Floating Global New Ideas: Buoy-Enabled Research at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University’s School of the Environment

Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), based in Tallahassee, Florida, is the highest-rated public Historically Black College or University in the United States. FAMU’s School of the Environment (FAMU-SOE) offers BS and BA degrees in Environmental Studies, and BS, MS, and Ph.D. degrees in Environmental Science, with specialisms available in areas including Environmental Policy and Risk Management, Aquatic and Terrestrial Ecology, and Biomolecular Sciences. 

In 2021, FAMU-SOE deployed a NexSens CB-450 buoy in Apalachee Bay, a key oyster farming area around 30 miles south of Tallahassee. The buoy has quickly been incorporated into the curriculum, providing environmental insights for student research, the community, and beyond. 

Dr. Victor Ibeanusi, Dean of SOE, holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Microbiology, with a focus on microbial systems biotechnology. He is the principal investigator of the ongoing collaborative research between FAMU-SOE and Apalachee Bay oyster farmers that uses a NexSens buoy.

Dr. Benjamin Mwashote, whose research specializes in chemical oceanography, is Director of Research and Core Research Lab Manager at the FAMU-SOE.

Students on Apalachee Bay with the NexSens buoy. The buoy has been used by students across a variety of courses at different stages of their educational journey to get hands-on experience of fieldwork and research methods. (Credit: The School of the Environment)

Deploying the FAMU Buoy

After considerable research into the most suitable system for FAMU-SOE, the NexSens CB-450 buoy was chosen for the parameters it supports.

“We needed something which could give us data on nutrient levels,” Mwashote explains. “We didn’t find many [other buoys] which were able to do that, but the CB-450 has the capability of accommodating a sensor which can measure nitrates and phosphates.”

The FAMU buoy has a YSI EXO2 multi-parameter water quality sonde and TriOS OPUS UV spectral sensor onboard, making it capable of measuring over 20 parameters. Those providing environmental insights–such as temperature, salinity, conductivity, turbidity, chlorophyll, and nitrates–are of most interest to the School of the Environment’s students and researchers. 

By providing real-time, remotely-accessible data, Mwashote says that the buoy has been transformative to research efforts, “Prior to that, we were simply using portable devices which were inadequate, because this was only spot measurements.”

“But with the buoy, we are able to get 24/7 data coming in right now–I can get it from my cell phone or my computer. Because the data is being transmitted to us non-stop, it has changed our view, and also, it has given us the capability of real-time monitoring,” he adds.

Dean Ibeanusi speaks to students while out on the water doing fieldwork. Ibeanusi is the principal investigator for the buoy project and the ongoing collaboration with oyster farmers in Apalachee Bay. Credit: The School of the Environment. (Credit: The School of the Environment)

Teaching Environmental Monitoring 

The NexSens buoy has been incorporated into the School of the Environment’s curriculum and is a key part of research projects for graduates and undergraduates. For freshmen, small projects based around the buoy are a way to “introduce them to fieldwork.”

Although there is only one buoy, the data it provides is sufficiently varied that students can apply it to a range of research areas, from oceanographic modelling to observational studies.

Mwashote says, “I normally take students there for their research. Each one of them has their own individual project. So they use this data for their purposes to publish their work and also present their work in conferences and so on.”

The buoy is one component of teaching environmental monitoring research at FAMU, and it complements the teaching of more traditional methods requiring in situ, manual measurements.

“There are YSI sensors which we use– they monitor similar parameters,” Mwashote states. These measure various water quality parameters, including temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, total dissolved solids, and chlorophyll.

“They are portable, so you can use them at various points around the place, to see whether there is any difference in terms of the same parameters that are being measured in the buoy,”  Mwashote continues.

The exposure students get to the range of environmental monitoring techniques is exciting, showcasing the breadth of technology used in industry and research globally, and setting a firm foundation for possible future careers and further research in this area. 

The CB-450 buoy, known as the RATTLERmoji, provides real-time data on pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, total solids, nitrates, algae, oxidation reduction potential, and more. (Credit: The School of the Environment)

Wider Environmental Research at FAMU

As well as enabling student research, the CB-450 buoy supports a number of FAMU’s grant-funded opportunities. 

For example, the Salt Water Assessment Tool (SWAT)–a simulation used to test biophysical and theoretical systems under different scenarios and predict possible outcomes–is in development and uses the buoy’s data to populate and train the model.  

Furthermore, in his capacity as lead investigator, Ibeanusi and his team recently secured a $4.5m grant from the Department of Energy looking at big data. 

This grant supports the Nexus Innovate Mobile Geospatial AI Lab–a transdisciplinary initiative designed to expand academic offerings, foster student engagement, and accelerate research breakthroughs in environmental engineering, bioinformatics, geospatial science, and remote sensing.

The mobile lab relies on real-time data from the buoy, which is being used to support and develop the Geospatial-Artificial Intelligence Enhanced Curriculum–a new curriculum on geospatial-AI. 

The FAMU-SOE NexSens buoy is deployed in an important oyster farming area–students are pictured here visiting a local producer. (Credit: The School of the Environment)

Supporting the Community with Better Data

The buoy’s location in Apalachee Bay has required mutual understanding and teaming up between FAMU and the oyster ranchers who own the site. 

“Our interest there was twofold,” Mwashote highlights, “to study what they [oyster ranchers] are doing there, as well as to follow up the water quality of the place.” 

Oyster ranchers have access to relevant data segments to help them monitor the environment they are working in. Mwashote states, “They are interested in some of this data, for example, salinity and temperature data, because that impacts their production.”

This synergistic partnership has led to benefits for both parties, and Mwashote reveals that research papers are in the works. He explains, “We’ve learned a lot […]. As we work together with the farmers, when they have reported some times of low production, we also correlate that with what we are seeing in the buoy.” 

As well as furthering academic research and understanding of the Apalachee Bay environment, this also highlights the potential benefits of real-time monitoring systems when applied to fisheries. 

Automated monitoring eradicates the need for costly and resource-intensive manual inspections, and real-time data enables oyster ranchers to better track environmental conditions. 

This can be used to inform long-term mitigation strategies, as well as short-term responses and interventions, should environmental conditions change, ultimately improving shellfish health and yield. 

FAMU’s real-time data buoy, referred to as the RATTLERmoji. (Credit: The School of the Environment)

The Future: More Buoys and Inspiring Bright Futures

FAMU-SOE is hoping to expand its research capacity in Apalachee Bay. “We are exploring getting more [buoys], because we find the data is useful. Since it is the only one at this time, we want to really get representative data,” explains Mwashote.

FAMU’s CB-450 plays an exciting and important role in educating the next generation, inspiring young people at the very beginning of their careers in environmental research.  

The breadth of data provided by the buoy offers a whole range of environmental insights, with data applicable across a range of research questions at all levels, as well as real-world applications.