Chris D'Elia headshotChristopher D'Elia

Position: Professor

Phone: 225-578-7188

Fax: 225-578-5328

E-mail: [email protected] 

Office: 3187 Energy Coast and Environment Building

Bachelor's Degree(s): A.B. Biology, Middlebury College Vermont, 1968

Ph.D.(s): Ph.D. Zoology, University of Georgia, 1974

Dissertation: Aspects of the Phosphorus Flux of Scleractinian Corals.

Research Interests

Nutrient dynamics in aquatic systems; estuarine ecology; coral reef ecology; algal/invertebrate symbiosis; science history and policy; math and science education; marine pollution; global climate change; analytical chemistry.

Awards & Honors

  • University of Georgia 2014 Alumni of Distinction Award
  • President’s Award, Sea Grant Association
  • Meritorious Service Award, Chesapeake Bay Program
  • Maryland Governor’s Salute to Excellence Award
  • American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow
  • Certificate of Recognition, Black Faculty and Professional Staff, University at Albany, SUNY
  • Who’s Who in America & Who’s Who in the East – American Men and Women of Science
  • Who’s Who in Technology Today
  • Who’s Who in the Frontiers of Science and Technology
  • Elected to membership, Cosmos Club, Washington, D.C.

Professional Affiliations and Service Activities

  • American Association for the Advancement of Science (1973-; Fellow, 1991-)
  • American Society of Limnology and Oceanography (1971-
  • Special Committee on Job Opportunities and Newsletter, Chairman, 1977
  • Editorial Board, 1983-1987
  • Chair, Public Affairs Committee, 1987
  • Future of ASLO Committee, 1988)
  • Middlebury College Alumni Admissions Support Team, 1979-86
  • Nutrient Steering Committee, USEPA Chesapeake Bay Program, 1980
  • State of Maryland, Patuxent River Technical Advisory Group, 1980 – Acting Chairman, 1980, Chairman, 1981-1982
  • State of Maryland, Coastal Resources Advisory Committee, Regional Citizen Representative, Lower Western Shore, 1982-1983
  • Tri-County Council for Southern Maryland Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs Committee, 1985-1986
  • Chesapeake Bay Commission, Point Source Workgroup, 1985
  • Elected member of the Corporation, Bermuda Biological Station for Research, Inc., 1986-1998
  • Maryland Sea Grant Program Scientific Advisory Committee, 1980-85
  • Citizens Advisory Committee, Calvert County (MD) Board of Education, 1986-1987
  • Chesapeake Bay Program, Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee (1993–9)
  • Council of Scientific Society Presidents (1990-; Secretary, 1993-1995; Treasurer, 1996-1998, Chair-elect, 1998, Chair, 1999, Past Chair, 2000, Chair Emeritus, 2001-)
  • Council of Sea Grant Directors (Chair-elect, 1994)
  • Ecological Society of America (Chairman, Public Affairs Committee, 1990-1991, Vice Chair, Public Affairs Committee, 1991-1993)
  • Estuarine Research Federation (Vice President, 1989-1991; President, 1991-1993; Past President, 1993-1995)
  • International Society for Coral Reef Studies
  • National Association of Environmental Professionals — Maryland Chapter (Board of Directors, MD Chapter, 1984)
  • Sigma Xi (1983-)
  • National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges, Marine Division, now Board on Oceans and Atmosphere, Education Committee Chair (1990-1991), Co-Chair (1995)
  • Commission on Food, Environment and Renewable Resources, Legislative Committee, Chair (1997)
  • UNOLS Academic Research Fleet Review Committee (1999)
  • Executive Committee, Council on Research Policy and Graduate Education (2001-2002)
  • Mid-Atlantic Regional Marine Research Board, Chair, 1991-1995
  • Astrolabe, Inc., Board of Directors (1991-9; Vice President, 1994-9)
  • Sea Grant Association (President, 1991-1992, 1999; President-elect, 1997-1998; Co-Chair, Federal Relations Committee, 1993-1995; External Relations Committee, Chair, 1995-6)
  • The Oceanography Society (Charter Member, 1988, Life Member, 1989-)
  • Hudson River Foundation, Board of Directors (1996-2012)
  • Leadership Maryland, Class of 1997
  • Albany-Colonie Regional Chamber of Commerce, Executive Institute (1999)
  • Editorial Board, Journal of Business and Society (2001-4)
  • Industrial Research Institute, Academic Advisory Committee (2001-2004)
  • Great Lakes Research Consortium, Board of Governors (1999-)
  • Great Lakes Program, University at Buffalo, Advisory Board (2002-4)
  • Nominator, Pew Fellows Program in Marine Conservation, 2003
  • Vice Chairman, Board of Directors, The Science Center, Pinellas County (2004-5), Chairman (2006-8)
  • Board of Directors, Community Water Leadership Program (2004)
  • Leadership St. Petersburg (2005)
  • Member, U.S. National Committee for the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (2007-)
  • Fellow, Northern Gulf Research Institute, (2009-)
  • Department of Interior South-Central Climate Science Center LSU Consortium Member PI, (2011-)
  • Chair, Coastal and Environmental Research Committee and Member Board of Trustees, Southeastern University Research Association (2011-)
  • Board of Trustees, Ocean Leadership (2014-)
  • Member, Baton Rouge Rotary (2009-)
  • Board of Directors, Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra (2011-2017)

Recent Publications

Google Scholar Profile

C.F. D'Elia, M. Bidjerano, T.B. Wheeler (2019) Population Growth, Nutrient Enrichment, and Science-Based Policy in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. In: Eric Wolanski, John W. Day, Michael Elliott and Ramesh Ramachandran, editors: Coasts and Estuaries, Burlington: Elsevier, 2019, pp. 293-310.

Rutherford, J. S., Day, J. W., D'Elia, C. F., Wiegman, Adrian R. H., Willson, C. S., Caffey, R. H., Shaffer, G. P., Lane, R. R., Batker, D. (2018). Evaluating trade-offs of a large, infrequent sediment diversion for restoration of a forested wetland in the Mississippi delta. ESTUARINE COASTAL AND SHELF SCIENCE, 203, 80-89.

Wiegman, A., Day, J., D'Elia, C. F., Rutherford, J., Morris, J., Roy, E., Lane, R., Dismukes, D. E., Snyder, B. F. (2018). Modeling impacts of sea-level rise, oil price, and management strategy on the costs of sustaining Mississippi delta marshes with hydraulic dredging. Science of the Total Environment, 618, 1547-1559. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.09.314

Day, J. W., D'Elia, C. F., Wiegman, A. R., Rutherford, J. S., Hall, C. A.S, Lane, R. R., Dismukes, D. E. (2018). The Energy Pillars of Society: Perverse Interactions of Human Resource. Biophysical Economics and Resource Quality, 3(1), 1-16. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41247-018-0035-6

Day, J. W., Agboola, J., Chen, Z., D'Elia, C. F., Forbes, D. L., Giosan, L., Kemp, P., Kuenzer, C., Lane, R. R., Ramachandran, R., others (2016). Approaches to defining deltaic sustainability in the 21st century. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 183, 275–291.

Ramesh, R., Chen, Z., Cummins, V., Day, J., D'Elia, C. F., Dennison, B., Forbes, D., Glaeser, B., Glaser, M., Glavovic, B., others (2016). Land–ocean interactions in the coastal zone: past, present & future. Anthropocene, 12, 85–98.

Day, J. W., Lane, R. R., D'Elia, C. F., Wiegman, A. R., Rutherford, J. S., Shaffer, G. P., Brantley, C. G., Kemp, G. P. (2016). Large infrequently operated river diversions for Mississippi delta restoration. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 183, 292–303.

Allen, P. D., D'Elia, C. F. (2015). What Lies Beneath: the BP Oil Spill and the Need for New Response Models. Current Psychology, 34(3), 587–596.

Monk, M. H., Baustian, M. M., Saari, C. R., Welsh, S., D'Elia, C. F., Powers, J. E., Gaston, S., Francis, P. (2014). EnvironMentors: Mentoring At-Risk High School Students through University Partnerships. International Journal of Environmental and Science Education, 9(4), 385–397.