UGAMI installs new seawater system
With funds from an NSF Field Stations and Marine Laboratories grant, we completed renovations of the systems supplying water to UGAMI’s seawater laboratories. These facilities allow us to maintain a large variety of tanks and aquaria for studying marine organisms in a controlled setting. The new system is far superior to the one it replaced. It can supply up to 75 gallons of seawater per minute; monitors the creek level and only runs the pumps when the intakes are submerged (preventing damage caused by the pumps running dry); incorporates five 3,000-gallon modular storage tanks to supply seawater at low tide (when the pumps are off); actively manages the pressure in the seawater line to maintain consistent flow; and provides several filter options, including bag filters, a radial flow settler, bead filter, and in-line UV sterilization, so we can supply seawater to suit the needs of any research user. In addition, we have just taken possession of three 1,000-gallon tanks for maintaining and studying larger fish and two 8’ sink trays for washing and processing samples of marsh plants.
