Two Scientists Named to Ocean Advisory Panel

Two San Diego State University scientists have been named to the California Ocean Protection Council’s Science Advisory Team, an expert interdisciplinary group formed to address issues impacting the state’s coastal and marine ecosystems.

Eunha Hoh, professor and head of the Division of Environmental Health in the School of Public Health, and Arielle Levine, professor of geography, were appointed by the Ocean Protection Council (OPC) in May and an announcement was made today.

The OPC, part of the state’s Natural Resources Agency, was established in 2004 to help protect, conserve and maintain healthy coastal and ocean ecosystems and the economies they support. Its Science Advisory Team, created in 2008, provides scientific expertise, guidance and recommendations.

Both scientists are looking forward to serving on the advisory group.

Hoh said she is particularly interested in the protection of the ocean “from human activities, in terms of marine pollution of chemical contaminants and plastic.”

Levine said, “The primary reason I agreed to be part of the OPC Science Advisory Team is that I’d like to be able to play a role in informing and improving ocean management in California.”

The appointments are for three-year terms, which can be renewed. A third appointment to the advisory team, Laurie Richmond, an associate professor of environmental planning at CSU’s Humboldt State University, also was announced.