation issues.

Established in October 2003, the Rhode Island Sea Grant Legal Program located at the Marine Affairs Institute at Roger Williams University School of Law is one of only four Sea Grant legal programs in the nation.

The Legal Program responds to research requests from state and regional agencies and other Sea Grant constituents on coastal zone management, fisheries, public access, aquaculture, ports and harbors, and other areas of marine law.  The Legal Program is prohibited from providing legal advice or becoming involved in litigation.

The information provided by the program’s students and attorneys is intended for informational purposes only.

For more information, please contact Read Porter, Staff Attorney, Marine Affairs Institute, at rporter@rwu.edu or by telephone at 401-254-5734.

Effects of Coastal Stressors on Oyster Recruitment

 

 

 

LEARN MORE

Call for Applications for Class of 2021

Qualified individuals are invited to submit applications to the Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship national competition. Selected finalists spend one year in the Washington, D.C., area working in a Legislative or Executive office on critical marine policy and resource management issues. This 12-month long Knauss Fellowship begins February 1, 2021, and provides a total funding amount of up to $74,000.* Rhode Island Sea Grant may forward the nomination of up to six students annually for this prestigious fellowship to the National Sea Grant College Program, which convenes a final selection panel to review all applications submitted nationally. Applicants must be enrolled in a U.S. accredited graduate or professional degree program in a marine or aquatic-related field in the U.S. or its territories on February 21, 2020.

Applications are due, using eSeaGrant, by 5:00 PM, Friday, February 21, 2020

Knauss Fellowship applications are developed in the eSeaGrant online system. Contact Alan Desbonnet to establish an account and begin your fellowship application.

Applicants will interview with a Rhode Island Sea Grant selection panel during the week of March 16, 2020, at a specific day and time to be established after the application deadline.

For the Fellowship Class of 2021, the selection process and subsequent notification of finalists by the National Sea Grant College Program will be completed in June of 2020. Finalists will be required to participate in “Placement Week,” an orientation program in Washington, D.C., typically held during late November or early December (Sun-Thurs) in 2020. For detailed information about the Knauss fellowship, specifics about the application process, applicant eligibility, and applicant evaluation criteria, visit: https://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

* $47,500 stipend/living expenses + $11,500 for travel, moving costs, health benefits, etc. Host office may provide up to $15,000 for additional office-related travel but this is not guaranteed. Placement Week costs are provided separately through the Knauss Fellowship Program.

If you are interested in applying or have additional questions, please contact Alan Desbonnet, Assistant Director, Rhode Island Sea Grant, by phone: 401-874-6813 or email: aland@uri.edu. For more information visit: http://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

Shellfish Response to Warming Waters

 

 

LEARN MORE

Rhode Island Sea Grant Law Fellow Program: Rhode Island Sea Grant sponsors law students as Sea Grant Law Fellows to research and write on ocean and coastal law issues including the resolution of marine resource management and conservation issues.

Established in October 2003, the Rhode Island Sea Grant Legal Program located at the Marine Affairs Institute at Roger Williams University School of Law is one of only four Sea Grant legal programs in the nation.

The Legal Program responds to research requests from state and regional agencies and other Sea Grant constituents on coastal zone management, fisheries, public access, aquaculture, ports and harbors, and other areas of marine law.  The Legal Program is prohibited from providing legal advice or becoming involved in litigation.

The information provided by the program’s students and attorneys is intended for informational purposes only.

For more information, please contact Read Porter, Staff Attorney, Marine Affairs Institute, at rporter@rwu.edu or by telephone at 401-254-5734.

Seafloor Communities as Indicators of Water Quality

 

 

 

LEARN MORE

Call for Applications for Class of 2021

Qualified individuals are invited to submit applications to the Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship national competition. Selected finalists spend one year in the Washington, D.C., area working in a Legislative or Executive office on critical marine policy and resource management issues. This 12-month long Knauss Fellowship begins February 1, 2021, and provides a total funding amount of up to $74,000.* Rhode Island Sea Grant may forward the nomination of up to six students annually for this prestigious fellowship to the National Sea Grant College Program, which convenes a final selection panel to review all applications submitted nationally. Applicants must be enrolled in a U.S. accredited graduate or professional degree program in a marine or aquatic-related field in the U.S. or its territories on February 21, 2020.

Applications are due, using eSeaGrant, by 5:00 PM, Friday, February 21, 2020

Knauss Fellowship applications are developed in the eSeaGrant online system. Contact Alan Desbonnet to establish an account and begin your fellowship application.

Applicants will interview with a Rhode Island Sea Grant selection panel during the week of March 16, 2020, at a specific day and time to be established after the application deadline.

For the Fellowship Class of 2021, the selection process and subsequent notification of finalists by the National Sea Grant College Program will be completed in June of 2020. Finalists will be required to participate in “Placement Week,” an orientation program in Washington, D.C., typically held during late November or early December (Sun-Thurs) in 2020. For detailed information about the Knauss fellowship, specifics about the application process, applicant eligibility, and applicant evaluation criteria, visit: https://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

* $47,500 stipend/living expenses + $11,500 for travel, moving costs, health benefits, etc. Host office may provide up to $15,000 for additional office-related travel but this is not guaranteed. Placement Week costs are provided separately through the Knauss Fellowship Program.

If you are interested in applying or have additional questions, please contact Alan Desbonnet, Assistant Director, Rhode Island Sea Grant, by phone: 401-874-6813 or email: aland@uri.edu. For more information visit: http://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

Nitrogen Fixation May Drive Future Productivity in Narragansett Bay

 

 

LEARN MORE

Rhode Island Sea Grant Law Fellow Program: Rhode Island Sea Grant sponsors law students as Sea Grant Law Fellows to research and write on ocean and coastal law issues including the resolution of marine resource management and conservation issues.

Established in October 2003, the Rhode Island Sea Grant Legal Program located at the Marine Affairs Institute at Roger Williams University School of Law is one of only four Sea Grant legal programs in the nation.

The Legal Program responds to research requests from state and regional agencies and other Sea Grant constituents on coastal zone management, fisheries, public access, aquaculture, ports and harbors, and other areas of marine law.  The Legal Program is prohibited from providing legal advice or becoming involved in litigation.

The information provided by the program’s students and attorneys is intended for informational purposes only.

For more information, please contact Read Porter, Staff Attorney, Marine Affairs Institute, at rporter@rwu.edu or by telephone at 401-254-5734.

Seafloor Communities as Indicators of Water Quality

 

 

 

LEARN MORE

Call for Applications for Class of 2021

Qualified individuals are invited to submit applications to the Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship national competition. Selected finalists spend one year in the Washington, D.C., area working in a Legislative or Executive office on critical marine policy and resource management issues. This 12-month long Knauss Fellowship begins February 1, 2021, and provides a total funding amount of up to $74,000.* Rhode Island Sea Grant may forward the nomination of up to six students annually for this prestigious fellowship to the National Sea Grant College Program, which convenes a final selection panel to review all applications submitted nationally. Applicants must be enrolled in a U.S. accredited graduate or professional degree program in a marine or aquatic-related field in the U.S. or its territories on February 21, 2020.

Applications are due, using eSeaGrant, by 5:00 PM, Friday, February 21, 2020

Knauss Fellowship applications are developed in the eSeaGrant online system. Contact Alan Desbonnet to establish an account and begin your fellowship application.

Applicants will interview with a Rhode Island Sea Grant selection panel during the week of March 16, 2020, at a specific day and time to be established after the application deadline.

For the Fellowship Class of 2021, the selection process and subsequent notification of finalists by the National Sea Grant College Program will be completed in June of 2020. Finalists will be required to participate in “Placement Week,” an orientation program in Washington, D.C., typically held during late November or early December (Sun-Thurs) in 2020. For detailed information about the Knauss fellowship, specifics about the application process, applicant eligibility, and applicant evaluation criteria, visit: https://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

* $47,500 stipend/living expenses + $11,500 for travel, moving costs, health benefits, etc. Host office may provide up to $15,000 for additional office-related travel but this is not guaranteed. Placement Week costs are provided separately through the Knauss Fellowship Program.

If you are interested in applying or have additional questions, please contact Alan Desbonnet, Assistant Director, Rhode Island Sea Grant, by phone: 401-874-6813 or email: aland@uri.edu. For more information visit: http://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss

Response of Seafloor Organisms to Changing Environment

 

 

LEARN MORE

Rhode Island Sea Grant Law Fellow Program: Rhode Island Sea Grant sponsors law students as Sea Grant Law Fellows to research and write on ocean and coastal law issues including the resolution of marine resource management and conservation issues.

Established in October 2003, the Rhode Island Sea Grant Legal Program located at the Marine Affairs Institute at Roger Williams University School of Law is one of only four Sea Grant legal programs in the nation.

The Legal Program responds to research requests from state and regional agencies and other Sea Grant constituents on coastal zone management, fisheries, public access, aquaculture, ports and harbors, and other areas of marine law.  The Legal Program is prohibited from providing legal advice or becoming involved in litigation.

The information provided by the program’s students and attorneys is intended for informational purposes only.

For more information, please contact Read Porter, Staff Attorney, Marine Affairs Institute, at rporter@rwu.edu or by telephone at 401-254-5734.

MESOCOSM STUDIES

For more information or application questions please contact Alan Desbonnet at aland@uri.edu

Contact

For more information or application questions please contact Alan Desbonnet at aland@uri.edu

Previous Projects

2018–2020 | 2016–2018 | 2014–2016 | 2012–2014 | 2010–2012

IMPACTS

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PEER REVIEW PUBLICATIONS

RECENT RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS

Sustainability and tourism: the effect of the United States’ first offshore wind farm on the vacation rental market
Resource and Energy Economics | August 2019

High temperature limits on developmental canalization in the ascidian Ciona intestinalis
Mechanisms of Development | June 2019

Draft Genome Sequence of the Putative Marine Pathogen Thalassobius sp. I31.1
Microbiology Resource Announcements | February 2019

Perceptions of Commercial and Recreational Fishers on the Potential Ecological Impacts of the Block Island Wind Farm (US)
Frontiers in Marine Science | November 2018

Draft Genome Sequence of Loktanella maritima Strain YPC211, a Commensal Bacterium of the American Lobster (Homarus americanus)
American Society for Microbiology | May 2018

Draft Genome Sequence of the Putative Marine Pathogen Aquimarina sp. Strain I32.4
American Society for Microbiology | April 2018

AgeGrowth, and Sexual Maturity of the Channeled Whelk Busycotypus canaliculatus(Linnaeus1758) and Knobbed Whelk Busycon carica (Gmelin1791) in NarragansettBayRhode Island
Journal of Shellfish Research | March 2018

Resilience and Thriving in Spite of Disasters: A Stages of Change Approach
Urban Disaster Resilience and Security | December 2017

Assessing the impact of extreme storms on barrier beaches along the Atlantic coastline: Application to the southern Rhode Island coast
Coastal Engineering | December 2017

Nuisance flooding and relative sea-level rise: The importance of present-day land motion
Nature, Scientific Reports | September 2017

Development of rapid diagnostic techniques for idiopathic blindness in the American lobster, Homarus americanus, from eastern Long Island Sound
Bulletin of Marine Science | June 2017

Assessment of Damage and Adaptation Strategies for Structures and Infrastructure from Storm Surge and Sea Level Rise for a Coastal Community in Rhode Island, United States
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering | October 2016

Coastal water column ammonium and nitrite oxidation are decoupled in summer
Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, Vol. 178 | September 2016

Coincident patterns of wastewater suspended solids reduction, water transparency increase and chlorophyll decline in Narragansett Bay
Marine Pollution Bulletin, Vol.107  |  June 2016

Directly measured denitrification reveals oyster aquaculture and restored oyster reefs remove nitrogen at comparable high rates
Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol.3, Article 74  |  May 2016

A re-assessment of Narragansett Bay benthic habitat quality between 1988 and 2008
Estuaries and Coasts  |  April 2016

Changes to nitrate isotopic composition of wastewater treatment effluent and rivers after upgrades to tertiary treatment in the Narragansett Bay watershed, RI
Marine Pollution Bulletin, Vol.104  |  March 2016

Incorporation of soybean products in summer flounder (Paralichthys dentatus) feeds: effects on growth and survival to bacterial challenge
Aquaculture, Vol.452  |  February 2016

National Sea Grant Library

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