Director of SERC to serve on Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council

Joseph N. Boyer, director of the Southeast Environmental Research Center (SERC), has been appointed to serve on the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council (SAC) for a two-year term.

SAC consists of members appointed by NOAA, in consultation with the State of Florida, and includes representatives of commercial and recreational user groups, conservation NGOs, scientific and educational organizations, and members of the public interested in the protection and multiple use management of sanctuary resources.

SAC functions as a forum for consultation and deliberation between its members in order to advise and assist NOAA and the State of Florida in the development and implementation of the comprehensive plan for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

“I am very pleased to be appointed to the South Florida Ecosystem Restoration seat on the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council,” says Boyer. “I hope that my experience in south Florida marine ecosystems will help in the long-term management of the sanctuary and promote more public awareness of conservation issues in the Florida Keys.”

The FIU researcher has experience in microbial ecology and biogeochemistry of coastal oceans, estuaries, rivers and groundwater systems. His current research addresses both natural and human-induced physical/chemical effects on microbial communities and water quality. He is a past principal investigator and a present collaborator on the National Science Foundation-funded Florida Coastal Everglades LTER and directs the South Florida Coastal Water Quality Monitoring Network.