Emily and Isabel defended their Masters degrees last summer, and they both did a fabulous job on their research. Emily examined carbon and microplastics in mangroves and seagrasses of the Philippines in conjuction with the USAID Fish Right Program. Also, she ran the beach survey during her degree. Isabel’s research focused on barrier beach system […]

The COAST Lab is very proud of Victoria Fulfer who successfully defended her dissertation on March 29, 2024. Her presentation highlighted her extensive work on marine plastics along shorelines and the seabed of Narragansett Bay. Additionally, she studied coastal debris dynamics in Vietnam as part of a Fulbright Research Scholarship. Also, she analyzed microplastic samples […]

Doctoral student, Victoria Fulfer, along with undergraduate student, Nicole Messerlian, have been examining coastal sediments to understand where plastics are present and at what concentrations. While macroplastic (>25 cm) amd mesoplastic (5-25 cm) are widespread, they are not as ubiquitous and numerous as the tiny fragments and fibers we see everywhere in Narraganset Bay sediments.

The COASTL lab is pleased to be working with scientists and students around URI to better understand the marine plastic problem. Most people are aware that there are large accumulations of plastic in our oceans. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your perspective), these only hold about 1% of the plastic estimated to be supplied to […]

David Lagomasino and J.P. Walsh, in collaboration with Rene Abesamis (Silliman University), Vivien Facunla and others from the USAID Fish Right Program, are working to create a remote sensing approach to map coastal habitat change in the Philippines.  Mangroves, seagrasses and coral reefs are critical to ecosystem sustainability, fisheries and tourism.  This November, the team […]

Ian Conery defended his doctoral thesis, “From Dunes to Shelf Deposits: A Multidisciplinary Investigation of Coastal Sand Management in NC”  in April 2019 at East Carolina University’s Coastal Studies Institute.  Ian’s dissertation focused on beach-dune sedimentary processes, offshore sand resources and economic aspects of beach nourishment.  Understanding sand dynamics on barrier islands is critical for […]

COASTL Receives NSF RAPID to Study Florence’s Impact on the Seafloor The North Carolina coast was hit hard by strong winds, powerful waves and flooding from Hurricane Florence.  As a result, many beach communities experience substantial beach and dune erosion, such along Bogue Banks (pictured).   Offshore sand sources are anticipated to be used in the […]

Visiting French MS Student Jupin Successfully Defends Project Johanna Jupin from the Université de Bordeaux arrived to  CRC/GSO/URI in January 2018 to complete a required research internship for her MS (They do things differently in France.)   Johanna worked tremendously hard.  Her project focused on quantifying salt marsh sedimentation and shoreline changes at various sites in […]