Backgrounder: $2.25M From Province Taps Into Underwater Research

As the LEEF BC Leadership Chair in Marine Ecosystems and Global Change, based at the University of Victoria, Dr. Kim Juniper will conduct research with a global impact, contributing directly to a better understanding of variations in fisheries yields and how human-induced climate change is influencing the oceans.

Juniper will explore the sea from coast to open ocean, examining how seasonal and climatic cycles affect the ecology of the ocean floor. Tiny, drifting plants and animals known as plankton are a key link between the atmosphere and the seafloor. Climate influences plankton productivity near the ocean surface, and sinking plankton debris is the primary food source for seafloor ecosystems. On the seafloor, variations in food supply can cause changes in growth rates, population numbers and biodiversity in organisms ranging from microbes to fish to marine mammals.

Juniper’s research will involve the innovative use of new generations of underwater sensors and imaging devices. He’ll make extensive use of the UVic-led VENUS and NEPTUNE Canada undersea cabled observatories for real-time observation of seafloor ecosystems. Collaboration with other VENUS and NEPTUNE researchers will help him understand how other parts of the ocean-climate system are affecting the seafloor.

Initially, Juniper will install sensors on the VENUS Saanich Inlet array to study bottom-dwelling microbes which, when breaking down plankton debris, consume oxygen and release waste products. In 2008, Juniper’s work will be extended to the NEPTUNE observatory and Barkley Canyon off the coast of Vancouver Island. He’ll study how plankton debris from seasonal upwellings at the head of the canyon is influencing the dynamics of the seafloor ecosystem 1,000 metres below. He’ll also be working with a statistician to assist researchers in managing and applying the massive amounts of data collected 24/7 by the NEPTUNE and VENUS observatories. These data archives will be valuable resources for studying long-term trends in the oceans and for testing new ideas about links between different ocean processes.

Juniper was educated at the University of Alberta and the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. At UVic, he has a joint appointment with both the School of Earth and Ocean Sciences and the Department of Biology. He was previously the co-scientific director of NEPTUNE Canada and is the founding director and current president of the Canadian Scientific Submersible Facility, which operates the ROPOS submersible based at the Institute of Ocean Sciences in Sidney, BC.

The University of Victoria is recognized internationally for its excellence in earth, ocean and climate systems research and education. With its unique location, rich marine environment, and proximity to other key marine research centres, UVic is taking a lead international role in ocean sciences and the development of marine technologies.