U-M Professor Don Scavia, director of the Graham Environmental Sustainability Institute, is testifying before the U.S. Congress Subcommittee on Energy and Environment in Washington, D.C., Thursday. The title and topic of the legislative hearing is "Harmful Algal Blooms and Hypoxia: Formulating an Action Plan."

The hearing will examine the need to address harmful algal blooms and oxygen "dead zones" in U.S. waters, including the Great Lakes, the Chesapeake Bay, the Northern Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River. In his testimony, Professor Scavia will present his expert perspectives on what research, programs and legislation are needed to move towards a national action plan for responding to the problems. He will also provide feedback to the comittee's draft legislation for the reauthorization of the Harmful Algal Blooms and Hypoxia Research and Control Act (HABHRCA).

Prior to joining the University of Michigan, Professor Scavia conducted research for the White House related to an oxygen-depleted dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico. He will draw on this research when testifying to Congress about hypoxia-its causes, consequences and controls-and how proposed legislation can help to mitigate the problems.

In addition to serving as the director of the Graham Institute, he is the Graham Family Professor of Environmental Sustainability, a professor of Natural Resources and Environment at the School of Natural Resources and Environment, and a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

More on Professor Scavia: http://sitemaker.umich.edu/scavia/scavia_home
Committee home page: http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=catego...
Latest SNRE news release on hypoxia: http://www.snre.umich.edu/newsroom/2009-06-18/snres_scavia_colleagues_pr...