The purpose of this Sensor Technologies for Remote Environmental Aquatic Monitoring (STREAM) toolkit is to describe some of the key parameters that the project is measuring. This is an initial report, and it will be updated.
The STREAM project is a joint effort between organizations on both sides of the Irish Sea to enhance our understanding of the effects of climate change, reduce the expenses associated with monitoring estuarine and marine environments, and speed up the process of data collection. The collaborating partners include South East Technological University (SETU), Swansea University, and Munster Technological University (MTU). STREAM is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund
(ERDF)
The Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (6th Assessment Report) has found that CO2 in the atmosphere continues to rise, that surface land and ocean temperatures are warmer, Arctic sea icehas decreased, the upper 700 m of the ocean have warmed, oceans have become more acidic and have seen a decrease in oxygen levels, and that sea levels have risen. Other observed changes in our ocean include a perturbation of nutrient cycles, changes in biogeography of organisms ranging from phytoplankton to marine mammals, ocean warming impacting fisheries catches, increasingly stressed coastal ecosystems and changes in the nature and extent of harmful algal blooms.