EPA Appoints Director of Duluth Laboratory

Carl Richards, Ph.D. has been appointed Director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Mid-Continent Ecology Division (MED) in Duluth, Minn. The Division employs over 90 federal scientists and staff at state-of-the-art research facilities on Lake Superior and a branch office in Grosse Ile, Mich. It is part of EPA's National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, headquartered in North Carolina.

"Carl has extensive knowledge and experience in conducting and managing ecosystem research. We are pleased to have him as part of the EPA team," said Hal Zenick , Ph.D., Acting Director of the National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory.

Richards, an ecologist, has conducted a wide range of research on freshwater ecosystems, investigating how the composition and function of aquatic life in freshwater streams and rivers may be impacted by the physical habitats and land uses that surround them. This work involves examining the environment from the microscopic scale of tiny algae and micro-invertebrates to assessing the environment on a larger scale of forests and landscapes covering hundreds or thousands of square miles.

In addition to his research, Richards served as the Director of the Minnesota Sea Grant College Program, Professor of Biology at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, and Acting Director and Research Associate for the Natural Resources Research Institute. He earned his bachelor's in science from the University of Southern Mississippi; master's from California State University in Los Angeles, and doctorate from Idaho State University.

When discussing his new appointment, Richards said: "There are so many scientific questions out there about how ecosystems work and how we can better protect them. I'm excited to be here to support the scientists, and to help EPA use the talent we have to provide the research needed to make decisions on how best to protect the environment."

The primary mission of MED is to provide scientific information for use in assessing and forecasting the effects of pollutants and other stressors on the nation's freshwater resources. The laboratory conducts diverse research to address issues of national importance, including investigating ways to better measure the health of ecosystems and wildlife, and predict how they respond to changes in the environment. For more information on MED, please visit: www.epa.gov/med/. For more information on EPA's Office of Research and Development, visit www.epa.gov/ord.