News Archive 2009

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For more information on any of the items listed here, please contact Rhode Island Sea Grant Communications at (401) 874-6800.

Sea Grant events

September 16, 2009
Seafood Cooking Demonstration at the Narragansett Community Center
53 Mumford Rd., Narragansett
6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Join chef and cookbook author Normand Leclair for a seafood cooking demonstration at the Narragansett Community Center featuring yellowfin tuna and mahi mahi, with samples for the audience. Copies of his book Culinary Expressions will be available for purchase.

The community center is located at 53 Mumford Rd., Narragansett, across from the Narragansett Elementary School and Sprague Field.

This is part of the 10th Annual Summer Community Lecture Series sponsored by Rhode Island Sea Grant, the URI Cooperative Extension/Nutrition and Food Sciences Department, the R.I. Ocean Special Area Management Plan, and the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council. This event is also sponsored by the Town of Narragansett/Parks and Recreation. The demonstration is free, but seating is limited, so you must contact Rhode Island Sea Grant at (401) 874-6800 to reserve your seat.

September 10, 2009
Farming the Deep Blue: Opportunities for Increasing Sustainable Seafood Production in New England
6 p.m. Light supper, 7 p.m. Lecture
URI Graduate School of Oceanography Coastal Institute, South Ferry Road, Narragansett
Directions

Near-shore aquaculture is constrained by social, environmental, political, and other concerns, but open-ocean aquaculture offers the potential to not only grow seafood to serve the country's growing demand, but also, in New England, to be a sustainable alternative for fishing communities, preserve working waterfronts, and generate substantial economic activity in coastal communities. Dr. Richard Langan, director of the Coastal and Ocean Technology Program at the University of New Hampshire, will discuss this, along with the potential for co-location of offshore energy and food production facilities. Sponsored by the R.I. Ocean SAMP. Free.

This lecture is free, but seating is limited. To reserve your place, contact Tracy Kennedy at (401) 874-6800.

August 13, 2009
U.S. Offshore Wind Technology: Opportunities and Challenges
7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
North Kingstown Free Library, 100 Boone St., Wickford
 
The 28 coastal states in the continental United States consume 78 percent of the nation's electricity, and electric rates in New England are already greater than 50 percent of the average national rate. These factors, along with an immense potential for generating energy, make offshore wind development a promising option. Offshore wind can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, and provide a more secure national energy supply. Although offshore energy shows great promise for future U.S. energy supplies, this presentation will address the specific challenges and barriers that offshore wind development faces today. By Walt Musial, principal engineer,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, National Wind Technology Center, Golden, Colo. Musial serves on the International Energy Agency’s Ocean Energy Systems Executive Committee. Free. Part of the the 2009 Summer Community Lecture Series sponsored by Rhode Island Sea Grant, URI Cooperative Extension/Nutrition and Food Sciences Department, the R.I. Ocean SAMP, and the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council. This lecture is also sponsored by the North Kingstown Free Library.

For more information and to reserve your seat please contact Rhode Island Sea Grant at (401) 874-6800.  

August 6, 2009
Rhode Island Ocean Zoning: Where NOT to Put a Wind Farm in Rhode Island Waters
7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
South Kingstown Peace Dale Library, 1057 Kingstown Rd., Peace Dale

Work is underway to gather data to assist in siting offshore renewable energy facilities (wind farms) in R.I. coastal waters. Environmental conditions, existing uses, ecological impacts, and technological constraints are all factors to determine viable sites for offshore energy development. Malcolm Spaulding, URI professor of ocean engineering, will describe the marine spatial planning approach that is being used. This work is being done as part of the R.I. Ocean Special Area Management Plan to zone Rhode Island’s waters. Free. Part of the the 2009 Summer Community Lecture Series sponsored by Rhode Island Sea Grant, URI Cooperative Extension/Nutrition and Food Sciences Department, the R.I. Ocean SAMP, and the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council.

For more information and to reserve your seat please contact Rhode Island Sea Grant at (401) 874-6800 or the Peace Dale Library at (401) 789-1555.

July 16, 2009
Offshore Wind Farms - The Coast Guard Review Process
7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
North Kingstown Free Library, 100 Boone St., Wickford

Edward G. LeBlanc, U.S. Coast Guard Commander (retired), is chief of the Waterways Management Division for Coast Guard Sector Southeastern New England, an area that includes Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island Sound, Buzzards Bay, Nantucket Sound, and all ocean waters adjacent to Rhode Island, Southeastern Massachusetts, and Cape Cod. His division ensures navigation safety through a variety of preventative measures including aids-to-navigation, vessel traffic management, boating safety education, and compliance with federal regulations. The Waterways Management Division also reviews any proposed facility or activity that may impact navigation on a federal waterway, such as offshore renewable energy installations (e.g., wind farms), dredging and bridge maintenance operations, and marine regattas. Part of the the 2009 Summer Community Lecture Series sponsored by Rhode Island Sea Grant, URI Cooperative Extension/Nutrition and Food Sciences Department, the R.I. Ocean SAMP, and the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council. These lectures are free, but seating is limited. Please contact Rhode Island Sea Grant at (401) 874-6800 to reserve your seat.

June 18, 2009
Understanding Climate Change: What it Means for Rhode Islanders
7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Newport Public Library Program Room, 300 Spring St., Newport

Global climate change and sea level rise effects are already being seen in Rhode Island in rising temperatures, erosion, and increased flooding. URI GSO Associate Dean and Ocean Engineering Professor Kate Moran and URI Coastal Resources Center/Rhode Island Sea Grant Coastal Management Extension Specialist Pam Rubinoff have studied climate change and coastal issues around the world and will speak about what changes Rhode Islanders can expect in the coming years as well as an innovative project the state is working on to develop offshore renewable energy resources. Part of the the 2009 Summer Community Lecture Series sponsored by Rhode Island Sea Grant, URI Cooperative Extension/Nutrition and Food Sciences Department, the R.I. Ocean SAMP, and the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council. These lectures are free, but seating is limited. Please contact Rhode Island Sea Grant at (401) 874-6800 to reserve your seat.

April 16, 2009
The Making of New International Maritime Law - UNCITRAL and the 2009 Rotterdam Rules
4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.  (program and reception)
Room 283 - Roger Williams University Law School
*Open to the Public*

A 1924 convention, the "Hague Rules," governing liability for loss and damage to cargo in international trade, is soon to be replaced. UNCITRAL (United Nations Commission on International Trade Law) recently completed work on the "Rotterdam Rules." This program will examine the six-year negotiation process and implications for marine cargo interests and carriers. Attorneys who served on the U.S. UNCITRAL delegation from government and private practice will provide their insights into the intricate process of creating new international law, review the content and status of the Rotterdam Rules, discuss prospects for ratification, and examine the ramifications for U.S. ocean and intermodal commerce.
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Wednesday, February 18, 2009
URI Sustainable Seafood Initiative reception

Time: 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Place: Galanti Lounge, URI Library, Kingston
RSVP: Tracy Kennedy, Rhode Island Sea Grant, (401) 874-6800 or
tkennedy@gso.uri.edu

From ecolabels on fish at the local supermarket to seafood guides from environmental organizations, seafood lovers face an array of sometimes conflicting advice about what choices are sustainable. Environmental and Natural Resource Economics Professor Cathy Roheim is the director of the URI Sustainable Seafood Initiative, a clearinghouse of information on the issue of sustainable seafood and on the various approaches being used to promote demand for sustainable seafood and the efficacy of those approaches. Roheim will discuss the initiative and unveil its web site at 4 p.m.

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