Los Angeles Marine Societies Annual Joint Meeting

The annual joint meeting of the three major marine societies in the Los Angeles, Calif., area turned out, as usual, to be a success. The Marine Technology Society acted as host. Their guests were The Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers and the American Society of Naval Engineers.

Many of those attending were active members of more than one of these organizations.

The meeting was arranged by Gary Bane, newly installed chairman of the Los Angeles Region Section, MTS. John Evans, vice chairman for Technical Programs, invited the speaker for the evening.

Unfortunately, at this—the first of their scheduled activities for the year — neither was able to attend. They were represented, instead, by Ms. Pat Messerly, executive director. Howard Craig, vice chairman for Student Sections, acted as master of ceremonies.

In his introduction of guests, Mr. Craig made a special note of the presence of Robert T. Young, national president of SNAME.

Mr. Young had been especially invited to this meeting by Frank Kuntz, chairman, and William A.

Hood, vice chairman of the Los Angeles M e t r o p o l i t a n Section, SNAME. "It is particularly fitting," Mr. Young commented, "that these meetings be held in such an ideal marine atmosphere aboard the Princess Louise." He noted that few other sections in the country enjoy such a compatible location or a more attractive one.

For the American Society of Naval Engineers, Philip Finkelstein presided as the acting chairman for that group. His role was to welcome his own members, and to join with them in sharing common interests with those of the other two o r g a n i z a t i o n s . The ASNE vice chairman was also present. He is Comdr. Richard J.

Kinnear, USN, also the acting secretary-treasurer for the local section of SNAME.

In the absence of the senior officials for the Marine Technology Society, Ken Kvammen of the MTS Board of Councilors presided as their representative.

The guest speaker for the evening was Armond J. Bryce, technical director for the Marine Biomass Programs of the General Electric Company. He is working locally with Global Marine Development, Inc. to provide support on the installation of the biomass structure described in the paper.

This will be in April of 1978. The location will be off Corona del Mar.

Mr. Bryce authored the paper he presented, "A Research and Development Program To Assess The Technical and Economic Feasibility of Methane Production From Giant Brown Kelp." His presentation with slides and discussion made it both interesting and exciting. He demonstrated how thoroughly all aspects of the project had been investigated.

The engineering challenges of cultivating a harvestable crop in the ocean environment, and subsequently converting it to useful products, seem significant. The economic potential for a return on the investment seem debatable.

Yet this is the major purpose for the evaluation of this concept, to test its feasibility. The paper itself is well documented with technical detail and bibliographic references. The project is sponsored by the American Gas Association and by the United States Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA).

The meeting was adjourned by Mr. Craig following the question and answer period at which Mr.

Bryce discussed details of his project with individuals.

Other stories from March 1978 issue

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