Master's Thesis:

An Evaluation of User Activities to Determine the Most Effective Use of Fiscal and Administrative Resources at a National Seashore Facility

For this thesis, Mr. Weir surveyed users of Fire Island National Seashore about their varying needs. The survey was an effort to update a 1974 survey that was part of a process to develop a master plan for the Fire Island National Seashore. Weir chose the busiest travel period, Sunday afternoons, to hand out the surveys and eight hundred and forty-eight people in six different communities on Fire Island completed the survey.

He identified safety and serenity as among the most important needs of the visitors. From analysis of the survey results he made several suggestions for management of Fire Island National Seashore.

Freudenthal & Elkowitz Consulting Group, Inc.

Ms. Edick-Parvis was primarily responsible for researching and writing Phase I environmental audits. The audits assess a property to determine if it contains environmental hazards. These assessments are often necessary whenever a property owner wants to sell or refinance property.

An audit surveys several aspects of a property's environment. It examines the geographical location including proximity to environmentally sensitive areas. The audit pages through the history of the property showing any environmental violations and inspects the area for hazardous materials. And the audit looks at the history and current state of the surrounding area including the presence of hazardous waste sites and how the surrounding land is used and zoned.

Some of her time was spent helping to research and write an Environmental Impact Statement for Fresh Kills Landfill on Staten Island, the largest manmade structure in the world. The report was a step towards helping the landfill obtain a permit so it could continue to function as the primary landfill serving New York City.

She also set up a database of hazardous spills using information from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation as a reference when conducting audits. Another of her tasks was to help applicants fill out environmental permits for building projects.

Environmental Resources Management; London, England

For her internship, Ms. Walters helped prepare environmental impact statements for some ongoing projects in England including a subway, part of the English Channel railroad system and Heathrow airport expansion. As a first duty, she learned to write proposals, an important part of winning jobs for the company.

She researched sites extensively by phone and, under supervision, completed a portion of an Environmental Impact Statement. She gathered regional planning policies, information on socio-economic impacts, and other relevant information in assessing environmental impact.

Town of North Hempstead Dept. of Planning

Mr. Zabransky revised policies for the town of North Hempstead's Local Waterfront Revitalization Program. His objective was to make the broad policies specific to the town. He modified the existing policies. The revised policies then required approval from the Commissioner of the Department of Planning and review from the Ecological Commission of the town.

The policies he worked with included one to revitalize dilapidated waterfront areas, another that would ensure that enough property would be allocated for water dependent uses, and another to protect and enhance the traditional uses of the smaller harbors. He revised 43 policies all meant to protect and revitalize the waterfront area.

U.S. Geological Survey

Ms. Candela took part in a project to reexamine and remap the groundwater resources north shore of Nassau County, Long Island. The study would determine the regional groundwater levels and the extent of saltwater intrusion. In the field, she tabulated data, and maintained the wells and checked their water levels. She collected core samples used in determining the geology of a region. Water was sampled and tested for potability. Ms. Candela graphed well levels to determine water table trends over the months. The data were analyzed to determine the vulnerability of an area to saltwater intrusion.

New York City Department of Environmental Protection

Mr. Malone's conducted research for a database for monitoring lead in drinking water.

South Florida Natural Resource Center, Everglades National Park

AmeriCorps Volunteer Research Assistant

Ms. Freeman lived and worked in Everglades National Park participating in a Seagrass Habitat Study. She assisted in the fieldwork during the sampling sessions and identified the different aquatic species. Away from the field she maintained a water quality database. She analyzed seagrass and sediment samples. The sediment samples were sorted by grain size and baked in a furnace to measure their organic content. She attended conferences on Florida Bay, and the Florida Keys Marine Sanctuary among others.

Virginia Department of Air Pollution Control

Assistant to the Legislative Liason

Ms. Cohen assisted in tracking legislative activities that might affect the Virginia Department of Air Pollution Control. The legislative liason reviews bills that are introduced to the Virginia General Asembly to determine if they will impact the department. Any bills that come into question are then summarized and passed on to different divisions in the department so that they may recommend what action to take. They looked at 50 bills, 13 of which were signed into law.

After the General Assembly adjourned, Ms. Cohen spent the rest of her internship as an information liason for the department's policy making board. She was appointed as a neutral party to supply information to the board involved in a sensitive pollution case. Ms. Cohen researched and summarized information that the board would use to make its decision. She accumulated additional evidence by attending public meetings, gathering public comment and attending a public hearing on the issue.

Staten Island/New Jersey Urban Air Toxics Assesment Project

Mr. Corbett assisted with the completion of the Staten Island/New Jersey Urban Air Toxics Assessment Project, a study prompted by high cancer rates on Staten Island as well as its chronic pool of foul smelling air. Along with other personnel, Corbett reviewed the report checking facts and confirming pollution data. He also assisted with the procurement, printing and tracking process for the 2400 page report.

Mr. Corbett produced a fact sheet to brief the Commissioners of the NYSDEC and the NJDEPE, the respective state environmental offices for New York and New Jersey, as well as elected officials and the media. He also helped develop a larger, 54 page Public Information Summary Document, which summarized the report and, like the fact sheet, would be used to brief elected officials, the media and other concerned parties. Corbett organized the summary and rewrote sections that were hard to understand. He checked facts and data to make sure they were consistent with the main report.

New York State Legislative Commission on Water Resource Needs of Long Island

Rolf Enquist - 1992

Environmental Strategies Corporation

Mr. Enquist's main responsibility was to provide technical support for the staff environmental scientists, engineers and administrators. He researched environmental regulations and superfund site information. He also researched the Superfund Accelerated Cleanup Model as well as some of the pilot programs. Enquist then prepared an outline of the pilot programss. Using the computer program LOTUS, Enquist prepared a chlorinated solvent reference table for the staff. Mr Enquist was responsible for carrying out the steps of the permitting process related to the removal and monitoring of a gasoline storage tank.

County of Sacramento, Department of Public Works

Solid Waste Management Division

Recycling Specialist Commercial Programs

As a commercial program specialist Mr. Febbo conducted meetings with the companies that collect recyclables for the unincorporated area of Sacramento county. He also recommended changes in permit policies to implement recycling programs for private hauling companies that transport commercial waste. Mr. Febbo was responsible for researching and evaluating Northern California waste dumps with the eventual goal of creating a facility for commercial and industrial areas.

He evaluated existing recycling programs to use as models and monitored pilot programs in the Sacramento region. With the goal of increasing the level of recycling among area businesses, Febbo developed an outreach program to promote communication between commercial establishments, refuse haulers, and recycling companies.

Babylon Barrier Beach Ad Hoc Committee

Study of Environmental Effects of Barrier Beach Communities on Salt Marshes.

To determine the health of the salt marshes, Ms. Gallery conducted a marsh grass biomass study. The presence of marsh grass in a good indicator of the health of the salt marsh. She collected samples from strategic points in the salt marsh and then analysed the compiled data.

Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary, Oyster Bay, NY
and Marshland Conservancy

Regina Parry Green - 1992

Theodore Roosevelt Bird Sanctuary

EEA Incorporated

Ms. Glavas worked in a group that performs hazardous materials site assessments for banks and other clients. She conducted background research on properties in question. This required examining the history of the site, checking the prior uses of the land, and calling the various regulatory agencies, for information. She assisted in site investigations and was assigned to write a report.

Marlena Hamann - 1994

Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary

At the Sanctuary Ms. Hamann was responsible for a variety of public outreach tasks. She answered phones and people's questions. She assisted in the sanctuary's programs--fund raising, helping to rehabilitate animals, giving small talks, doing mailings, and taking care of the animals. She also helped produce educational materials for the programs the Sanctuary conducts for school children.

Air Pro Systems 

Mr. Hershkowitz worked with a company that provides products and services to reduce indoor air pollution. He helped design a retrofit for a duct system at an engineering building at JFK International Airport to alleviate the problem of CO2 leaking into the building. He worked on projects at other sites including an insurance company, a printing company, and a dentist's office. He marketed the company's products and gave talks on the causes of indoor air pollution.

Energy and Environmental Analysts, Inc.

Mr. Jaikishan interned at Energy and Environmental Analysts, Inc. (EEA) a consulting firm that does environmental impact studies for clients such as corporations, banks, developers, and government organizations. He conducted record searches of properties to determine if hazardous wastes have ever been used at the site. He surveyed government sources trying to collect an environmental history of the area. He also went to individual properties accompanying investigators on site inspections. This information was then used to support an environmental impact statement.

Yates County Soil and Water Conservation District

Mr. Maxwell helped assemble a computer model that aided the district in managing the watershed and updated a database monitoring farm use and erosion problems. He mapped the boundaries of the watershed by referring to topographic maps and aerial photos. Then he analyzed the photos to determine features such as forests, ponds, wetlands, farmland, and residencies. Each individual land use was then recorded and cataloged. He sampled lake water determining the concentration of nutrients and coliform. He also checked for zebra mussels in a nearby lake. He assisted the district in creating artificial ponds, checking the feasibility of such a project, and digging the pond.

Environmental Protection and Encouragement Agency

Ms. Mix interned with an international environmental science advisory group. She took part in projects to help a German company find more efficient ways to freeze and package frozen foods, help a group in Germany evaluate the feasability of community-scale wind farms, to study the use of biomass for treatment of sewage, and study the effect of pesticides and toxic wastes on children and nursing mothers. She also translated german reports into english.

Babylon Barrier Beach Ad Hoc Committee

The Babylon Beach Ad Hoc Committee was a non-profit organization trying to prevent the State of New York from evicting over 400 hundred families from their beach front homes. The State thought the homes were helping to destroy the environment. With the cooperation of several environmental consulting firms, the committee sudied the environmental impact of the homes. They found the environmental impact not to be serious enought to warrant eviction. As part of an agreement with the State of New York, the committee continues to asess the environmental impact of the surrounding homes.

Ms. Nichtern participated in a study of the environmental impact of six communities. The study looked at salt marsh cordgrass growth as an indicator of ecological health near the beaches. According to this measure no significant environmental impact was documented near these communities. She then wrote a report documenting the findings.

American Re-Fuel

Parchinski interned with a company that incinerated trash while simultaneously generating electricity. His responsibility was to make sure the company met environmental regulatory compliance and the incinerator didn't exceed emission standards. He also led tours of the facility and answered questions from interested companies and residents.

Ambient Labs Inc.

New York City Parks Department;
and United States Geological Survey

Tree Survey Team, Prospect Park 

Dru Associates; Impact Environmental