Tromso, Norway-headquartered seabed technology company Ava Ocean has announced a new project: an interactive ocean restoration mobile app.
The Urchin Density Challenge was launched as part of Ava’s larger Ocean Green project, aiming to create a value stream for urchins as a means of restoring the kelp forests that they have overeaten in Norway and elsewhere.
The project, which has been endorsed by the United Nations, has experimented with a variety of commercial uses for kelp-eating sea urchins, including as supplements for agricultural fertilizers.
The app is intended to draw laypeople into the cause of kelp forest restoration by gamifying the work of identifying urchins in real photographs of the seafloor. Through the Rissa Citizen Science app, created by the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), players can look at a real section of the seabed and count the urchins inside it.
“Each count builds a growing dataset that researchers in Tromsø and at the University of Tromsø use to track change in the restoration sites,” Ava said in a press release about the challenge.
“Reliable data is essential for [kelp forest] restoration,” Ava Ocean said. “Every correct count helps scientists understand how fast urchins decline and how kelp returns. It also helps build international knowledge for regions facing the same challenge.”
The app is one arm of a multi-pronged program that invites the public to engage in kelp forest restoration, which includes visits to schools, a documentary, and monthly volunteer events.
