Tuesday, July 8, 2008

UNLV Hires Expert on Invasive Mussels

UNLV HIRES EXPERT ON INVASIVE MUSSELS
UNLV works with Lake Mead National Recreation Area to monitor Quagga mussels

July 8, 2008

LAS VEGAS-The UNLV Public Lands Institute (PLI) and the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health in the School of Public Health have hired David Wong as research assistant professor, specializing in Quagga mussels and water dynamics. Wong is assisting in the effort to monitor and manage the invasive mussels found at Lake Mead National Recreation Area. He is also coordinating technical assistance, development, implementation, and review of monitoring programs related to limnology, ecology, toxicology, and management issues associated with Lake Mead.

Before joining UNLV, Wong worked as a senior research scientist at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. He also conducted research projects for Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium at Louisiana State University and State University of New York at Stony Brook. He has experience in developing models on the ecological impact of invasive Zebra mussels on the ecosystem structure in the Great Lakes and the Hudson River ecosystems.

Wong’s research interests are the biology and ecology of Quagga mussels and the monitoring and management of aquatic living resources and water quality. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the School of Fisheries at Ocean University of China in Qingdao and his Ph.D. from City University of Hong Kong.

UNLV has an agreement with the National Park Service to provide limnology assistance to Lake Mead with funding from the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act. UNLV and PLI researchers are collaborating with Lake Mead personnel on limnology-related technical assistance and research projects.

PLI was created in 2005 to work in collaboration with federal, state, and non-profit partners to create new knowledge, advance technology, improve education, and engage the community to enhance public lands stewardship. More information about PLI is available at Public Lands Institute.


quagga sandal

Quagga mussels shroud a sandal found at Lake Mead National Recreation Area


Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Southern Nevada Anti-Litter Program Receives National Award

Southern Nevada Anti-Litter Program Receives National Award

SOUTHERN NEVADA ANTI-LITTER PROGRAM

RECEIVES NATIONAL AWARD


July 1, 2008


LAS VEGAS – The Take Pride in America in Southern Nevada program has been named the best state program in the nation. The recognition comes from Take Pride in America, a national partnership program aimed at increasing volunteer service on America’s public lands. Each year, Take Pride selects outstanding examples of stewardship across the country. The Southern Nevada program is one of 11 national award winners, representing projects and events in more than eight states.


Take Pride in America in Southern Nevada is managed by the Public Lands Institute (PLI) at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The program creates comprehensive and coordinated campaigns to effectively encourage cleanup and discourage littering and illegal dumping. It is a conservation initiative of the Southern Nevada Agency Partnership (SNAP), a unique interagency partnership comprised of the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and U.S. Forest Service. The program is funded by the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act.


“The growth of Southern Nevada and the popularity of our public lands have an unfortunate side effect of increased littering and desert dumping,” said Angie Lara, chair of the SNAP board of directors and associate field manager of the Bureau of Land Management’s Las Vegas Field Office. “This program was created to address those issues. We are grateful for the results, the favorable response from the community, and the national recognition of our efforts.”


Initiated in 2005, the program has conducted and supported more than 60 clean-up events involving 2857 volunteers, dozens of organizations, and alternative work forces that resulted in the removal of 3,713 cubic yards of waste from public lands. If the trash was placed in cubic yard boxes and stacked on top of each other, it would reach more than 11,000 feet high, 11 times taller than the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas. The program also implemented the Don’t Trash Nevada campaign, a messaging campaign to increase awareness about littering and dumping and ways to prevent it. The campaign has generated more than one million visits to its website and enticed over one thousand people to pledge not to litter.


“We managed this program with the clear purpose of gaining an increased community sense of ownership and responsibility for the stewardship of our public lands,” said Margaret N. (Peg) Rees, PLI executive director. “We have seen the positive impact on the public lands and a greater respect for the environment in general.”


Program representatives will be among the winners to be honored at an awards ceremony on July 18 at the Department of Interior in Washington, D.C. Visit www.donttrashnevada.org for more information on Take Pride in America in Southern Nevada and Don’t Trash Nevada.

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UNLV is a doctoral-degree granting institution with more than 28,000 students and approximately 3,300 faculty and staff. Founded in 1957, the university offers more than 220 undergraduate, master's and doctoral degrees. UNLV is located on a 350-acre campus in dynamic Southern Nevada and is classified in the category of Research Universities (high research activity) by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.