John Ebel
Professor, Earth and Environmental Sciences Department
College of Arts & Sciences
Director, Weston Observatory
Ph.D. California Institute of Technology

Analysis of earthquakes worldwide; seismology in general and Northeast seismology in particular; the distribution and causes of New England seismicity and the potential for major earthquakes in the area; weather, climate and the environment, including climate changes. A seasoned commentator on the strength and effect of many earthquakes over the past decade, Ebel is director of Boston College's Weston Observatory, an interdisciplinary research facility in the fields of geophysics, geology, energy and environmental sciences, which operates a large network of seismic stations throughout New England. Has served on the Seismic Risk Analysis subcommittee of the Massachusetts Civil Defense Agency Earthquake Project Advisory Committee; the Metropolitan Boston Earthquake Loss Study Evaluation and Selection Committee; the Seismic Hazard Assessment Panel of the National Research Council; and serves on the Board of Directors of the Seismological Society of America, among other memberships. Editor of Seismological Research Letters. Courses include: "Exploration Seismology"; "Physics of the Earth"; "Inverse Theory in Geophysics"; "Weather, Climate and the Environment."

617.552.3399 (Campus Office)
617.552.8319 (Weston Observatory Office)
john.ebel@bc.edu
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Rudolph Hon
Associate Professor, Earth and Environmental Sciences Department
College of Arts & Sciences
Ph.D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Radon; radon emissions from granites, particularly those found in New England, which he has found emit more of the radioactive gas than previously had been suspected; subsurface geology [he created the first subsurface data base of the Boston area. The information is valuable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and private developers, who gain one-stop access to detailed information about soil conditions, water tables and rock formations under the Greater Boston area]. Geology of New England; Cape Cod groundwater quality. Courses have included: "Environmental Geology"; "Chemistry of Natural Water Systems"; "Petrology."

617.552.3656
hon@bc.edu
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Alan Kafka
Associate Professor, Geology and Geophysics Department
College of Arts & Sciences
Ph.D. Stony Brook University

Earthquakes; earthquakes in the Northeast; nuclear testing detection; science education; relationship between science and religion; science and public policy. A geophysicist and researcher at BC's Weston Observatory, he is the first scientist to link Massachusetts' Quabbin Reservoir to increased seismic activity in central Massachusetts. [He believes the stress created by the weight of billions of gallons of water is responsible for several significant earthquakes in the region since the reservoir was created in the 1930s.] Participant in a US government project aimed at detecting nuclear explosion tests in the former Soviet Union using seismic techniques. Courses have included: "Theoretical Seismology"; "Introduction to Geology and Geophysics"; "Geoscience and Public Policy"; "Geophysical Data Processing"; "Our Mobile Earth."

617.552.3650
kafka@bc.edu
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Zygmunt Plater
Professor, Law School
J.D Yale University; LL.M., S.J.D., University of Michigan

Environmental law; legal aspects of environmental disasters; endangered species; land use issues, historic preservation, private property and public rights. One of the nation's leading environmental lawyers, Plater has handled national endangered species litigation -- including seven years spent litigating the case of the endangered snail darter fish vs. TVA's Tellico Dam up through the Supreme Court. He worked as chair of a legal task force for the State of Alaska responding to the Exxon-Valdez oil spill; was a consultant to plaintiffs in the Woburn toxic litigation, Anderson et al. v. W.R. Grace et al., which became the subject of the book and movie A Civil Action; has worked as a consultant on environmental and land use law initiatives in a number of foreign countries, and helped organize the first United Nations Conference on Individual Rights to be held in Africa. He is lead author of the national environmental law coursebook Environmental Law and Policy: Nature, Law, and Society (West). Courses have included: "Environmental Law and Current Politics."

617.552.4837
plater@bc.edu
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