Autonomous in situ Monitoring of Harmful Algal Blooms

February 27, 2025
Webcast

Associated Project

Project 5154: Autonomous in situ Monitoring of Harmful Algal Blooms
Harmful algal blooms (HABs) damage aquatic ecosystems, threaten water supplies, impose economic costs, and are increasing in frequency and intensity due to climate change. Effective monitoring of HABs is important for mitigating their impact on public health and the economy and for developing approaches that minimize the occurrence and/or severity of HABs. While affordable approaches for HAB monitoring exist, they still require a certain level of user expertise and involvement and are limited in monitoring scope. 
 
 
Thus, there is a critical need for a HAB monitoring device that includes the following features:
 
  • Autonomously identify and count all relevant phytoplankton species in surface water.
  • Accessible and easy to employ.
  • Low cost and scalable. 
     
 
The Water Research Foundation (WRF) project 5154, Autonomous in situ Monitoring of Harmful Algal Blooms, worked to address this problem by developing the Autonomous Real-Time Microbial Scope (ARTiMiS) device for in situ and low-cost monitoring of HABs.
 
This webcast provided an overview of project 5154. The presenter described the development of a training dataset for algal species of relevance and the steps they took to optimize their machine learning approach to identify and quantify algal species. Using the real-time data on algal density and taxonomic composition, the presenter described how utilities can use this information to proactively implement measures to mitigate harmful blooms.
 
 
Great Lakes Water Authority was a research partner on this project.
 
 
 
Presenter:

Ameet Pinto, PhD
Environmental Engineer and Carlton S. Wilder Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology 

Moderator:

Sydney Samples
Research Manager
The Water Research Foundation
 

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