2012 Clean Marina Education

Contact:

Dave White, New York Sea Grant, Recreation/Tourism Specialist, P: 315.312.3042, E: dgw9@cornell.edu

Oswego, NY, February 1, 2012 - New York Sea Grant Coastal Recreation and Tourism Specialist David White will be speaking and moderating at the 10th International Marina and Boatyard Conference (IMBC) in Lake Buena Vista, Florida this week.

White will speak at the event’s Clean Marina Workshop on aquatic invasive species management.

He will also moderate a webinar on understanding the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Standards for Boating Facilities. This program helped prompt New York Sea Grant’s Discover Clean & Safe Boating Program for which White earned a commendation from the BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety & Clean Water.

This webinar is the first in a series led by several Sea Grant programs in the Great Lakes region as part of an effort to increase Clean Marina Program participation. Webinar participants will learn about managing stormwater runoff, vessel wash wastewater treatment options, the Clean Marina program, invasive species management, and online training for marina managers.

Clean Marina programs are part of a national initiative to engage marinas and boatyards in voluntarily adopting best management practices that improve water quality, reduce environmental risk to people and aquatic life, and protect the water resources that sustain the boating industry.

White, who works out of New York Sea Grant’s Oswego, NY, office at the State University of New York at Oswego, helped organize and spoke at the first IMBC conference.

IMBC is the only conference specifically geared toward marina and boatyard owners, operators, and managers as well as dock masters, harbormasters, boat builders and repairers, and industry consultants.  

The Association of Marina Industries (AMI) produces the conference attended by more than 840 industry professionals.

The Green Marina Education and Outreach project is a strategic collaboration between Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin Sea Grant programs to support Clean Marina education and outreach efforts across the Great Lakes states. The Green Marina project is supported by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Learn more at miseagrant.umich.edu/greenmarina.

New York Sea Grant is a statewide network of integrated research, education, and extension services promoting the coastal economic vitality, environmental sustainability and citizen awareness about the State's marine and Great Lakes resources. One of 32 university-based programs under the NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program, NYSG is a cooperative program of the State University of New York and Cornell University.