The beach and marsh at Botany Bay Plantation from above

McKenzie Field Station

The ACE Basin NERR operates the Michael D. McKenzie Field Station at Bennett’s Point, South Carolina, 45 miles south of Charleston. The 4,000 square-foot facility contains offices, wet/dry labs, a conference room and an outdoor classroom. Dormitory and kitchen accommodations are available free of charge for overnight stays by visiting scientists. Docking facilities are available for researchers to work in the heart of the ACE Basin. Science-related school groups and naturalists visit the field station for a variety of educational, outdoor activities.

To reserve the facilities, contact the McKenzie Field Station at MckenzieFieldStation@dnr.sc.gov.

Clemson researchers deploying structures for a living shoreline alongside members of the SCDNR Crustaceans lab

Research

The ACE Basin NERR provides an ideal platform for outside researchers to work in large expanses of relatively undeveloped coastal ecosystems. Every year the reserve hosts students and researchers from across the country. Facilities within the NERR can provide free lodging with kitchen facilities for visiting researchers. The ACE Basin Research Sector is very receptive to graduate students and faculty researchers who wish to collaborate as partners on research questions of particular interest to the NERR.

Education

The ACE Basin NERR provides an ideal platform for outside researchers to work in large expanses of relatively undeveloped coastal ecosystems. Every year the reserve hosts students and researchers from across the country. Facilities within the NERR can provide free lodging with kitchen facilities for visiting researchers. The ACE Basin Research Sector is very receptive to graduate students and faculty researchers who wish to collaborate as partners on research questions of particular interest to the NERR.

Students conducting water testing on the E/V Discovery