1st Annual Meeting
A Conversation on Advances in Water Science and Technology
March 12-13, 2023
SUNY ESF, Syracuse NY
This meeting brought together researchers, partners and stakeholders for in depth discussions and networking as we looked to find cooperative ways to address current and emerging water issues in New York.
Agenda
Sunday, March 12, 2023
5:00 PM Networking Dinner [Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel & Conference Center, Comstock Ballroom]
Monday, March 13, 2023
8:30 AM Poster set up [Gateway Center Atrium, SUNY ESF]
9:00 AM Check-in [Gateway Center]
9:30 AM Welcome from the Center of Excellence in Healthy Water Solutions
- Stefan Grimberg, Professor Civil & Environmental Engineering, Clarkson University
- Stephen Shaw, Associate Professor, Environmental Resources Engineering, SUNY ESF
9:45 AM Roundtable Discussion: Emerging Needs of Academia, Industry, and Regulatory Agencies
- Moderator: Michelle Crimi, Interim Vice Provost for Research & Technology, Clarkson University
- Emad Rahim, Surge Entrepreneurship Manager, CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity
- Alexander J. Smith, Bureau Director, Water Assessment and Management, Division of Water, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
- John Stella, Vice President for Research, SUNY ESF
10:30 AM Break
10:45 AM Breakout Session I: Getting Ahead of Research Needs
- PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances)
- Moderator: Michelle Crimi, Interim Vice Provost for Research & Technology, Clarkson University
- Gary Ginsberg, Director, NYS Department of Health Center for Environmental Health (CEH)
- Scott Grieco, Global Technology Leader – PFAS & Emerging Contaminants, Jacobs *
- Selma Mededovic, Professor of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Clarkson University *
- HABs (harmful algal blooms)
- Moderator: Roxanne Razavi, Assistant Professor, Environmental Biology, SUNY ESF
- Rebecca Gorney, Physical Scientist, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) *
- Igor Mrdjen, Founder, BloomOptix *
- Anthony Prestigiacomo, Research Scientist, Finger Lakes Watershed Hub, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation *
11:45 AM Poster Session – CoE Research and Results
12:30 PM Lunch
1:30 PM Breakout Session II: Academic Capabilities and Partnerships
- Water Needs of Semiconductor Fabrication Facilities
- Moderator: Stefan Grimberg, Professor Civil & Environmental Engineering, Clarkson University
- Shannon Harty, Commissioner, Onondaga County Water Environment Protection
- Jim Lozier, Global Technology Leader – Membrane Treatment / Advanced Water Solutions, Jacobs *
- David Speed, Distinguished Member Of Technical Staff, GlobalFoundries *
- Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience
- Moderator: Stephen Shaw, Associate Professor, Environmental Resources Engineering, SUNY ESF
- Jayme Breschard, Climate Action Specialist, Barton & Loguidice *
- Elizabeth Carter, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Syracuse University
- Kristen Hychka, Research and Outreach Specialist, NYS Water Resources Institute *
2:30 PM Report Out – Breakout Session Takeaways
3:00 PM Adjourn
* Presentations
Jayme Breschard, AICP, CFM, Senior Managing Community Planner-Climate Action Specialist
Rebecca M. Gorney, Ph.D., U.S. Geological Survey
Scott Grieco, PhD, PE, Global Principal & Technology Leader, Jacobs
Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience: NYS Communities in the Face of Changing Flood Regimes
Kristen Hychka, NYS Water Resources Institute, Cornell University
Water Needs for Semiconductor Facilities – What are the Issues and Challenges?
Jim Lozier, Global Principal Technologist, Jacobs
Challenges and Opportunities in PFAS Treatment by Electrical Discharge Plasmas
Selma Mededovic Thagard, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Clarkson University
Igor Mrdjen, Christopher Nack, Abby Webster, Danara Dormaeva
Anthony Prestigiacomo, NYSDEC Div. of Water, Finger Lakes Hub
David Speed, Distinguished Member Of Technical Staff, GlobalFoundries
Research Posters
Theodore Endreny and Li Zhang
Eric Levanduski, Wayne Richter, Jesse Becker, Rebecca Quail, Yasaman Hassanzadeh, Roxanne Razavi
Partnering for Eurasian Milfoil Management: One Lake Association’s Wish List, What’s on Your List?
Jane Oppenlander , E. Kurt TeKolste, Michael Schaffer, James Niles
Estefanny Quispe-Cardenas, Parker Deptula, Cynthia Huerta, Zhu Chonglin, Yinyin Ye, Siwen Wang, Yang Yang
Robust Automatic Identification of Microplastics using AI vision
Md Abdul Baset Sarker, Usama Butt, Masudul H Imtiaz, Abul Basar Baki
Characterizing Benthic Cyanobacteria and Their Toxicity in the Finger Lakes of New York State
Abby M. Webster, Lisa B. Cleckner, Gregory L. Boyer, Bofan Wei, Roxanne Razavi
Funding and Support

In 2019 New York State designated Clarkson University and SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry (ESF) to co-lead the Center of Excellence (CoE) in Healthy Water Solutions. Its mission is to generate solutions that help to protect and improve waters for sustainable natural environments, healthy populations, resilient communities and sound economies.
NYS Centers of Excellence are funded by the New York State Department of Economic Development’s Division of Science, Technology, and Innovation (NYSTAR) to foster collaboration between the academic research community and the business sector to develop and commercialize new products and technologies, to promote critical private sector investment in emerging high-technology fields in New York State, and to create and expand technology-related businesses and employment. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the New York State Department of Economic Development.