Research related to fisheries, biodiversity, climate change, oceanography, species at risk, and research in support of management and regulation
The Bedford Institute of Oceanography (BIO) is a multi-disciplinary government research facility with a focus on the science and management of aquatic, seafloor and subsurface natural resources. BIO houses staff from three federal departments: Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and the Canadian Coast Guard, Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), and Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), each with different mandates. It is located on the shores of the Bedford Basin, in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada facilities and expertise at BIO are focussed on hydrography, oceanography, fisheries science, aquatic species-at-risk, marine and freshwater ecology, marine and coastal habitat science, marine conservation and impact assessment, and arctic and climate change science. Our core areas of expertise are ocean monitoring, modelling and technology, data stewardship, oil and gas fate and behaviour, population dynamics, remote sensing, aquatic biotechnology (genomics), and ecosystem approaches.
- Habitat, ecosystem and population assessment and monitoring
- Population and oceanographic modelling
- Genomics analysis
- Analytical services
- Data processing
- Hydrographic chart development and production
- Monitoring equipment development, adaptation and testing
- Clean technology
- Energy
- Environmental technologies and related services
- Fisheries and aquaculture
- Information and communication technologies and media
- Ocean industries
- Policy and governance
Specialized labs and equipment
| Equipment | Function |
|---|---|
| Man-Tegg Associates Liquid Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometer | Separates chemical compounds within a sample and provides mass-to-charge ratio data that can help provide structural identity of the compound |
| Applied Biosystems Genetic Analyzer | Electrophoresis system used to size fractionate DNA fragments at high resolution. Used for microsatellite genotyping (such as with Live Gene Bank genotyping of Atlantic salmon) and Sanger sequencing (primarily used for species identification). |
| Thermo Electron Corporation Mass Spectrometer | Provides mass-to-charge ratio data that can help provide structural identity of the compound |
| Hydrostatic Pressure Testing Unit | Pressure test unit that simulates pressure at various ocean depths to test pressure cases. System has a maximum pressure of 1,500 PSI, which is equivalent to pressure at 1,000 m water depth. |
| Multi-Electronique Oceanographic Buoy | Multi-purpose oceanographic and meteorological buoy |
| ALSEAMAR SeaExplorer Buoyancy-Driven Underwater Glider (4) | Autonomous sensing platform of both coastal and offshore marine environments |
| Seascan Video Plankton Recorder, DAVPR | Underwater, towed video microscope system that takes images of plankton and particulate matter |
| Brooke Ocean Moving Vessel Profiler, MVP2000 | Underwater profiling system that allows vessel speed to be maintained |
| ICYCLER Mooring Profiler | Moored oceanographic profiler designed to measure surface layer water properties under mobile ice cover |
| Campod Benthic Camera System, 1200-M | Fibre optic Benthic camera system with real-time HD video and DSLR still camera. Rated to 2,300-metres water depth. |
| Kongsberg Multibeam Echo Sounder System (5) | Multibeam echosounder system for seabed mapping |
| R2Sonic Multibeam Echo Sounder System | Multibeam echosounder system for seabed mapping |
| InterOcean Systems Marine Mechanical Winch and Cable #46, 50HP | Marine winch for deployment and recovery of oceanographic sensors |
| Hawboldt Industries Marine Mechanical Winch and Cable #39, 75HP | Marine winch for deployment and recovery of oceanographic sensors |
| Hawboldt Industries Mooring Winch and Power Unit # 1 & 2 (2) | Marine winch and power unit for deployment and recovery of oceanographic moorings |
| White Winch and Fibre Optic Cable, 1200-M | Custom winch with 1,400-metre fibre optic tow cable. Supports towed or drift fibre optic systems (e.g. Campod). |
| Bioness Winch (Fibre Optic) and Net Sampling System | Bedford Institute of Oceanography Net Environmental Sampling System (BIONESS) nine net sampling system |
| Harbour Marine Services Hydrographic Survey Launch (8) | Near-shore hydrographic survey launch |
| Kanter Marine Inc. Hydrographic Survey Launch (3) | Near-shore hydrographic survey launch |
| Hardshell Workboat | Near-shore survey work boat |