Student-developed app collects marine data

Students at the University of California San Diego have developed a web app to let users help monitor the health of marine conservation areas, according to a release. The app will help San Diego Coastkeeper, an organization that monitors the area’s coastline, record site data more efficiently.

Statistics like an area’s human activity, pollution and poaching can be entered into the app, saving Coastkeeper volunteers time spent traveling to sites and recording data with pen and paper. To test the app’s effectiveness, the organization is implementing a pilot program in spring 2013 in two areas in La Jolla, Calif.

The app does not yet have an official name and was developed as part of a program at the university that allows engineering students to work on projects for outside entities.

Image: Volunteers enter data into the app’s electronic forms (Credit: UC San Diego)