Conservation

GUE conservation efforts involve a multidisciplinary approach while developing active research, supporting existing conservation projects and engaging passionate advocates as a means to harness individual capacity in support of broad conservation programs.


GUE conducts and is developing wide ranging public outreach programs designed to promote the conservation of the aquatic realm.

GUE Affiliates form a significant and growing role in GUE conservation efforts. These groups are engaged in ongoing research, exploration or conservation activities; these efforts ultimately support GUE's broad global mission, encouraging local conservation programs and supporting the expansion of local activism.

GUE Conservation Initiatives are designed to support GUE Affiliates, establish a framework to support local conservation programs and as a means to lay groundwork for future projects.

GUE conducts wide-ranging research and exploration projects organized to conserve ground water resources. Since 1990 GUE and its Woodville Karst Plain Project (WKPP) affiliate have invested approximately 300,000 volunteer hours; this investment represents a contribution in excess of three million dollars.

The GUE sponsored Wakulla Cave Metering Project constitutes the most detailed analysis of an underwater karst cave in existence. The purpose of the project is to collect long-term continuous measurements from within discrete conduits in the Wakulla cave system. The improved understanding can then be applied to efforts to protect Wakulla Spring and, more broadly, groundwater resources in Wakulla and Leon counties.

The Cave Database represents a GUE sponsored project to assemble all available cave data for the state of Florida in one central, easily accessible location. Professionals from all walks will be able to use the data in their applications ranging from environmental planning to construction projects to computer groundwater flow modeling.

Groundwater tracing programs are an important part of our need to define the potential for contamination of fresh water supplies. This is because only one percent of the earth’s water is available as fresh water; the majority of this supply is ground water. GUE programs are pioneering a groundbreaking reassessment of ground water flow and the means by which it can become contaminated by pollutants.

Project Baseline encourages local dive groups to document ongoing environmental conditions in their favorite aquatic environments. Then, by regularly monitoring a location and publishing data including pictures and narrative logs through Google Earth, PB aims to raise public awareness of ecological deterioration to facilitate more detailed scientific inquiry and influence public policy.