[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 143 (Wednesday, October 22, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S10998]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   THE 1997 WALTER B. JONES MEMORIAL AND NOAA EXCELLENCE AWARDS FOR 
                 COASTAL AND OCEAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

 Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, this morning the National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration [NOAA] presented the 1997 Walter B. 
Jones Memorial and NOAA Excellence Awards for Coastal and Ocean 
Resource Management. A number of distinguished citizens, students, and 
public servants were honored for their commitment to the protection, 
conservation, and sustainable use of our Nation's precious coastal 
resources. I would like to offer my praise and admiration to all of the 
award recipients for their hard work and dedication to this critical 
area of ecological and economic concern.
  Over one-half of the U.S. population resides within 50 miles of the 
coast. All of these people and the associated development and other 
activities that accompany them place extraordinary pressure on the 
ecosystems, watersheds, and communities on our coasts. Coastal areas 
provide incredible commercial, recreational, and aesthetic benefits to 
the American people. The Walter B. Jones and NOAA awards recognize 
individuals who have taken on the challenge of protecting these coastal 
areas and ensuring these benefits are not lost.
  While I congratulate all of the award recipients, I would like to 
acknowledge two Washington State recipients in particular. Recipients 
of the Excellence in Coastal and Marine Graduate Study Award, Lillian 
Ferguson and John Field, from the University of Washington School of 
Marine Affairs. I am honored to have these two bright graduate students 
represent Washington State and our commitment to the protection of 
coastal areas.
  Lillian Ferguson's works focuses on management of maritime 
transportation and marine protected areas. As a summer intern (1996) 
for the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary [OCNMS] she developed a 
program for documentation and analysis of vessel traffic in the 
congested entrance and approaches to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Her 
work formed the basis for recent implementation of the program by the 
OCNMS this year. This prototype program may be suitable for adoption in 
many similar situations in the United States and abroad. During the 
academic year 1996-97, Lillian is the Project Assistant for the Safe 
Marine Transportation Forum [SMART Forum]. In this capacity she 
promotes dialogue among more than 20 stakeholder interests on marine 
safety and transportation on Puget Sound. Lillian has also contributed 
as a research assistant to the National Coastal Zone Management 
Effectiveness Study recently completed for OCRM/NOAA. Her thesis work 
analyzes the development of interjurisditional collaboration in 
managing marine environments between the NMS Program and the U.S. 
National Park Service. Lillian has made significant contributions with 
the work she has already completed. Her thesis should be quite 
informative and valuable in improving interjurisdictional cooperation 
between the NMS Program and other Federal and State entities.
  John Field's work focuses on the initial impacts of regional climate 
change. For approximately 2 years John has been a Research Assistant in 
the Integrated Regional Assessment Program for the Pacific Northwest 
sponsored by NOAA through the Joint Institute for Study of the 
Atmosphere and Ocean [JISAO, Principal Investigator Ed Miles]. His role 
and responsibilities have been especially difficult to perform given 
the scant attention to systematic monitoring of coastal impacts. John 
has done a superb job of combining disparate data sets, anecdotal 
information, and informed experience to document key issues and trends 
relevant to projected Global Climate Change scenarios. His efforts form 
the stage on which interdisciplinary team-based integration can take 
place. John coauthored with Marc Hershman a report on this work and is 
currently completing his thesis documenting and expanding somewhat on 
the findings. This research should assist the development of coastal 
impact scenarios under regional climate change assessments elsewhere. 
Besides this work John has been the coordinator for a very successful 
joint seminar between the School of Marine Affairs and the fishing 
industry. In addition, John has been working during the summer on a 
seabed coring project led by Prof. Robert Francis to obtain Paleo-
records of fish and shellfish abundance in the North Pacific.
  Both of these award recipients have worked hard for the sake of our 
coastal resources in Washington State. As they move on from graduate 
work and enter the work force either in public service, nongovernmental 
organizations, or private industry, I know they will continue in their 
commitment to the protection, conservation, and sustainable use of our 
coastal resources. With students such as Lillian and John in our 
graduate schools, I am confident about the future of our coastal areas 
as the challenges confronting these areas and those of us who care 
about them become increasingly complex. And to Lillian and John, 
congratulations.

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