Congratulations are in order for two of Third Rock's engineers. Mac Hall, EIT (pictured left, standing) recently passed his PE exam. Jared Looney (pictured right) graduated from the University of Kentucky passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam in December. Both Mac and Jared work in Third Rock's Lexington Office as Water Resource Engineers.
Third Rock ecologist James Storm recently completed the "Evaluating Acoustic Bat Surveys for ESA Compliance" course at the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) National Conservation Training Center. James is one of Third Rock's most experienced bat biologists having conducted both mist-net and acoustic surveys across the Southeastern US.
We are pleased to welcome Kenton Hall and Nathan McGregor to Third Rock this summer as interns. Nathan is pursuing a degree in Wildlife Management from Eastern Kentucky University where he will be a senior this fall. Kenton (pictured above)is a recent graduate of the University of Pikeville where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology.
The Kentucky Division of Water (KDOW) was at the office on October 22nd to perform the annual training and audit of field personnel for macroinvertebrate collection methods as specified in KDOW's "Methods for Collecting Macrobinvertebrate Samples as Required for TMDL Alternative Studies and/or Watershed Based Plans."
Third Rock ecologist Cory Bloyd traveled to North Carolina in October to participate in NC State University's River Course 201: Natural Channel Design Principles. The 3-day workshop introduced concepts of stream restoration using natural channel design techniques. Coursework included hands-on work in the field, as well as time in the classroom applying morphological design parameters to create a case study stream design for channel dimension, pattern, and profile.
Third Rock team members aren't always in the field or at the office -- sometimes they're in class! Environmental engineer Mac Hall traveled to Nashville, TN for a week long Traffic Noise Modeling Training September 10th - 14th. Participants learned how to model traffic noise, identify impacted areas, and design noise barriers to reduce the traffic noise in impacted areas.
As one of the requirements for maintaining his Qualified Data Collector status for Ohio EPA, Third Rock ecologist Bert Remley conducted macroinvertebrate sampling with Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District personnel on September 5th. Pictured here: Bert collects a riffle kick sample for macroinvertebrates in northern Ohio.
A Third Rock team of engineers and ecologists were in central Kentucky in September measuring a stream to determine if it has remained stable in the years following a stream restoration project. Pictured here: Environmental engineer Boone Proffitt, and ecologists James Storm and Ryan McGregor.
Electrofishing is a tool utilized by Third Rock ecologists to evaluate the fish community of a particular body of water. Representative pictures of each species are taken and fish are released unharmed. Pictured here: A longear sunfish is photographed after ecologists Bert Remley and Ryan McGregor employ electrofishing in a Kentucky stream in September.
