2026 Funded Projects Include
Validating Oil Detection Canines (ODCs) for Detection of Oil Spills Under Ice
Experimental determination of how ice thickness, amount of oil volatiles, and trapped oil thickness impact the performance limits of ODCs supporting response operations.
Awarded Partner: International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD): Experimental Lakes Area.
Development of Mobile Applications for Aerial Observations and Shoreline Cleanup and Assessment Technique (SCAT) of Oil in Freshwater and Ice Environments
The development of two applications to improve the flow of information and how SCAT data is handled and incorporated into response.
Awarded Partner: Research Planning, Inc.
Retrospective Analysis of In-Situ Burn (ISB) Residue Properties for Improved Freshwater Oil Spill Preparedness
Analysis of more than fifty ISB events to extract insights into ISB residues, the factors that influence burn efficiency and to provide operational recommendations.
Awarded Partner: Pegasus Technical Services
Hydrodynamic Building Blocks for Updated Models of Oil Spill Fate and Transport in a Great Lakes River, Estuary to Lake Transition
Development of a hydrodynamic model incorporating dynamic bi-directional currents and winds in river to Great Lake transition zones. Update existing USGS river models and open water models used to study oil fate and transport.
Awarded Partner: U. S. Geological Survey
Evaluation of In-Situ Burn (ISB) Efficiency for Emerging Oil Contaminants in Freshwater Ice Conditions
Side-by-side experimental burns in different ice conditions of present and emerging oils used in the Great Lakes. Aimed to fill the data gaps for both ISB in freshwater ice and for new oils.
Awarded Partner: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory
Validation of Modeled Surface Currents on Lake Michigan and Integration with General NOAA Operational Modeling Environment (GNOME) Model
Clustered surface current drifter deployments in Lake Michigan to validate GNOME model predictions in the lake’s open waters and in the Strait of Mackinaw.
Awarded Partner: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL)
Fate and Transport of Synthetic Oils and Impact on the Great Lakes
Computer models to compare the fate, weathering, and transport of hypothetical spills of synthetic oils (e.g., dielectric fluid) in areas of concern in the Great Lakes.
Awarded Partner: U. S. Coast Guard Academy
Fate and Behavior of Submerged Oils and Effects on Benthic Organisms in Simulated Freshwater Environments
Using a combination of indoor microcosms and outdoor mesocosms, researchers will investigate oil-particle aggregation (OPA) formation using St. Marys River water and sediments and how oil partitioning between the surface, OPA, and sediments impacts the ecosystem from microbes up to native macroinvertebrates.
Awarded Partner: Lake Superior State University