One distinct research being conducted at Horn Point is harmful algal blooms. Algae are very important to ecosystems as they are the base of the food web for marine life. This makes them critical to the success of the ecosystem, though there is a small community of harmful algae and scientists are trying to understand how and why it can become so dominant. Through tracking these harmful algae blooms, it has been linked that the main source for these blooms are due to nutrient pollution from sewage treatment and runoff. These blooms tend to grow uncontrollably and can overwhelm the ecosystems. They block out sunlight, endangering photosynthetic organisms. The death of these organisms can release toxins and reduce oxygen levels creating "dead zones". Scientists are monitoring these blooms with mathematical climate models. These models can be used to understand when, under what conditions, what temperature, salinity condition and nutrient levels the blooms occur. With this information, scientists are better able to combat the negative effects. Horn Point has addressed the algae situation with the development of these models as well as educating the public on algae with their tours.
Horn Point also does research on oyster restoration. It holds one of the largest oyster hatcheries in the east coast. Oysters play a big role in the restoration and health of the Chesapeake Bay. They help prevent shoreline erosion and are not only significant on an ecological level but also an economic one as well. Oysters are known as "vacuum cleaners" since they are filter feeders and essentially clean up the body of water they are in. Because of climate change and its effects of erratic weather, the oyster population had dwindled. Heavy levels of rain, for example, cause salinity levels to decrease which can cause major losses to the oyster population. Changes to the ecosystem can stress out the oysters which make them less likely to reproduce. To monitor and address this, HPL constructed a production-scale oyster hatchery. This hatchery has allowed a dramatic increase in oyster production for the Chesapeake bay. Temperature is also very important for oysters. HPL uses a conditioning system to "trick" oysters in initiating gonadal development.
There is also research being done on coastal resilience. Specifically oyster veneers: a model approach to greening gray infrastructure. With rapid rising sea-levels in the Bay, there has been a growing concern for high-risk flossing and its effects on various socio-economic demographics, including low-income families. The creation of coastal infrastructure or "shoreline armoring" has been put in place to protect these communities from shoreline erosion but they also degrade aquatic habitats and do little for biodiversity. More nature-based green techniques are more resilient to coastal storms. HPL are conducting field studies on how oyster veneers have long term effectiveness even after these structures succumb to sea level rise. They examine the water and habitat quality benefits after introduction of the more green oyster castles compared to habitat-poor gray infrastice.
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge’s mission is to use conservation practices to "manage Service lands and waters to help ensure the survival of native wildlife species" (BNWR). The NWR seeks to administer a national network of lands and waters for the restoration of organisms and their habits for the benefit of the present and future generations. The Wildlife Drive the Refuge provides help as a form of outreach because it is immersive. Instead of following a guide and listening to what they have to say, one is responsible for their own learning. Aspects of the local wetlands that represent effects of the tides are all of the dead trees surrounding the wetlands.
Horn Point Laboratory & Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge have to reach out to the community at large. HPL achieves this by holding a lot of educational activities open to various ages. Some of these include oyster hatchery tours, oyster dissection, shell bagging and oyster cage building. BNW provide americans with a number of services for the public including the educational drives and trails.