Alyssa KnoxEnvironment & Development Planner II
North Central Texas Council of Governments
AICP CandidateSession:
Clearing the Air for DFW: 10:00-11:00 am | Room H-125Alyssa Knox is an Environment and Development Planner II at the North Central
Texas Council of Governments. Alyssa serves as the project lead for the Water
Quality Management Plan program and proudly works on the Regional Energy
Management, Center for Development Excellence, and the Dallas-Fort Worth Air
Quality Improvement Plan programs. Alyssa completed a Master of City and
Regional Planning degree from the University of Texas at Arlington in May 2023.
Doug LewinFounder
Stoic EnergySession:
The Electric Grid: 12:15-1:30 pm | Room H-125Doug Lewin authors the Texas Energy and Power Newsletter and hosts the Energy
Capital Podcast. He is a nationally recognized energy expert, particularly in the
electric grid, renewable energy, energy efficiency, demand response, utility
regulation, and pollution reduction. In 2018, Lewin founded Stoic Energy, a Texas
consulting firm specializing in grid and energy issues. Previously, Doug led
government and regulatory affairs work for CLEAResult, an energy efficiency
program implementer for over 250 utilities in 40 states and provinces.
Brian DyePhysical Scientist and PFAS Rule Manager,
Environmental Protection AgencySession:
Forever Chemicals In Our Water: 2:00-3:00 pm | Room H-126Brian Dye is a physical scientist with the Environmental Protection Agency based
in the Region 6 office. He is the PFAS Rule Manager and Chair of the Regional
Science Council. Brian is also the Lead in Schools’ Drinking Water Project
Manager and EPA’s Louisiana State Program Manager for Safe Drinking Water.
Marvin BrownSenior Attorney
EarthJusticeSession:
The Invisible Danger – Ethylene Oxide (EtO): 11:00 am-12:00 pm | Room H-126Marvin C. Brown IV is a supervising senior attorney with the D.C. Regional office
of EarthJustice. Prior to joining EarthJustice in 2021, Marvin practiced
environmental law at Baker & Hostetler and had also clerked previously with Chief
Judge R. Guy Cole Jr., on the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. Marvin is a
2016 graduate from Yale Law School and also attended Ohio State University.
Darya MinoviSenior Analyst
Union of Concerned ScientistsSession:
The Invisible Danger – Ethylene Oxide (EtO): 11:00 am-12:00 pm | Room H-126Darya Minovi is a senior analyst for the Center for Science and Democracy. In her
role, she researches the impact of weak environmental and public health
protections on communities to support environmental justice and science-based
policymaking. Ms. Minovi earned a MPH in environmental health from Harvard
University, and a BS in public health and environmental policy from the College of
William & Mary. She has been quoted in Grist and Salon and has authored op-eds
published in the Baltimore Sun and on CNN.com.
Jace TunnellDirector of Community Engagement,
Harte Research InstituteSession:
Microplastics in Our Waterways: 3:00-4:00 pm | Room H-125Jace Tunnell is the director of community engagement at the Harte Research
Institute for the Gulf of Mexico Studies at Texas A&M University Corpus Christi.
Jace is the founder of a citizen science project called Nurdle Patrol that tracks
plastic pellet concentrations internationally to create awareness of plastics in the
ocean and develop new policy based on the data. His conservation efforts include
educating the public about plastic pollution, marine science, and protection of our
natural resources. Jace received a Master’s degree in Marine Biology from
Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi in 2001.
Anne EpsteinInternal Medicine Physician, MD, FACP
Clinical Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at
Texas Tech University Health ServicesSession:
The Risks of Urban Fracking: 11:00 am-12:00 pm | Room H-125Dr. Anne Epstein, MD is a practicing Internal Medicine physician in Lubbock. She
is a Clinical Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at Texas Tech University
Health Science Center and has published several papers on fracking and health
impacts in scientific literature. Dr. Epstein has been Chair of the Lubbock City
Board of Health, Chair of the Board of Health Fracking Committee, and a member
of the Lubbock Oil and Gas Citizen Advisory Committee. Anne is also a Fellow of
the American College of Physicians. She received her medical degree from
Baylor College of Medicine and has been in practice for more than 43 years.
Jim ThompsonAttorney
Chair, Northeast Texas Regional Planning GroupSession:
Our Future Water Supply: 10:00-11:00 am | Room H-126Jim Thompson is the chair of the Northeast Texas Regional Water Planning Group,
also known as Region D. He is the also the former president and board member
of the Sulphur River Basin Authority. Jim is currently the CFO and inhouse counsel
for Ward Timber in Linden. Previously, Jim had a private practice in northeast
Texas and also was an attorney at one time for the Dallas office of Passman &
Jones. Jim is a graduate of the University of Texas Law School and also of Stephen
F. Austin University.
Galen RobertsDirector of Water Resources
North Texas Municipal Water DistrictSession:
Our Future Water Supply: 10:00-11:00 am | Room H-126Galen Roberts is the Director of Water Resources for North Texas Municipal Water
District, Galen Roberts oversees all aspects of water resource management,
watershed protection, and lake and wetland operations. Galen and his team are
responsible for managing the District's East Fork Raw Water Supply,
Bois d'Arc Lake, and more than 17,000 acres of environmental mitigation areas.
He also manages the District's water rights portfolio and works closely with water
treatment and conveyance staff to make efficient use of the District's water supplies.
Heather DeShonSeismologist and Professor of Geophysics
Southern Methodist UniversitySession:
Deep Injection & Earthquakes: 10:00-11:00 am | Room H-126Dr. Heather DeShon is a seismologist and Professor of Geophysics at Southern
Methodist University. She specializes high-resolution earthquake location and
imaging methods and currently serves as project lead for induced earthquake
studies focused on understanding the causal factors and physical mechanisms
leading to increased seismicity rates in Texas as extraction of oil and gas and the
injection of waste fluids has increased. Dr. DeShon is Chair of the Roy M.
Huffington Department of Earth Sciences and currently serves as President of the
Seismological Society of America. She is also amember of the US Geological
Survey National Seismic Hazard Mapping Program steering committee. She holds
a Ph.D. in Earth Sciences (Geophysics) from the University of California in
Santa Cruz (2004).
Barbara GottliebFormer Director, Environment & Health Program
Physicians for Social ResponsibilitySession:
PFA Contamination from Fracking Fluid: 3:00-4:00 pm | Room H-126Barbara Gottlieb is the former program director of the Environment & Health
Program for Physicians for Social Responsibility’s (PSR), guiding the nonprofit’s
national work on climate, energy and air quality. Since joining PSR in 2008,
Barbara has developed program ideas, prepared materials, written reports and
white papers, and made educational and media presentations. Specifically, she
has conducted extensive work on fossil fuels and natural gas related issues,
including co-authoring a 2023 report on Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)
“Fracking with Forever Chemicals in Texas.”
Tim DotyPresident
TCHD Consulting LLCSession:
Risks of Urban Fracking: 11:00 am-12:00 pm | Room H-125Tim Doty is the president of TCHD Consulting LLC. He is a Texas-based Infrared
Training Center (ITC) - certified Level III thermographer and a highly regarded
expert in his field. His company provides professional, scientific, thermography,
safety, and technical consulting services related, but not limited to state and
federal compliance. Doty serves as a certification instructor for OGI and general
thermography training courses. Prior to starting his consulting firm in 2018, Tim
retired from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality after almost three
decades as an environmental scientist, where he served as the Agency's Mobile
Air Monitoring Program Manager for 17 years, helped create the TCEQ’s
thermography program, and served as a technical advisor to the Director of the
Office of Compliance and Enforcement.
Daniela TowerAir Quality Planner III
North Central Texas Council of GovernmentsSession:
Clearing the Air for DFW: 10:00-11:00 am | Room H-125Daniela Tower works with the North Central Texas Council of Governments
(NCTCOG) as an Air Quality Planner. Her focus lies in air and life quality data
collection, analysis and connection to real life applications. Daniela previously
worked in science and resources management for more than a decade in Europe,
Africa and North America. She was born and raised in Germany, where she also
received her master’s degree in coastal geography.
Jenny NarvaezProgram Manager
Air Quality Technical Analysis and Planning
North Central Texas Council of GovernmentsSession:
Clearing the Air for DFW: 10:00-11:00 am | Room H-125Jenny Narvaez works as a Program Manager for the Air Quality Technical Analysis
and Planning team. She has worked at the North Central Texas Council of
Governments for over 20 years, starting after she graduated with her Master of
Science in Environmental Science and Engineering. She has served on many
committees including holding a position as Chair for the Regional Air Quality
Subcommittee for the Transportation Research Board for the National Academies
of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. Jenny also works as an adjunct
professor for Dallas College where she has taught Environmental Science for
the past 8 years.
Savana NancePrincipal Air Quality Planner
North Central Texas Council of GovernmentsSession:
Clearing the Air for DFW: 10:00-11:00 am | Room H-125Savana Nance serves as Principal Air Quality Planner at the North Central Texas
Council of Governments and leads initiatives on the Clean Vehicle Initiatives
Team and coordinates development of the Dallas-Fort Worth Air Quality
Improvement Plan. Savana graduated from the University of North Texas with
a bachelor’s degree in risk management and financial services.
Susan AlvarezCFM, PE (Alternative Panelist)
Director, Environment & Development
North Central Texas Council of GovernmentsSession:
Clearing the Air for DFW: 10:00-11:00 am | Room H-125Susan Alvarez currently serves as the Director of Environment and Development
at the North Central Texas Council of Government, where she manages programs
related to water, material resources, regional codes, public works, and regional
climate action. She brings a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering with a minor
in Geology from Rice University, and about 40 years of varied related experience.
She worked on the City of Dallas Comprehensive Environmental and Climate
Action Plan, the regional Priority Climate Action Plan for the North Texas Region
and served on the Southern Great Plains Chapter of the fifth National Climate
Assessment that was released in November of 2023.
Zacariah L. HildenbrandPartner, Medusa Analytical and Chief Science
Officer of Infinity Water SolutionsSession:
Forever Chemicals In Our Water: 2:00-3:00 pm | Room H-126Zacariah L. Hildenbrand is a partner of Medusa Analytical, the Chief Science
Officer of Infinity Water Solutions, a director of the Curtis Mathes Corporation,
and is an Adjunct Research Professor at the University of Texas at El Paso.
Dr. Hildenbrand’s research has produced more than 70 peer-reviewed scientific
journal articles and textbook chapters. He is also an editor of the textbook
“Advances in Chemical Pollution, Environmental Management and Protection:
Environmental Issues Concerning Hydraulic Fracturing.” Dr. Hildenbrand
has dedicated his career to unconventional fields of research, and he relishes
the opportunity to improve operational efficiency and environmental stewardship
within the energy sector.
