Project: The Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) Survey: Monitoring the Plankton of the North Atlantic

Intellectual Merit:

Long-term observations like the CPR survey are critical in evaluating and quantifying the scale and effects of climate and anthropogenic pressures such as climate change, acidification, eutrophication, and loss of biodiversity in the Northwest Atlantic. This program will form a working group for CPR Z route data exploration to examine a series of scientific questions, examining timescales of change in community diversity and structure, how connected the changes are to the broader ocean, and how changes can impact ecosystem function. We will bring together a multidisciplinary group of collaborators to develop major research themes and data analysis methods. A critical aspect of this project is the continued maintenance of long-term time series. Without sustained support, we risk the creation of a data gap that could inhibit our understanding of long-term trends and changes in marine ecosystems. The continued observation provided by this project is essential to preserving the continuity of these invaluable datasets, enabling us to monitor, understand, and adapt to the ongoing shifts in ocean ecosystems.

Broader Impacts:

The proposed project will not only address U.S marine issues but significantly contribute to international programs such as the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), GEO-BON, the International Oceanographic Commission (IOC), the Scientific Commission on Oceanic Research (SCOR), the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the Partnership for Observation of the Global Oceans (POGO) and the North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES). In collaboration with the Biological & Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO), we will ensure that all data from the survey is publicly accessible, fostering collaboration and engagement. Capacity building is integral to our project. We will conduct annual workshops alongside working group meetings to train early-career researchers for CPR data utilization. Experts will share practical use cases, with details on data access and processing procedures, data analysis approaches, and scientific discoveries. Securing the long-term maintenance of the CPR sample archive will maximize its use by the broader scientific community. By making it available for diverse research, including molecular studies, biogeochemical analyses, biodiversity assessments, and more, we address critical areas in marine policy and societal concerns regarding marine environments.