March 27, 2002 News Release

Washington, DC – Robert White, Donald Boesch, Warren Washington and Marcia McNutt are among the noted ocean, coastal, atmospheric, marine mammal and economics experts recently named to the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy’s Science Advisory Panel. The Panel, mandated by the Ocean Act of 2000, will provide expert scientific counsel and assistance to the presidentially-appointed Commission as it develops recommendations for a comprehensive national ocean policy.

The Panel’s duties will include reviewing the scientific validity of materials submitted to the Commission in order to ensure that the Commission meets its mandated charge to, “… give equal consideration to environmental, technical feasibility, economic and scientific factors.” The Panel also will provide advice, guidance and scientific information as requested by the Commission.

The 26 members of the Panel were chosen by the Commission in consultation with the National Academy of Sciences, and announced at the Commission meeting held in New Orleans, Louisiana, on March 8, 2002. (The full list of Science Advisory Panel is listed below.)

“This Panel is made of the leading experts in oceanography, marine sciences and other ocean and coastal disciplines,” said retired Navy Admiral James D. Watkins, chairman of the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy. “Their expertise and in-depth knowledge of ocean and coastal-related issues will be an integral resource in the development of the Commission’s recommendations for a comprehensive national ocean policy.”

Currently, the Commission is conducting a comprehensive examination of the nation’s marine affairs by assessing numerous challenging issues ranging from the stewardship of fisheries and marine life to the relationship among federal, state and local governments and the private sector in carrying out ocean and coastal activities. The Commission’s findings and recommendations will be presented in a final report to Congress and the President in the spring of 2003.

Since January, Commission meetings have been held in Charleston, South Carolina; St. Petersburg, Florida, and New Orleans, Louisiana. The remaining meetings will be held in California in April; Hawaii in May; Washington State in June; Massachusetts in July; Alaska in August; and Illinois in September.

Donald F. Boesch, Ph.D., is the President of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science.

Ken Brink, Ph.D., is the Director of the Coastal Ocean Institute and Rinehart Coastal Research Center at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Daniel W. Bromley, Ph.D., is the Anderson-Bascom Professor of Applied Economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Otis Brown Ph.D., is Dean of the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami and a Professor in the Division of Meterology and Physical Oceanography.

Biliana Cicin-Sain, Ph.D., is the Director of the Center for the Study of Marine Policy and Professor of Marine Policy at the University of Delaware.

Robert A. Frosch, Ph.D., is a former NASA Administrator and a professor at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Robert B. Gagosian, Ph.D., is the Director and President of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Frederick Grassle, Ph.D., is the Director of the Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences at Rutgers University.

D. Jay Grimes, Ph.D., is Dean of the College of Marine Sciences and Director of the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Susan Hanna, Ph.D., is a Professor of Marine Economics at Oregon State University and affiliated with Oregon Sea Grant and the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station.

Ray Hilborn, Ph.D., is the Richard C. and Lois M. Worthington Professor of Fisheries Management at the University of Washington’s School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences.

DeWitt John, Ph.D., is the Director of the Environmental Studies Program at Maine’s Bowdoin College. He is also the author of four books, including Civic Environmentalism (1992).

Geraldine Knatz, Ph.D., is the Managing Director of Development for the Port of Long Beach in California.

Marcia McNutt, Ph.D., is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in California.

Jacqueline Michel, Ph.D., is an internationally recognized expert in oil and hazardous materials spill planning and response and the President of Research Planning, Inc., in South Carolina.

Edward L. Miles, Ph.D., is the Virginia and Prentice M. Bloedel Professor of Marine Studies and Public Affairs at the University of Washington.

Michael K. Orbach, Ph.D., is the Director of the Duke University Marine Laboratory and Duke’s Coastal Environmental Management Program.

John A. Orcutt, Ph.D., is the Director of the Cecil and Ida Green Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Shirley Pomponi, Ph.D., is the Director of the Division of Biomedical Marine Research at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution.

David B. Prior, Ph.D., is Dean of the College of Geosciences at Texas A&M University.

Andrew R. Solow, Ph.D., is the Director of the Marine Policy Center at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Robert Spindel, Ph.D., is the Director of the Applied Physics Lab at the University of Washington.

Carolyn A. Thoroughgood, Ph.D., is Dean of the College of Marine Studies and Director of the Sea Grant College Program at the University of Delaware.

Sharon Walker, Ph.D., is Administrator of the J.L. Scott Marine Education Center and Aquarium and Associate Dean for Outreach for the University of Southern Mississippi’s College of Marine Sciences.

Warren M. Washington, Ph.D., is the head of the Climate Change Research Section in the Climate and Global Dynamics Division at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado.

Robert M. White, D.Sc., has served in scientific leadership positions for five U.S. presidents, including as the first Administrator of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Currently, he is a principal with the Washington Advisory Group.

For more information on the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy go to: http://oceancommission.gov.


Contact:
Scott Treibitz
703-276-2772 x11

David Roscow
703-276-2772 x21

Kate Naughten
202-309-5476


(top)