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ACRC Research

ACRC studies the north Pacific coastal temperate rainforest and the neighboring coastal ocean ecosystems. This narrow area is a dynamic zone for the flow of materials essential for life (water, carbon, and nutrients) between land and sea.

Through interdisciplinary research on ecosystem interactions and driving causes of change in this landscape, ACRC answers questions about the current and future state of the PCTR.

Stream Dynamics

ACRC monitors stream flow and develops storm event models to aid in infrastructure planning such as culvert design and hydropower development. We also study stream chemistry and food web dynamics to assess water quality and inform fisheries management.

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Land Ecosystems

We are investigating the ecological effects of yellow-cedar decline, and the market potential of dead tree stands to provide needed economic opportunities to local timber mills. ACRC installed the first long-term alpine vegetation monitoring station in southeast Alaska as part of the Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments.

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Heen Latinee

Ocean Resources

ACRC is part of a collaborative effort with the Alaska Marine Highway System to monitor ocean acidification in southeast Alaska and British Columbia. ACRC is also working with tribal partners to understand the drivers of the harmful algal blooms that result in paralytic shellfish toxin events.

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Glacier Bay Ocean

Glacier Dynamics

We are part of a 5-year regional effort to study the impacts of glacier runoff on nearshore marine ecosystems, as well as ongoing work in Suicide Basin near Juneau to develop new methods to understand and predict glacial outburst floods.

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Coastal Linkages

ACRC is part of a network of scientists working across borders and disciplines to understand the processes that connect land and the highly productive coastal oceans along the PCTR, and how they are changing.

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