UM makes marine research expedition to GBA with HKUST and Xiamen University

The University of Macau (UM), Hong Kong University of Science and Technology’s  (HKUST) Centre for Ocean Research in Hong Kong and Macau, and Xiamen University (XU) jointly launched a summer marine research expedition to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area today (28 August). This is the first time that a university in Macao has participated in marine scientific research. This expedition aims to promote disaster prevention and control and marine function research for the sustainable development of Macao’s marine ecosystem. It also hopes to provide data analysis and decision-making support for Macao’s marine spatial planning and to promote diversified development of Macao and the Greater Bay Area.

The expedition was jointly organised by UM’s State Key Laboratory of Internet of Things for Smart City and Centre for Regional Oceans, HKUST’s Centre for Ocean Research in Hong Kong and Macau, and XU, with 23 researchers participating. It represented an important step in UM’s efforts to initiate marine research in waters surrounding Macao. It also provided a valuable opportunity for local research institutions to conduct marine research.

Yonghua Song said that in order to address the challenges faced by the Macao SAR government in the use of the ocean, marine disaster prevention and control, and protection of the marine environment, UM has always attached great importance to the development of regional oceanology and the training of professionals in the field. The university encourages interdisciplinary research and has identified regional oceanology as a key emerging research field. In order to enhance its research capability to better serve the needs of Macao, the university has been constantly expanding its collaboration with institutions in China and abroad. Song thanked the HKUST’s Centre for Ocean Research in Hong Kong and Macau and the Marine and Water Bureau in Macao for their great support and assistance to this joint expedition.

The Centre for Regional Oceans was established in 2019. It has signed strategic collaboration agreements with a number of marine science and engineering research institutes in the Greater Bay Area, including HKUST, Sun Yat-sen University, the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Authority, and the Pearl River Water Resources Research Institute. The data on marine sediment and water quality obtained from the expedition can be used not only for research on the quality of the marine environment, but also for implementing numerical marine simulations in the Greater Bay Area. 

In the future, the centre will continue to provide precise decision-making support for Macao in smart city development, marine disaster prediction, protection of marine environment and ecosystems, and ocean management and planning. It will also train well-rounded talent to contribute to the development of marine science and technology in the Greater Bay Area and the country.