‘MPBN’ and ‘Journal Tribune’ feature news of buoy deployment in Saco Bay
On October 16, 2015, the Maine Public Broadcasting Network (MPBN) and the Journal Tribune reported on the previous day’s deployment of a high-tech buoy in Saco Bay by the University of New England and the University of Maine.
MPBN aired an interview with Adam St. Gelais, M.S., assistant research scientist at UNE’s Marine Science Center, about the buoy launch, and the Journal Tribune published a front page story on the news.
The buoy deployment is part of the SEANET program, funded by a $20 million National Science Foundation grant to the universities. SEANET seeks to enhance Maine’s aquaculture industry.
The buoy is one of several in a network that, according to St. Gelais, will collect invaluable information about the bioregions in which they are placed, and that will ultimately aid in the development of aquaculture along Maine’s coast.
In his interview with MPBN, St. Gelais stated, "When we're talking about sustainable ecological aquaculture we're talking about things like mussels or oysters or scallops or seaweed. These are things that typically you don't feed, and you rely on the environment to provide food for them." He explained that by measuring water temperature, current and water content, among other things, the buoys will help scientists to better understand which aquacultural organisms will grow best in particular areas.
As he stated when speaking with the Journal Tribune, St. Gelais believes that the buoys will give a good “snapshot” of the Saco Bay waters, as no comparable monitoring system exists for the area.