Welcome to Applied Marine Sciences
AMS is a California-certified, Small Business Enterprise with state-wide offices in Livermore, Santa Cruz, and San Diego, California. AMS utilizes a well-trained, highly qualified staff of scientists to provide timely, effective, and innovative solutions for our clients. We deliver a focused suite of services in support of ecological assessment, water quality, regulatory compliance, energy and infrastructure, restoration, and remediation projects.
AMS Delivers Quality Results for a Wide Range of Clients
Ecological Assessments
Ecological assessments are essential for tracking ecosystem behavior, determining the magnitude of anthropogenic impacts and disturbances, assessing the performance of strategies for mitigating the effects of particular projects, and for documenting restoration efforts. AMS designs and implement studies across a wide variety of environments, utilizing the most effective assessment tools for each.
Water Quality Monitoring
AMS has been instrumental in the design, implementation, and management of several long-term water quality monitoring programs in the San Francisco Bay area and along the Central Coast of California. These programs assess the potential impacts of both non-point source discharges and point source discharges including wastewater.
Regulatory Compliance Monitoring
AMS performs accurate and effective environmental analyses based on a thorough understanding of applicable national and state regulations. Our Environmental Impact studies, Natural Resource Damage Assessment studies and related efforts have helped numerous clients achieve compliance. AMS has prepared numerous California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents.
Energy and Infrastructure
AMS has provided an important service in supporting large-scale energy and infrastructure projects planned and executed in and around the aquatic environment. We have worked for project developers, natural resource management, and regulatory agencies to ensure that project design and implementation are consistent with all relevant environmental regulations. Completed projects encompass a variety of industrial sectors, including oil and gas, renewable energy, communications, water supply, and transportation.
Environmental Program Management
AMS personnel work at the nexus of science and policy and have an extensive history of using science-based inquiry to support sound decision making in multi-stakeholder processes. Our management strategy utilizes a comprehensive understanding of local, state, federal, and international regulations, familiarity with relevant research, and careful consideration of current political realities in the system under study to guide the stakeholder process.
Project Highlights
Biological Monitoring Survey Design Review
AMS led a Monitoring Design Review under the direction of an interagency Steering Committee to examine opportunities to improve the design of five existing biological monitoring surveys in the San Francisco Bay-Delta to address current management needs. AMS was under contract to ICF through funding provided by the USBR, as the principal investigator on an evaluation and analysis of five biological monitoring surveys.
Central Coast Long-term Environmental Assessment Network
CCLEAN is a long-term regional monitoring program that assists municipal agencies and resource managers in the fulfillment their roles as environmental stewards by providing information needed to protect the quality of nearshore marine waters in the Monterey Bay area. AMS led the effort to design the Central Coast Long-Term Environmental Assessment Network (CCLEAN) regional monitoring program.
NEPA Analysis of the Mobile Ocean Test Berth
AMS provided expertise in marine habitat, biota, and fisheries in assessing the potential impacts from a mobile ocean-testing berth operated by Oregon State University offshore Newport, Oregon for the Department of Energy. This floating facility will be used by wave energy conversion developers to test and improve the efficiency and operational capability of current and future ocean energy technology.
Our Staff
Dovlynn Cammack
Business Manager, Principal
Since joining AMS, Dovlynn Cammack has been active in office management, corporate insurance, staff resources, benefit administration and IT programs. Dovlynn specializes in accounting, financial reporting, income statements, balance sheets and budget development. She has performed logistics for field planning, equipment procurement and management, shipping of hazardous materials, and assisted in scientific collection efforts and transportation.
Ellen Goldenberg
Marine/Aquatic Scientist
Ellen Goldenberg is a scientist specializing in temperate and tropical aquatic fish and benthic communities. Ms. Goldenberg earned an MS in Marine Biology from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida where she worked as a full-time research assistant in the Coral Reef Restoration, Assessment and Monitoring Lab. She served as the first manager of the Broward County Nearshore Transects project, which is a long-term government funded effort designed to examine the impacts of beach nourishment on coastal benthic habitats in Southeast Florida.
Dane Hardin
Senior Marine Scientist, Principal
Dane Hardin’s studies have a strong quantitative emphasis that involves use of data from numerous available sources to help explain variations in water quality measurements. He is the Executive Director of the Central Coast Long-term Environmental Assessment Network (CCLEAN), which is a regional water quality monitoring program in Monterey Bay, California. He also recently directed a large regional monitoring program to address discharges of stormwater in Areas of Special Biological Significance along the central California coast.
Jay Johnson
Senior Oceanographer, Principal
Jay Johnson has over 30 years professional experience in applied marine and aquatic sciences, environmental consulting and program management. He has extensive experience in dealing with complex scientific regulatory and environmental issues, effectively interacting with local, state, national and international agencies, developing and implementing cost effective due diligence, baseline and impact monitoring programs and assessing and alleviating environmental impacts.
Aroon Melwani
Senior Scientist, Principal
Aroon Melwani is a senior marine scientist specializing in experimental design, sample collection, and quantitative analysis of environmental data. He has over 16 years experience supporting local, regional and state agencies on sediment and water quality, contaminant bioaccumulation, and biological assessments. His technical expertise includes data management, statistical analysis, data integration, empirical modeling, and R programming.
Paul Salop
Senior Scientist, Principal
Paul Salop has over 15 years of experience working for consulting firms and state and Federal agencies. Paul is currently serving as Project Manager for AMS in its role supporting the Alameda Countywide Clean Water Program’s (ACCWP) stormwater monitoring and watershed management efforts, managing all field collection efforts and field quality control for the Status and Trends Component of the Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in the San Francisco Estuary.
Erika Senyk
Marine/Aquatic Scientist
Erika Senyk is a Marine/Aquatic Scientist at Applied Marine Sciences (AMS) assisting in projects including water quality assessments and quantifying the impacts of marine plastics in local marine environments. She has over seven years of experience managing and performing field studies in both marine and freshwater ecosystems. She measured nutrient levels and performed water and soil quality assessments in urban and rural lakes, streams, rivers, and wetlands in Minnesota, as well as in coastal areas of the Monterey Bay region.
Robert Spies
Senior Scientist, Principal
Bob Spies has 35 years experience in applied marine ecology and its application to management. He has investigated the fate and effects of radionuclides, petroleum hydrocarbons, and chlorinated hydrocarbons in marine ecosystems. Specific research projects conducted over his career have included investigations into the effects of organic contaminants on endocrinology and reproduction of starry flounder in San Francisco Bay and kelp bass in southern California.
Diane Stafford
Senior Administrative Assistant
At AMS, Diane Stafford specializes in the set-up and creation of detailed invoices tailored to meet client needs and performs monthly invoicing and accounts receivables. Diane is proficient in MS Excel and Word, and uses such to prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual reporting. She also handles insurance and compliance, expense reimbursements, business licensing and permits, logistics for field planning, equipment procurement and management
Theresa Venello
Senior Oceanographer
Theresa Venello is a Biological Oceanographer specializing in pelagic marine ecosystem responses to climate change. Her work prior to joining Applied Marine Sciences (AMS) included investigating planktonic crustacean physiological responses to ocean acidification in Polar regions as well as zooplankton community responses to the 2015 Marine Heatwave event in the NE Pacific known as “The Blob”. Theresa also used a functional assessment approach to examine changes in ecological roles of zooplankton species over a 30-year time frame.
Our Staff
Dovlynn Cammack
Business Manager, Principal
Since joining AMS, Dovlynn Cammack has been active in office management, corporate insurance, staff resources, benefit administration and IT programs. Dovlynn specializes in accounting, financial reporting, income statements, balance sheets and budget development. She has performed logistics for field planning, equipment procurement and management, shipping of hazardous materials, and assisted in scientific collection efforts and transportation.
Ellen Goldenberg
Marine/Aquatic Scientist
Ellen Goldenberg is a scientist specializing in temperate and tropical aquatic fish and benthic communities. Ms. Goldenberg earned an MS in Marine Biology from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida where she worked as a full-time research assistant in the Coral Reef Restoration, Assessment and Monitoring Lab. She served as the first manager of the Broward County Nearshore Transects project, which is a long-term government funded effort designed to examine the impacts of beach nourishment on coastal benthic habitats in Southeast Florida.
Dane Hardin
Senior Marine Scientist, Principal
Dane Hardin’s studies have a strong quantitative emphasis that involves use of data from numerous available sources to help explain variations in water quality measurements. He is the Executive Director of the Central Coast Long-term Environmental Assessment Network (CCLEAN), which is a regional water quality monitoring program in Monterey Bay, California. He also recently directed a large regional monitoring program to address discharges of stormwater in Areas of Special Biological Significance along the central California coast.
Jay Johnson
Senior Oceanographer, Principal
Jay Johnson has over 30 years professional experience in applied marine and aquatic sciences, environmental consulting and program management. He has extensive experience in dealing with complex scientific regulatory and environmental issues, effectively interacting with local, state, national and international agencies, developing and implementing cost effective due diligence, baseline and impact monitoring programs and assessing and alleviating environmental impacts.
Aroon Melwani
Senior Scientist, Principal
Aroon Melwani is a senior marine scientist specializing in experimental design, sample collection, and quantitative analysis of environmental data. He has over 16 years experience supporting local, regional and state agencies on sediment and water quality, contaminant bioaccumulation, and biological assessments. His technical expertise includes data management, statistical analysis, data integration, empirical modeling, and R programming.
Paul Salop
Senior Scientist, Principal
Paul Salop has over 15 years of experience working for consulting firms and state and Federal agencies. Paul is currently serving as Project Manager for AMS in its role supporting the Alameda Countywide Clean Water Program’s (ACCWP) stormwater monitoring and watershed management efforts, managing all field collection efforts and field quality control for the Status and Trends Component of the Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in the San Francisco Estuary.
Erika Senyk
Marine/Aquatic Scientist
Erika Senyk is a Marine/Aquatic Scientist at Applied Marine Sciences (AMS) assisting in projects including water quality assessments and quantifying the impacts of marine plastics in local marine environments. She has over seven years of experience managing and performing field studies in both marine and freshwater ecosystems. She measured nutrient levels and performed water and soil quality assessments in urban and rural lakes, streams, rivers, and wetlands in Minnesota, as well as in coastal areas of the Monterey Bay region.
Robert Spies
Senior Scientist, Principal
Bob Spies has 35 years experience in applied marine ecology and its application to management. He has investigated the fate and effects of radionuclides, petroleum hydrocarbons, and chlorinated hydrocarbons in marine ecosystems. Specific research projects conducted over his career have included investigations into the effects of organic contaminants on endocrinology and reproduction of starry flounder in San Francisco Bay and kelp bass in southern California.
Diane Stafford
Senior Administrative Assistant
At AMS, Diane Stafford specializes in the set-up and creation of detailed invoices tailored to meet client needs and performs monthly invoicing and accounts receivables. Diane is proficient in MS Excel and Word, and uses such to prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual reporting. She also handles insurance and compliance, expense reimbursements, business licensing and permits, logistics for field planning, equipment procurement and management
Theresa Venello
Senior Oceanographer
Theresa Venello is a Biological Oceanographer specializing in pelagic marine ecosystem responses to climate change. Her work prior to joining Applied Marine Sciences (AMS) included investigating planktonic crustacean physiological responses to ocean acidification in Polar regions as well as zooplankton community responses to the 2015 Marine Heatwave event in the NE Pacific known as “The Blob”. Theresa also used a functional assessment approach to examine changes in ecological roles of zooplankton species over a 30-year time frame.
