The National Estuarine Research Reserve program, coordinated by NOAA, was initiated under the Coastal Zone Management Act to protect sensitive estuarine areas throughout the country through long-term research and education. The 22 sites currently designated reflect regional differences in biogeography and ecology. The heart of the reserve is a series of remote coastal islands in the lower basin which are accessible only by water. Because of its relatively low level of disturbance, the ACE Basin has retained many of the attributes associated with estuaries at the turn of the century, and allows the opportunity to establish baseline criteria for undisturbed wetlands, as well as having a comparative basis for determining effects of long term development on nearby wetlands. The primary monitoring efforts include water quality analysis and surveying of decapod crustaceans and juvenile fish populations.
Water quality is monitored at two stations in the reserve.
One station is located in a tributary off Big Bay Creek which is impacted by non-point source pollution. The other site is in a tributary off St. Pierre Creek which is relatively undisturbed by development. Water temperature, salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, and water depth are monitored continuously at each of the sites. Decapod and juvenile fish surveys are conducted monthly at stations along the salinity gradient in each of the three rivers. Stations are sampled against a flood tide during daylight hours with a 20 ft. semi-balloon otter trawl.