UKRI-3918 New England Shelf Hydrogeology

Tender description

Text to be corrected in the original notice: Place of text to be modified: Conditions for opening tenders Instead of: 25 September 2024 Time: 14:00 Read New: 27 September 2024 Time: 14:00 Other additional information: The contracting authority considers that this contract may be suitable for economic operators that are small or medium enterprises (SMEs). However, any selection of tenderers will be based solely on the criteria set out for the procurement. Bidders should note, the deadline for tenders has been extended to 27 September 2024, 14:00 BST. The British Geological Survey (BGS), acting on behalf of the European Consortium for Ocean Research Drilling (ECORD), requires a marine coring capability and suitable vessel to operate offshore New England, USA, for a scientific drilling, coring and groundwater sampling campaign for a period of between 60 - 90 days (estimated) between May and August 2025. This scientific coring project seeks to extend our understanding of the current and past states of fluid composition, pressure, and temperature in continental shelf environments. In many coastal settings worldwide, the distribution of freshwater within continental shelf sediments is far out of equilibrium with modern sea level. One of the most remarkable examples is found on the Atlantic continental shelf off New England where groundwater within shallow Pliocene-Pleistocene sand aquifers over 100 km offshore has low salinity (3000 mg/l or less). This project will test several hypotheses to help constrain rates, directions, and mechanisms of groundwater flow and chemical fluxes in continental shelf systems.