Nancy E. Kinner, UNH Co-Director

Nancy KinnerDr. Nancy E. Kinner is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of New Hampshire (UNH). She received an A.B. from Cornell University in Biology (Ecology and Systematics) in 1976 and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of New Hampshire in 1980 and 1983, respectively. She received an NSF Dissertation Fellowship to study protists at the Water Research Centre (UK) in 1983. Prof. Kinner joined the faculty of Civil Engineering at UNH in 1983. She has conducted funded research projects for agencies and research organizations including USEPA, NSF, AWWARF, CICEET and the NH Department of Environmental Services. She and her graduate students have authored numerous peer reviewed publications and technical reports. Prof. Kinner's research explores the role of bacteria and protists in the biodegradation of petroleum compounds and chlorinated solvents. Prof. Kinner currently serves as an advisor to the State of New Hampshire on hazardous waste bioremediation and is a member of the State's Waste Management Council. She is also a member of the editorial board of Microbial Ecology. Prof. Kinner teaches courses on environmental microbiology, marine pollution and control, the fundamentals of environmental engineering, and environmental sampling and analysis. Prior to becoming the UNH Co-Director of the Coastal Response Research Center in June 2004, she has served as the Director of the UNH Bedrock Bioremediation Center since 1998. She recently completed a CICEET-funded project on enhanced bioremediation of oil-contaminated salt marshes and will be continuing work in this area as part of her Coastal Response Research Center duties.

 




Amy MertenDr. Amy Merten is an environmental scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) in Seattle, WA, where she assesses the biological and shoreline impacts of oil and chemical spills. Dr. Merten has recently worked on several major spills, including the M/V ATHOS (Delaware River), the M/V SELENDANG AYU (Unalaska, AK), and several spills on the Mississippi corridor caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Prior to her current position, Dr. Merten was a technical science advisor to the Director of OR&R (Silver Spring, MD), providing expertise on ecological risk assessment, Brownfields redevelopment, contaminated sediment issues, and emergency response to oil spills in coastal environments. From 1992-1996, she was a natural resource analyst for PCCI Environmental Engineering, Inc. (Alexandria, VA), writing oil spill contingency plans for U.S Navy facilities and commercial oil transport clients. In that position, she served as the Navy's representative on the National Response Team's Science and Technology Committee, developing policy guidance on the use of alternative response techniques such as dispersants and in-situ burning.

Dr. Merten received her doctorate (2005) and masters (1999) degrees in Marine, Estuarine and Environmental Sciences with a specialization in Environmental Chemistry from the University of Maryland. Her research focused on the sublethal impacts of long-term exposures of dietary PAHs on the bioenergetics of and PCB bioaccumulation in a model fish, Fundulus heteroclitus and the differences in bioavailability of PAHs associated with petrogenic and pyrogenic sources. She earned a B.A. in Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 1992.

 

 

 


Joe CunninghamJoseph Cunningham received his Masters degree in Civil (Environmental) Engineering from the University of New Hampshire in 2008, and a Bachelors Degree in Environmental Science with a minor in Marine Biology from the University of New Hampshire in 2003. Prior to joining the Center, Mr. Cunningham worked as a field technician at the University of New Hampshires Bedrock Bioremediation Center and has worked for the State of New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services as a Coastal Water Quality Intern (2004) and Shellfish Program Intern (2005). Mr. Cunningham joined the Coastal Response Research Center in the fall of 2007, and provides scientific support for the center.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Kathy MandsagerKathy Mandsager received her B.A. in Education, Psychology & Sociology from Wartburg College, Waverly, IA. Just prior to joining the Center Staff, she was the Administrative Assistant in the Office of the Vice President for Research & Public Service at UNH where she coordinated the Undergraduate Research Conference and the Outreach Scholars Program. In September 2005, Ms. Mandsager joined the Center to assist in the numerous administrative and operational activities of the Center, such as RFP review processing and Workshop planning. One of her extracurricular passions is raising puppies for Canine Companions for Independence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

Zachary Magdol, Research Engineer I

Zachary MagdolZachary Magdol received his B.S. in Environmental Engineering from the University of New Hampshire in 2008. He was involved with the center as a student working on various research projects and interning with NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration in Seattle, WA. Zach has worked, as staff, for the center since October of 2009. Prior to his employment with CRRC, Zach worked at a civil engineering firm in Connecticut. As a research engineer, Zach provides scientific support for the Center’s efforts.