Undergraduate Interns studying carbon flux, trace metals, and nutrient contamination in the Neponset River and Estuary

Francesco Peri, UMass Boston

This summer, two undergraduate researchers have joined the Stone Living Lab! Their positions are sponsored by the Coastal Research in Environmental Science and Technology (CREST) program at the University of Massachusetts Boston, a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) that is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). 

Luisa Zuliani de Figueiredo is in her first semester as a first-year student at Bunker Hill Community College. She is quick-witted and inquisitive, and will be working under the supervision of Sr. Research Engineer Francesco Peri, who will assist her in the integration and deployment of water quality instrumentation. She will also be responsible for collecting and analyzing data from two fixed stations (deployed at the freshwater and saltwater endmembers of the Neponset Estuary respectively), and underway during three survey cruises in the Neponset Estuary aboard a Research Vessel. Aside from her research, Luisa is going to become a US citizen this summer!

Ander Pahre is a first-year student at Dickinson College. They love to talk about science – especially water quality and contaminants.  Under the supervision of the Dr. Karen Johannesson, Ph.D., P.G., Director of the Environmental Analytical Core Facility at UMass Boston and Professor of Geochemistry at the School for the Environment (SFE), Ander will be collecting and analyzing water samples in the Neponset River and Estuary, measuring heavy metals (Arsenic, Lead, Copper, Zinc, and others) and Nutrients (Phosphates, Nitrates, Nitrites, etc.).  

Together, Luisa and Ander will be able to quantify Contaminant loads, and Carbon Fluxes in the Neponset River, which is the second largest river discharging in Boston Harbor and the site of the largest salt marsh in the Boston area.  We are thrilled to welcome them to the team!