In 2023 the Pelagic Ecosystems Lab started a new research direction to understand how urban environments interact with oceans, change their character, and impact their health. Our work is focusing on Vancouver as a study area. Read the project announcement here.
Current research questions being tackled are:
- What is the organic matter and inorganic nutrient content of stormwater, urban rivers and other urban inputs to the coastal ocean?
- What are the biogeochemical signatures of urban inputs to the nearshore ocean?
- What is the footprint of urban material inputs in the coastal ocean?
- What is the fate of urban material inputs in the coastal ocean?
- How do urban material inputs affect the health of individual organisms and the food webs that they are a part of, and how does this impact the ecosystem services that they provide?
- What is the effect of urbanization on marine biodiversity?
A map of study sites can be found here.
Collaborators
Tsleil-Waututh Nation, Metro Vancouver, Scholes Lab, Fisheries and Oceans Canada