All News Releases By Date

EPA’s Ocean Survey Vessels Open for Tours on Monday, July 29 at Penns Landing

Release Date: 7/25/2002
Contact Information: Roy Seneca, (215) 814-5567 & Bonnie Lomax, (215) 814-5542

Roy Seneca, (215) 814-5567 & Bonnie Lomax, (215) 814-5542

PHILADELPHIA – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is offering a unique opportunity for the public to celebrate the “Year of Clean Water” with a tour of two ocean survey vessels at Penns Landing.

The 135-foot Peter W. Anderson and the 35-foot Research Vessel Lear will be available for tours from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday, July 29 just south of the Independence Seaport Museum. EPA scientists will be on hand as visitors tour the ships and see first-hand how scientific studies are conducted at sea. The event is free.

“These vessels are used to collect crucial information about water quality that helps EPA monitor public health and environmental threats to our oceans, bays, and estuaries,” said Donald S. Welsh, regional administrator for EPA’s mid-Atlantic region.

The tours are part of EPA’s celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Clean Water Act. Congress along with a number of the nation’s Governors and national organizations have proclaimed 2002 as the Year of Clean Water.

Sailing thousands of miles each year along the Atlantic coast and the Gulf of Mexico, scientists aboard the Peter W. Anderson conduct a oceanographic studies, including testing water quality during the busy summer months. The Anderson’s equipment includes high-tech sonar, water and sediment sampling devices, trolling nets and three laboratories. It can sleep up to 30 people.

The Research Vessel Lear is a 35 foot Bertram with twin 350 gas engines. It can carry 4 to 6 scientists and has sleeping facilities. Owned and maintained by EPA’s mid Atlantic Region, the Lear is used along the coast from New Jersey south to Virginia for sampling, fish studies, and diving expeditions.