After an intensive hiring process with outstanding candidates, Pat Charlebois has been selected to lead Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG) outreach program efforts. Before taking on this new role, Charlebois was IISG’s aquatic invasive species outreach specialist and coordinator for over 20 years.
“Pat has great experience as a highly successful outreach specialist and coordinator of Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant’s aquatic invasive species program,” said Tomas Höök, director of IISG. “We’re excited to work with her as she builds on this experience to collaboratively oversee IISG’s diverse outreach programs.”
As the outreach program leader, Charlebois will lead the development, expansion and delivery of science-based outreach programming that helps communities and individuals make informed choices when managing and interacting with natural resources. She will help connect IISG’s specialists with scientists and potential partners and enhance our existing partnerships with Illinois Extension, Purdue Extension and the Prairie Research Institute.
“As I move into the role of outreach program leader, I’m excited by the prospect of using my experience to help IISG improve upon the great outreach programming that we’re known for,” said Charlebois. “I’m looking forward to mentoring our new staff as they build their own outreach programs, and I’m pleased to be helping lead the program as we continue to address Great Lakes issues.”
Charlebois has been acknowledged with several awards throughout her career, including an APEX Award for Publication Excellence, Professional Merit Awards from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Illinois Lake Management Association, and a National Sea Grant Blue Ribbon Award. She received both her B.S. and M.S. degrees in biology with a concentration in aquatic ecology from the University of Notre Dame.
Aquaculture and aquaponics operations in Illinois and Indiana produce a wide variety of high-value seafood and vegetable products. Despite this, the vast majority of local chefs and restaurants are unaware that these products are being produced locally, so they still rely on frozen or fresh processed seafood, according to Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant Aquaculture Specialist Andrew Coursey.
Coursey wants that to change. Aquaculture operations in Indiana produce large quantities of food fish, and these products are then shipped to large metropolitan areas with live fish markets. “The farm-raised seafood market is established and successful,” said Coursey, “but it’s not connecting these aquaculture products to local markets where there could be high demand.”
This summer, Coursey conducted a tour of aquaculture facilities with 16 representatives from Purdue University Hospitality and Tourism Management, Purdue Dining and Catering, and local restaurants from the Lafayette, Indiana, area. The tour was used to educate chefs and dining executives on how fish and vegetables are produced using aquaculture and aquaponics practices, and to showcase high quality products that are produced locally.
Bob Rode, aquaculture research lab manager for the Purdue University Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, takes a close look at the biofilters at Meador Farms in Cutler, Indiana. Recirculating aquaculture systems require the breakdown of waste products produced by fish (toxic ammonia) into non-toxic ammonia nitrate by culturing nitrifying bacteria in a biofilter, which provides an ideal environment for bacterial growth. (Photo: Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant/Andrew Coursey)
The group visited three local aquaculture facilities to see tilapia, barramundi, largemouth bass, Pacific white shrimp, red claw crayfish and aquaponics products operations. They then gathered at the Purdue Animal Sciences Research and Education Center for presentations by producers, aquaculture discussions, and a question and answer session. Representatives from producers throughout the state were in attendance, including White Creek Farms of Indiana, Falling Waters Farm, Sweetwater Springs Fish Farm, RDM Shrimp, Tippco Fish and Meador Farms.
Producer presentations covered a range of topics, including aquaponics, rainbow trout, tilapia, barramundi, largemouth bass, and hybrid striped bass. “Great discussions about recirculating aquaculture, aquaponics and fish processing occurred during this meeting and were beneficial to all groups in attendance,” said Coursey.
Aquaculture is the fastest growing food production industry in the world and a major industry in the United States, and aquaponics is also gaining traction. Aquaponics combines farming fish with growing plants hydroponically. Water is used in a closed system for producing both.
The tour was meant to connect food buyers and chefs with producers, educate chefs and producers about aquaculture and aquaponics, and generate interest in purchasing from local processing facilities. Presentations and aquaculture site visits provided information to both chefs and food buyers, while subsequent discussions allowed chefs to provide feedback to producers that will help them better market aquaculture products locally.
URBANA, Ill. – Seven projects have been selected to receive funding in the 2018 Interdisciplinary Collaboration Extension (ICE) grant competition.
ICE grants fund partnerships between University of Illinois Extension personnel and faculty in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences for projects that will use campus-based research to enhance the quality of life of people in communities across Illinois. Project themes vary widely—from improving school nutrition programs to helping farmers manage nitrogen application—but all focus on research with practical applications for Illinois residents.
Each winning team will receive up to $60,000 that can be spent over two years to enact their projects. Of 22 total proposals submitted for review, seven were selected for funding, described below. All departmental affiliations are in the College of ACES unless noted otherwise.
Targeting natural lawn care communications to homeowners in Illinois
Principal Investigator: Sarah Zack, Pollution Prevention Extension Specialist, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant
Co-Principal Investigator: Lulu Rodriguez, Agricultural Communications Program Director
Conventional lawn care methods are resource intensive: Approximately 89 million pounds of pesticide-fertilizer products (weed and feed) are applied annually, and outdoor irrigation comprises 30 percent of community water demand in summer. In this project, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant and College of ACES Agricultural Communications investigators will address lawn care-related pollution in watersheds by developing, piloting, and assessing a natural lawn care communication campaign in three Illinois communities.
Information on the other six funded projects can be found in the University of Illinois Extension news release.
With a warning from the United Nations concerning a warming world, Chicago Tonight covered the topic with a local perspective from Tomas Höök, professor at Purdue University and director of Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant, and Elena Grossman, program manager of Building Resistance Against Climate Effects at University of Illinois. The story and video are available through WTTW’s What Global Warming Could Mean for Lake Michigan.
Crystal Hall is interning with Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG) as a recent graduate of Purdue University Northwest (PNW) with a B.S. in Biology and a concentration in Ecology. Funded by IISG and mentored by Leslie Dorworth, an aquatic ecology specialist with IISG and PNW, Hall is positioned with the U.S. Geological Survey to carry out work that moves projects forward through IISG, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.
When I started my internship working with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), I had no idea what I wanted to do career-wise other than something with fish. To be honest, I still don’t fully know. Over the six months I have spent at USGS, I have learned a great deal of information and have gotten to know a wonderful group of people.
I have worked on several projects and learned new things from each:
Round Goby Mesocosm
The purpose of the round goby mesocosm project is to look at the shed and decay rates of round goby DNA in water and sediment. Several round goby were placed into a tank, and weekly water and sediment samples were taken for environmental DNA (eDNA). After a set amount of time, the round goby were removed and weekly water and sediment samples continued to be taken to see how long before no round goby DNA was detected. Throughout this project, I learned a lot about eDNA and how concentrations are different in water and sediment.
Cladophora
Hall separates zebra mussels from quagga mussels on June 4, 2018. (Photo U.S. Geological Survey)
On the Cladophora project, we deployed EXO2 water quality sondes in the Great Lakes and collected samples of dreissenid mussels and Cladophora algae from several depths and quadrants for biomass and nutrient processing. Researchers are seeking to understand the influence of phosphorus on Cladophora growth. I have learned to successfully identify zebra mussels from quagga mussels. And I’ve learned that it is not zebra mussels invading the Great Lakes anymore—it’s quagga mussels.
Area of Concern
We test for E. coli in the water at Whihala Beach and Hammond Port Authority, which are part of the Grand Calumet River Area of Concern. This information is used to notify the public of whether the beach is safe for swimming. Scientists used to test several other beaches in the area as well, but many were removed from the project because the water quality improved and met standards.
Artificial Reef
A year ago, an artificial reef was put in at Jeorse Park Beach by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as part of a large-scale restoration project for the beach. The U.S. Army Corps were hoping the reef would attract a number of native fish species that had once been in the area. In the artificial reef project I’m working on, I am assisting a master’s student with research that aims to see if this artificial reef has actually attracted native fish, or if round goby have colonized the reef since they’re attracted to rocky substrate.
Monthly water samples are taken and filtered for eDNA from several locations at Jeorse Park Beach, including surface water samples at the reef and water samples right above the substrate of the reef. After the sampling is complete, the DNA will be sequenced using fish primers for fish found in Lake Michigan to determine the composition of fish in the water based on the eDNA. Part of the project will be comparing the eDNA to traditional methods of monitoring (e.g., electroshocking).
I’ve learned so much. Before this internship, I knew nothing about freshwater reefs and artificial reefs. I didn’t know that breakwalls altered the flow of water in a way that can cause a buildup of E. coli and lead to unsafe water conditions. When I began my internship, everyone would talk about ongoing projects and try to inform me about the details of each one, but there was a lot that I didn’t understand. I’m proud to say that has changed, and now I am able to explain to others the projects we are doing, why we are conducting research in certain ways and what we are hoping to find.
I’m thankful for the opportunity to intern at USGS through Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant and to work with a great group of people. I have definitely gotten more out of my internship than I was ever expecting, and while I still don’t know what I would like to do as a career choice, I’ve discovered that working on projects like these is certainly an option and something I very much enjoy.
Cleaning up contaminated rivers, lakes and harbors facilitates the revitalization of waterfront economies on the Great Lakes. Aimed at industries, municipalities, states and non-governmental organizations, “A Seat at the Table: Great Lakes Legacy Act” is a new video that explains what it means to be a cost-share partner with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Great Lakes Legacy Act (GLLA). The video uses interviews with partners to describe the benefits and challenges of cost-share partnering, the cost-sharing mechanism, examples of in-kind services and the flexibility of partnerships.
The GLLA is a component of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative that addresses sediment remediation and habitat restoration in Great Lakes Areas of Concern. Contaminated sediment—caused by toxic chemicals, heavy metals, oil and other pollutants—can be a serious problem for communities struggling to revitalize their waterfronts and boost their economies.
Since 2002, the EPA has partnered with 57 entities under the GLLA to study, design and execute sediment cleanups across the Great Lakes basin. Over 4 million cubic yards of sediment have been remediated, removing threats to public health, creating vibrant environments for fish and wildlife, and giving coastal communities usable waterfronts.
The program is based on cost-sharing, which means that cleanup projects that result in economic revitalization, increased property values and an improved quality of life cannot take place unless partners contribute money or in-kind services. Through the GLLA, the EPA will cover up to 65 percent of the cleanup cost, and nonfederal entities can team up to volunteer matching funds. Once partners have been established, the GLLA program is able to help communities by completing cleanup projects.
“Legacy Act projects don’t take place unless a volunteer comes to the table and contributes cash or in-kind services,” said Caitie Nigrelli, an environmental social scientist for Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant and a liaison to the EPA Great Lakes National Program Office. “We have a lot of contaminated sediment sites left in the Great Lakes, creating blight and preventing local economies from realizing their potential. Voluntary, collaborative partnerships are the solution to the problem.”
Current and past partners include industry organizations (Honeywell, Ford, U.S. Steel), states (Indiana, Minnesota), municipalities (City of Toledo, Ashtabula City Port Authority) and non-governmental organizations (Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper).
Want to see what successful partnerships can accomplish? Follow Caitie Nigrelli (@Gr8LakesLady) on Twitter as she shares 22 sediment site success stories, including before and after photos, contamination causes, partnerships and cleanup details. She’ll share one story, highlighting one location, each day for 22 days. Follow and join the conversation using #22SedimentStories.
“A Seat at the Table: Great Lakes Legacy Act” was funded by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and produced by Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant and University of Illinois Extension.
A smartphone app named “Rain Garden,” designed to help people plan and build rain gardens across America, is now customized with a specialized list of plants suited for Indiana. Through video tutorials, diagrams and tools, the app makes it easy to learn the basics of designing, installing and maintaining a rain garden.
Many people and communities use sustainable landscape design and management practices, such as rain gardens, to prevent polluted stormwater runoff from flowing into nearby rivers and streams and harming the water supply. To stop runoff from reaching water bodies, stormwater can be directed toward rain gardens to be absorbed by plants and soils.
Hoosiers can download “Rain Garden” for free through the Apple or Google app store. Created at the University of Connecticut, the app includes tools for determining soil type, measuring the area needed for the garden, and managing multiple rain garden projects.
The Indiana plant list was made possible by Kara Salazar of Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant and the Purdue Rainscaping Education Program, Rosie Lerner of Purdue Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, John Orick of the Purdue Master Gardener program, Kris Medic of the Purdue Extension Community Development program, Jane Frankenberger of Purdue Agricultural and Biological Engineering, and Laura Esman of Purdue Forestry and Natural Resources.
There was an infectious buzz of excitement as 31 fourth-grade students scrambled from one riverbank education station to the next for Grand Calumet River Stewardship Day. Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG) Environmental Social Scientist Caitie Nigrelli helped plan the sixth annual stewardship day in an effort to get children involved and interested in the ecosystems near their homes and school. The event had a large impact on participants’ sense of place, based on an evaluation by Nigrelli and her summer intern, Victoria Wallace.
“Sense of place” is a social science metric, brought to Sea Grant by Nigrelli and highlighted in a Sea Grant Education Summary, used to “quantitatively measure the outcome of place-based education.” According to Nigrelli and Wallace’s report, Sense of Place on the Grand Calumet River, “sense of place can have a profound effect on the restoration success of a natural area. When a community creates a special bond with a place, the people living there are much more likely to care for the place, perform stewardship activities there or vote in favor of environmental protection for the natural area.”
Students identify birds in their habitat along the Grand Calumet River.
Two fourth-grade classes from Abraham Elementary School in East Chicago were selected to participate in the stewardship day with their teachers, Gordana Andric and Arleen Rodich. “This age group is curious, enthusiastic and easily engaged in the types of activities planned for the day,” said Wallace. “The hope is that this field trip has been a formative experience for the next generation of stewards.”
Nigrelli and Wallace conducted an evaluation to assess the program’s effectiveness, and student responses showed that negative perceptions of the river turned to positive outlooks after spending time participating in the Grand Calumet River Stewardship Day program. They found a significant difference in sense of place between students who participated in the field trip and students from the same school who did not. Results can be found in their report.
IISG intern Victoria Wallace teaches students about macroinvertebrates found in sediment along the Grand Calumet River.
Students learned about fish populations, birding basics, macroinvertebrates found in sediment, and the dune and swale habitat along the river. Nigrelli led the macroinvertebrates station along with Wallace, IISG Aquatic Ecology Specialist Leslie Dorworth, and Peggy Donnnelly of the U.S. EPA. IISG Education Coordinator Terri Hallesy helped deliver the dune and swale habitat station.
“I love to see students’ faces light up when they first see a macroinvertebrate wriggling around under a magnifier or an uncommon bird hop in front of them that they’ve just identified in a book,” Nigrelli said. “This is learning at its finest. We get to impart our passion and joy for nature to the future stewards of the Grand Calumet River. This place becomes special to them.”
As a place-based education program that is part of a larger IISG effort to connect students with local restored natural areas, the goal of the annual stewardship day is to increase students’ attachment and belonging to the Grand Calumet River and surrounding nature.
The stewardship day has become a way to provide children with opportunities to engage with nature in a way that is both fun and educational, according to Nigrelli. IISG partners with multiple organizations—including the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and The Nature Conservancy—for the event each year. Specialists teach children about the Grand Calumet River’s path to recovery from its polluted past and to help foster an appreciation for nature and a desire in the next generation to keep ecosystems healthy.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG) is pleased to announce Lisa Kim as a Knauss Fellowship finalist for the Class of 2019. A master’s student at Loyola University in Chicago, Kim studies biology under advisor Tim Hoellein with a focus on anthropogenic litter in urban streams.
Kim currently works as an aquatic invasive species outreach assistant with IISG and the Illinois Natural History Survey. She has been improving her science communication skills both on and off the job. “I love to find different ways to effectively communicate science to our community,” she said. “Lately, I’ve been using art as a way to do this.”
As a previously undocumented student, another of her interests lies in supporting and encouraging other students who may be in a similar situation. “Storytelling is a passion of mine,” she said, “and I always hope to find different platforms to share my story and encourage other underrepresented students to be resilient in pursuing a higher education and working towards their dreams in the midst of their hardships.”
The Knauss fellowship provides a unique educational experience to students who have an interest in ocean, coastal and Great Lakes resources and in the national policy decisions affecting those resources. Knauss finalists are chosen through a competitive process that includes several rounds of review at both the state Sea Grant program and national levels. The program matches highly qualified graduate students with “hosts” in the legislative and executive branches of government located in the Washington, D.C. area for a one-year paid fellowship.
Kim will be attending Placement Week in mid-November to determine her host office in 2018. Follow her on Twitter at @kimhlisa.
Placement of 2019 Knauss finalists as fellows is contingent on adequate funding in fiscal year 2019.
For more information about the Knauss Fellowship and other opportunities, visit our Fellowship page, or contact Angie Archer.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension
IISG is hiring an experienced communication coordinator to oversee communication and lead efforts to develop and maintain programs and products that promote science-based knowledge and highlight IISG’s research, outreach and education efforts. Learn more at the #linkinbio.
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