Renovation of Wet Labs and Cyber-Infrastructure to Enhance Integrated Research and Teaching in Aquatic Science at SUNY-ESF

Suny College Of Environmental Science And Forestry, Syracuse NY

Investigators

Abstract

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). This award provides funds for State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF) to modernize The Center for Integrated Research and Teaching in Aquatic Science (CIRTAS) facility and Thousand Islands Biological (TIBS) field station. Funds will be provided to renovate existing wet labs at CIRTAS and a supporting wet lab at TIBS, and cyber-infrastructure to better link these facilities. CIRTAS is a shared-use facility housed in ESF's Illick Hall. It spans several departments, and was formed in 2006 to foster multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary collaborations, improve a shared resource facility for research and training, and strengthen linkages between aquatic research on the main campus and at the affiliated Thousand Islands Biological (TIBS) field station. TIBS is a primary research and student training site. The current experimental wet labs at the CIRTAS facility and TIBS are inadequate for current research and research training programs. This infrastructure project will greatly enhance research capabilities by (1) allowing research requiring sterile and clean techniques; (2) preventing cross-contamination and improving decontamination of facilities and waste-water; (3) improving temperature control for experimental rooms; and (4) upgrading cyber-infrastructure to facilitate collaborations between research teams and classes working at CIRTAS and TIBS by installing a high-speed data link at TIBS and a dedicated line and firewall to allow CIRTAS to host a server for data sharing. The proposed renovations are important for successful investigations of ecological and evolutionary processes linking diseases, non-native species, and toxins; they also allow the study of a wider taxonomic range of organisms and the use of modern tracers and genetic tools. Improved data and teleconferencing connections between CIRTAS and TIBS will allow investigators to link field observations with controlled experimental studies. CIRTAS and TIBS will be used to cross train graduate students in Chemistry, Environmental Biology, and Aquatic and Fisheries Science. The facilities currently support training programs for undergraduate students from groups traditionally under-represented in science (including the Research Experiences for Undergraduates and Undergraduate Mentoring in Environmental Biology programs). The staff work closely with state agencies and managers to include relevant results from research at CIRTAS and TIBS in management plans. Personnel are directly involved in public outreach, including stakeholder and teacher workshops, public presentations, and SUNY's "ESF in the High School" program. With the additional capacity at CIRTAS for streaming data from TIBS field sensors, the PIs will increase the facilities' web presence to include field and lab exercises for teachers, as well as searchable and real-time data for scientists and other stakeholders.