Wisconsin Sea Grant supported archaeological investigation of the shipwreck of the Arctic to raise awareness of the cultural, historical and economic importance of the Great Lakes and the commerce they support. Shipwrecks provide a window into the maritime past and can be a springboard to spark deeper interest in the current state of the waters. Shipwrecks are also a draw for tourists. In fact, Wisconsin has shipwrecks that are consistently ranked in the top sites in the U.S. by popular scuba magazines. Sea Grant funded an archaeological survey of the vessel, and data from the field work were used to create outreach and educational materials. Thirty-four public presentations were delivered, and museum informational kiosks were updated to include data on the shipwreck. Researchers wrote a nomination to the National Register of Historic Places for the Arctic site to further legal protection for the wreck.

Demand for salmon - and the price it commands - is on the rise. Wisconsin Sea Grant's support of aquaponics has resulted in a new aquaponics business is backed by more than $10 million in investment and is expected to employ up to 30 people. The aquaponics business is one of North America’s first on-land salmon-rearing facilities, providing a domestic source of a commonly-imported fish. The facility had its grand opening in August 2017, and since it is an aquaponics system, will also produce fresh vegetables in addition to salmon.

Coastal erosion, particularly bluff recession, is a hazard to communities and landowners on Great Lakes shores, significantly affecting property values of waterfront parcels. Wisconsin Sea Grant-funded researchers at UW-Madison are taking a three-pronged approach to better understand the impacts of shoreline protection structures on bluffed coastlines. Models developed from this project are being used to better understand coastal evolution adjacent to shoreline protection structures. Results are being communicated to stakeholders, engineers and managers within the Great Lakes basin.

Wisconsin Sea Grant-funded researchers built new devices that accurately monitor slope stability and deployed three of these units along the coastline. They used the measurements to better understand how cold weather affects bluff erosion. A better knowledge of where and when bluff failure will occur gives scientists a stronger ability to predict what types of sediment will be deposited into the lake from the eroding bluffs. Information about the sediment type is of particular use to beach and harbor managers because it will affect beach and harbor stability. The new devices also recorded a sudden bluff failure and assessed the internal mechanics associated with the failure.