Photo Above: Denis Sheahan (L), Sheahan Communications President, with Dr Schubel, holding ash-and-cement block, a new ingredient in construction technology.
Dr. J.R. SCHUBEL, SUNY at STONY BROOK Marine Sciences Research Center Dean, spoke on “The Marine Science Research Center’s New Living Marine Resources Institute and What it Means to LI.” Created in 1968 by SUNY Trustees, the Marine Sciences Center developed quickly in areas of coastal oceanography, using science to help solve society’s problems. It has grown in 17 years to a research unit with a $4 million budget annually. Touching on the problem of garbage into ash, Schubel noted that Nassau and Suffolk counties combined create 10,000 tons of garbage per day, every day of the year, or 4 million tons per year, resulting in (if burned) 1 million tons of ash. Schubel showed an ash-and-cement block which exceeds all construction requirements in terms of strength … just one way to use the waste product. These blocks (using both fly and bottom ash) can be used for various construction projects including shoreline protection. Dr. Schubel also discussed the plight of the fisheries … important to the economy of Suffolk and all LI. NYS’s recreational fisheries realize $250 million per year, second only to Florida; while commercial fisheries give employment to 17,500 directly. In Suffolk County, the fishing Industry has more economic impact than agriculture, and mechanisms must be used to solve the current LI aquaculture problems, especially the hard clam industry, which has been impaired. Dr Schubel stated that “baymen can exist peacefully with the aquaculture research industry,” and that the UDC has programs in place to assist those suffering from the current aquacultural problems.
