Protecting our Harbor and River Estuaries

HOBOKEN, N.J. - Two billion tons of cargo flow through our nation's waterways each year. This number is expected to triple by the year 2020. As our economy grows, can we strike a balance between economic growth and environmental protection in our harbors? What new technologies are aiding these efforts?

On the next edition of Technogenesis, Alan Blumberg, professor at Stevens Institute of Technology, Jeff Tittel, director of New Jersey Sierra Club and Matt McDermott, executive director of Nation's Port, join Stevens President Dr. Harold Raveche in an informative look at the restoration efforts of the Hudson River Harbor Estuary.

Technogenesis is a weekly TV program produced by Stevens Institute of Technology (Stevens), in cooperation with cn8, the Comcast Network. This week's program will examine the current commercial and recreational demands on the Hudson River harbor.

The Technogenesis program, "Protecting our Harbor and River Estuaries," airs at 7 p.m., on cn8, the Comcast Network, each of the following Sundays throughout New Jersey, Westchester County, New York, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia and Boston: October 19, November 2, November 16 and November 30. The program will also appear at various times throughout the week on the local Comcast outlets in Prince William and Fairfax counties, Va., as well as Prince George's County, Md. Please check for local listings.

Hosted by Stevens President Dr. Harold J. Raveche and veteran TV journalist Steve Taylor, each program includes special guests from the areas of science, technology, government, education, business or industry.

The main focus of Alan Blumberg's work is the application of oceanographic, hydraulic engineering and computer science research for the solution of practical environmental and ocean engineering problems. Efforts are directed towards understanding and predicting the flow processes operating in rivers, lakes, estuaries and the oceans. His research makes use of numerical models, laboratory experiments and field measurements to analyze the movement and mixing of fresh and salt waters and the constituents they may carry. These efforts have contributed to understanding the dynamics of estuarine and coastal ocean circulation and to the methodology of estuarine and coastal ocean forecasting.

As director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, Jeff Tittel is an advocate for environmental causes throughout the State of New Jersey. The New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club promotes the responsible use of the earth's ecosystems and resources through public education and grass roots campaigning. The organization boasts a membership of 20,000.

Matt McDermott became the executive director of Nation'sPort in 2002. Before joining Nation'sPort, McDermott had an extensive career in New Jersey state government gaining valuable management and media relations experience. Most recently, McDermott served as Deputy Commissioner for the New Jersey Department of Labor. Prior to that, he was the Director of Communications for the New Jersey Department of the Treasury and the Deputy Director of Communications and Constituent Services for the Assembly Majority Office. McDermott also spent time as the public information officer at the Assembly Minority Office.

Co-produced by Stevens and Comcast, the half-hour Technogenesis programs feature government, research and industry leaders discussing some of the most challenging real-world issues facing science and technology today.

The cn8 Comcast Network is one of the nation's largest regional cable networks reaching more than to 7 million households in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Boston.

About Stevens Institute of Technology

Founded in 1870, Stevens Institute of Technology is one of the leading technological universities in the world dedicated to learning and research. Through its broad-based curricula, nurturing of creative inventiveness, and cross disciplinary research, the Institute is at the forefront of global challenges in engineering, science, and technology management. Partnerships and collaboration between, and among, business, industry, government and other universities contribute to the enriched environment of the Institute. A new model for technology commercialization in academe, known as Technogenesis®, involves external partners in launching business enterprises to create broad opportunities and shared value.

Stevens offers baccalaureates, master’s and doctoral degrees in engineering, science, computer science and management, in addition to a baccalaureate degree in the humanities and liberal arts, and in business and technology. The university has a total enrollment of 2,150 undergraduate and 3,500 graduate students, with about 250 full-time faculty. Stevens’ graduate programs have attracted international participation from China, India, Southeast Asia, Europe and Latin America. Additional information may be obtained from its web page at www.stevens.edu.  

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