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Science, Society, Solutions
USGS Science for the Great Lakes:  Preserving a Vital Resource

Second in the 2003 "Science, Society, Solutions" series

Everyone is welcome to attend this briefing. Come hear how science is providing a framework for national and international decisionmaking to keep this precious resource healthy and vital for generations.

Other Science, Society, Solutions Briefings

Directions to Rayburn House Office Building:

East on Rt. 66 over the Roosevelt Bridge; right on Independence Avenue. Follow Independence past the construction of the Botanic Gardens; right on Canal Street (2 blocks); left on D Street. Pay parking is on the right between D Street and Canal Street.

Can a water mass incorporating 95 percent of North America´s fresh surface water remain vital forever? As the Great Lakes continue to attract millions of Americans and Canadians, the increasing demand for water to support everyday life, commerce and recreation is causing concerns about the health and sustainability of the lakes and their ecosystem. USGS Science is unlocking the secrets of the Great Lakes and their connecting waterways to better understand the dynamics of the lakes and the way of life they support. Come hear how science is providing a framework for national and international decisionmaking to keep this precious resource healthy and vital for generations.

Roger L. Gauthier

Program Manager, Data and Information Management, Great Lakes Commission, Ann Arbor, Michigan. Mr. Gauthier manages projects dealing with regional air toxics inventories, emergency response planning, and information management for Great Lakes water and land resources. He is on assignment to the Commission from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District. He has over 27 years of government service. Mr. Gauthier has extensive experience in Great Lakes water level forecasting, Lakes Superior and Ontario outflow regulation, geographic information systems, and remote sensing. He is a past president of the Michigan section of the American Water Resources Association and the current U.S. lead for information management for the International Joint Commission’s Lake Ontario - St. Lawrence River Study. Mr. Gauthier graduated from Grand Valley State University in 1975.

James R. Nicholas

Chief, U.S. Geological Survey´s Michigan Water Resources District Office, Lansing. Mr. Nicholas is a member of the Council of Great Lakes Research Managers and the Resource Group for the Great Lakes Water Management Working Group of the Council of Great Lakes Governors. He is an observer to the Great Lakes Commission and chief of a bi-national research effort, under the auspices of the Great Lakes Protection Fund, to better understand the relationship of ground water to the Great Lakes. Mr. Nicholas graduated from Wheaton College and received advanced degrees from Northern Illinois University in geology and Stanford University in civil engineering.

Samuel W. Speck, Ph.D.

Director, Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Dr. Speck chairs the Board of the Great Lakes Commission and the Annex Water Management Working Group for the Council of Great Lakes Governors. Before joining the Ohio Department of Natural Resources in February 1999, Dr. Speck was president of Muskingum College in New Concord from 1988 to 1999. He served as an Associate Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency under President Ronald Reagan. He was an Ohio State Senator from 1977 to 1983, and a State Representative from 1971 to 1976. As a State Representative, he was the primary author of Ohio´s Strip Mine Reclamation Act. Dr. Speck graduated from Muskingum College and received his masters and doctoral degrees in government from Harvard University.