Michelle Bachman Email & Phone Number

Newburyport, Ma

-Coordinate all habitat-related aspects of the Council’s fishery management plans. -Responsible for Council engagement and analysis related to ocean planning issues, including offshore wind energy development, aquaculture, and other projects that may affect essential fish habitats and fisheries. This work includes policy development, co-authoring Council correspondence, and coordinating a joint offshore wind website with Mid-Atlantic Council.-Represent the Council’s interests on diverse committees and other groups.-Guide the work of other specialists and analysts assigned to habitat and ocean planning projects.-Lead development habitat-specific plan amendments, including project management, analysis, document preparation, and chairing the Plan Development Team. Past actions and actions in review: Omnibus Habitat Amendment 2, Omnibus Deep-Sea Coral Amendment, Clam Dredge Exemption Framework, Southern New England Habitat Area of Particular Concern Framework, Atlantic Salmon Aquaculture Framework. Current actions: EFH review and Northern Edge Habitat-Scallop Framework (co-lead).-Support the Habitat Committee and Habitat Advisory Panel, including meeting planning, agenda development, and document preparation, in coordination with the chairs.-Serve as technical representative on habitat-related contracts to ensure delivery of high-quality work aligned with our needs and project objectives.-Contribute habitat analyses to amendments of our species-specific FMPs (groundfish, scallops, herring, whiting, monkfish, skates).-Respond to inquiries from news media and members of the public on habitat and ocean development issues.

New Bedford, Ma

•Thesis: sea scallop access fishery program. Primary goals: summarize fishery regulations, assess management effectiveness, examine fleet behavior, understand yellowtail flounder bycatch patterns, develop bycatch reduction strategies. •Prepare research proposals •Video survey: Collect video and still images of the seafloor aboard commercial scallop vessels (approximately 8 cruises/50 days at sea total, 2005-2008)•Prepare outreach materials (posters, letters, brochures) related to lab research•Attended NEFMC meetings and provided summaries of scallop-related management actions for inclusion in program proposals and reports (2005-2006).•Tagging: Sailed on three tagging cruises (scallop - Jun 2006 and Jun 2007, yellowtail flounder - June 2008); coordinated scallop tag returns with local fishermen (2006-2007); entered and audited tagging and return data (2006-2008). •Hired and supervised undergraduate technicians (2005-2006).

See above.

•Wrote 80-90 page habitat enhancement reports to assist individual Council members in managing their private lands. Reports outlined projects that will preserve, enhance, and create wildlife habitat. Ecosystem types managed at sites included riparian, wetland, prairie/grassland, and forest. Researched habitat requirements of various wildlife species. •Wrote two habitat management leaflets detailing conservation status of sage-grouse and Great Basin riparian ecosystems in cooperation with the Natural Resources Conservation Service’s (NRCS) Wildlife Habitat Management Institute. •Recommended federal assistance programs and local conservation organizations to Council member’s sites; initiated contact with local conservation groups as necessary.•Responded to specific inquiries from WHC members and the public regarding wildlife management issues.

Msc, Marine Science - Fisheries

•Coursework: Physical Oceanography, Biological Oceanography, Introduction to Fisheries Science, Stock Assessment, Stock Identification.

Bsc, Biology, Environmental Studies

•Selected coursework: Marine biology of invertebrates and fishes, conservation biology, biostatistics •Semester Abroad: University.