About the Panelists:

Carl LoBue, Ocean Program Director- The Nature Conservancy

Carl LoBue is the Ocean Program Director for The Nature Conservancy in NY.  Carl and his team focus is on protecting and restoring marine surface water quality and estuarine habitats, improving the sustainability of marine fisheries, and on enabling coexistence of vulnerable and valuable ocean resources with existing and emerging human activities such as offshore energy development. Carl is a member of NYSERDA’s Offshore Wind Environmental Technical Working Group.

Captain Dave Monti- No Fluke Fishing LLC

Dave grew up on the water and has been shell fishing, fishing, sailing and power boating all his life.  He held a scallop license on Nantucket for 15 years, where he scalloped recreationally during the fall and winter months.  Dave holds a masters captain’s license and works as a charter fishing captain that often fishes recreationally around Block Island and in the Block Island Wind Farm area.

Capt. Monti is the fishing columnist for the Providence Journal (the major daily newspaper in RI), The Sun Chronicle daily in Attleboro, MA and writes for ten weekly newspapers.  He also is a regular contributor to the Marine Fish Conservation Network blog.  Dave writes about the environment, fishing policy, regulations and ocean issues such as spatial planning, offshore wind farm development, climate change impacts of fish and fishing as well as fishing tactics and strategies.

Dave is vice chair of the RI Marine Fisheries Council, serves as 2^nd vice president for the RI Saltwater Anglers Association (the largest recreational fishing association in the northeast with over 7,500 affiliated members), is an active member of the Rhode Island Party & Charter Boat Association and is a founding board member of the American Saltwater Guides Association.

 Dr. Annie Murphy, Senior Scientist- INSPIRE Environmental Services

Dr. Annie Murphy is an ecosystem ecologist with an interest in the interactions between human activities and energy flow in marine ecosystems. Specifically, her work centers on measuring changes in benthic functioning (e.g., biogeochemical cycling) in response to human disturbance such as shellfish aquaculture, offshore wind development, and coastal nutrient and organic inputs. Annie is a senior scientist at INSPIRE Environmental, a science-based consulting company focused on the use of sediment profile imaging and underwater video to characterize benthic ecosystems. Annie earned her doctoral degree at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, College of William and Mary where her research explored the effects of shellfish aquaculture (clams and oysters) on sediment carbon and nitrogen cycling in coastal embayments in Virginia and Italy. Annie then worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Northeastern University where she used molecular techniques to study the influence of nutrient inputs to salt marsh habitats on microbial community composition and biogeochemical cycling. More recently she has been involved in developing monitoring programs using non-invasive underwater imagery technologies to monitor the biological growth on offshore wind turbines and the subsequent organic enrichment in the sediments surrounding these novel structures.

Dr. Andrew Rella, Director of Industry Development- ECOncrete

 Dr. Andrew Rella is a Coastal and Environmental Engineer specializing in nature inclusive design of shoreline stabilization and flood protection measures, with ten years’ experience in the design, permitting and construction of natural and nature-based features within coastal and marine infrastructure schemes. Currently serving as the Technical Director of Business Development for ECOncrete Inc. (www.econcretetech.com), a company offering innovative ecological solutions for concrete based coastal, marine and offshore infrastructure. Previously, Andrew worked as a postdoctoral researcher and lecturer at Stevens Institute of Technology where his experience included being a member of the Coordinating Team of the Hudson River Sustainable Shorelines Project, consulting with the NJ USACE and American Littoral Society, developing workshops for the Departments of Remediation and Environmental Protection, as well as co-authoring the NJDEP Living Shorelines Engineering Guidelines.  Andrew is also currently working with the New York City Economic Develop Corporation to develop oyster encasement technologies for enhancing marine piles.  Andrew has a Ph.D. in Ocean Engineering from the Center of Maritime Systems at Stevens Institute. He holds a B.E. in Environmental Engineering and a M.E. in Ocean Engineering, with a concentration in Coastal Engineering

Harbor Safety and Navigation

January 26, 2022
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. EST

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About the Speaker:

Sean Kline, Director of Maritime Affairs- Chamber of Shipping of America

Sean is the Director of Maritime Affairs at the Chamber of Shipping of America and has over 20 years of experience in maritime operations and policy. He sailed as a deck officer on various types of ships worldwide and after coming ashore, held positions as Director of Marine Safety and Standards at Maersk Line, Limited; Manager of Security and Audits at the Liberian Registry; and Regulatory Development Manager for the U.S. Coast Guard.

Sean is a graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point and holds Merchant Mariner licenses and various Lead Auditor certifications. He was appointed by the Secretary of DHS to the National Maritime Security Advisory Committee and previously the Navigation Safety Advisory Committee. He is an Industry Expert on BIMCO’s Maritime Safety & Security Committee and Maritime Security Advisory Committee at U.S. State Department. Sean co-founded the Maritime Exchange for Digital Security and also sits on the international industry roundtable cyber security working group that developed and revises the “The Guidelines on Cyber Security Onboard Ships”.

Port Development Considerations for Offshore Wind

January 12, 2022
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. EST

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About the Speaker:

Brent D. Cooper, P.E., Project Manager- COWI

Brent D. Cooper, P.E., is a Project Manager with COWI.  Brent has over 14 years’ experience providing engineering solutions to offshore wind and marine terminal infrastructure projects, especially as they relate to the design of wind turbine foundations, substation foundations, and fabrication and staging port facilities.  Brent is responsible for business development and project delivery to a diverse range of clients, including Federal and state agencies, utilities, as well as private and commercial clients.  As a project manager, Brent manages a technically and geographically diverse team of subject matter experts within the U.S. and across the global COWI organization.  Brent and his team provide services through the full Lifecyle of a project, including planning, analysis, engineering, construction, structural condition monitoring and assessment, rehabilitation, and decommissioning.