Sarah J. Meyland, co-director of the Center for Energy, Environment and Economics,
New York Institute of Technology
On Long Island, New York, the levels of nitrogen in the groundwater have risen significantly over the past 20 years, putting the health of Long Island’s coastal water bodies, the Long Island Sound, the Peconic Bay Estuary and the Great South Bay at risk. Suffolk County is interested in identifying solutions to solve the nitrogen contamination problem; however, the permitting process is extremely difficult for alternative technologies. Treatment wetlands are an effective and sustainable technology for treatment of sanitary wastewater. Treatment wetlands work well for smaller communities because they provide consistent year round treatment with little oversight and maintenance. To fully demonstrate year round performance to remove nitrogen, as well as applicability of this technology to Long Island, NYIT is developing plans to install and monitor a 10,000 GPD enhanced subsurface flow treatment wetland on the Old Westbury campus.
Sarah J. Meyland is the co-director of the Center for Energy, Environment and
Economics at NYIT. She is also an associate professor in the master’s program in environmental technology in the School of Engineering and Computing Sciences. In
2006, Ms. Meyland was named the Director of the Center for Water Resources
Management at NYIT. Her area of expertise is water and groundwater issues. In New
York, she has served in a number of positions both inside and outside of government.
Ms. Meyland has written and spoken extensively on issues relating to groundwater protection, water management, environmental policy, and environmental planning. Her efforts also include the development of several important state laws to protect Long
Island’s groundwater. She has served on numerous advisory boards at the local, state, and federal levels concerned with groundwater and water resources, environmental quality, public health, and national security. Ms. Meyland’s educational background includes bachelor’s degrees in English (University of North Carolina at Greensboro), geological oceanography (Humboldt State University), marine biology (Humboldt State
University, California); a master's in water resource management (Texas A&M
University), and a J.D. (St. Johns University School of Law). Ms. Meyland is a licensed attorney in New York State.
2015 New York State Biotechnology Symposium • May 12 & 13, 2015
At Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY