Founding Chairman of NAMEPA (North American Marine Environment Protection Association Clay Maitland unveiled plans to debut NAMEPA’s 2010 Seminar Series in San Francisco on March 9 at the Marines Memorial Club. The title of the seminar is “Environmental Intelligence in Shipping”. The seminar will kick off at 0800 with coffee and registration and end with a luncheon featuring an address by VADM Jody Breckenridge, USCG Commander Pacific Area.
“The purpose of NAMEPA’s Seminar Series is to bring together stakeholders in the marine community to discuss concerns and actions that address marine environment protection” stated Mr. Maitland. “The goal of these discussions is to create greater awareness of the issues and the work that is being undertaken to mitigate potential problems, and to foster collaboration amongst the stakeholders.”
Kevin Krick, Director of Environmental Affairs Global for APL Ltd. will lead the proceedings with an overview of industry best practices. He will be followed by a panel on air emissions moderated by USCG Captain John Bingaman, and featuring Sarah Flagg, Air Quality Program Manager for the Port of Seattle; T.L. Garrett of the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association (PMSA), and Damian Breen, Grants Manager for Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD).
The Wreck Waste Removal Programs panel will include presentations by Dr. Dagmar Schmidt Etkin, President of Environmental Research Consulting; Dave Westerholm, Director , Office of Response and Restoration for NOAA; and Tim Beaver, CEO for Global Diving & Salvage. The panel will be moderated by Captain John Caplis, who will be assuming nationwide duties as the Chief of Incident Management and Preparedness at Coast Guard Headquarters later this year, where he will oversee environmental response policy for the entire Coast Guard.
Clay Maitland will head the panel on noise emissions, where an assembled group of experts will address the impact of maritime noise on aquatic species. Dr. Tracy Romano, a Senior Vice President at Sea Research Foundation in Mystic, Connecticut, and a founder of the field of marine mammal neuroimmunology and leader in the field of marine mammal health, will be joined by Jackie Dragon, Pacific Environment’s Marine Sanctuaries Campaign Program Director and Captain Blaine Collins of Det Norske Veritas.
The luncheon keynote speaker is VADM Jody Breckenridge who heads the Pacific Area for the USCG.
The event will be held at the Marines Memorial Club in San Francisco, CA. The cost to attend the seminar and luncheon is $75 per person. For more information, or to make reservations, go to www.namepa.net/events.html, send an email to executivedirector@namepa.net, or call 203 255 4686. Sponsors of the event to date include APL Ltd., Blank Rome LLP/LLC, and Sea Research Foundation.