ACE Basin/NERR Studies

The ACE Basin area was designated as a National Estuarine Research Reserve by NOAA in 1992 and is the third largest reserve in the nation. Located approximately 60 miles southeast of Charleston, the reserve encompasses more than 140,000 acres — characterized by approximately 50 percent estuarine wetlands, 43 percent open water and 7 percent freshwater wetlands and upland communities. The purpose of the monitoring program at ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve (ACE Basin NERR) is to document both long-term changes and short-term variability in the watershed.

This is the same goal at all of the 25 NERR sites around the country and forms the basis of the NERR System-wide Monitoring Program (SWMP). SWMP provides a long-term data set of selected water quality and meteorological parameters collected at NERR sites nationwide. Nationally, this data set has been effective in addressing questions posed by both coastal decision makers and scientists on “no discharge zones” for boaters, impacts of urban runoff, and impacts of various agricultural practices.

Research directly related to the management of the ACE reserve's resources is actively encouraged and is a high priority. More than 30 research and monitoring projects (including cumulative environmental impacts, contaminant assessments, population assessments and environmental stress indicators) have been conducted by government agencies, academic institutions and private organizations in or adjacent to the ACE Basin NERR. However, the primary focus of the reserve research program is to conduct long-term monitoring projects that provide spatial and temporal information about the physical, chemical and biological conditions in the ACE Basin.

Program Leader:

Dr. John Leffler
843-953-3903