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James A. Schmid, Ph.D.
President
EDUCATION
- Ph.D. Geography, University of Chicago, 1972
- M.A. Geography, University of Chicago, 1969
- A.B. Geography, Columbia College, Columbia University, 1966 (Cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa)
- Ecological Society of America: Senior Ecologist (1983; recertified 1988, 1993, 1999, 2008, 2014, 2020).
- US Fish & Wildlife Service: Habitat Evaluation Procedures (HEP; 1981).
- US Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District: Wetland Delineator Program (Certification #93MD031008A).
- Society of Wetland Scientists: Professional Wetland Scientist (1995, 2007, 2012), Senior Professional Wetland Scientist (2020).
SUMMARY OF EXPERIENCE
- 1985- President, Schmid & Company, Inc., Consulting Ecologists.
- 1981-85 Principal, Schmid & Company, Consulting Ecologists.
- 1981-82 Principal Environmental Scientist, TERA Corporation.
- 1979-81 Principal Scientist, WAPORA, Inc.
- 1974-79 Vice President, Jack McCormick & Associates, Inc., Pennsylvania Office.
- 1973-74 Chairman of the New York Office, Jack McCormick & Associates, Inc.
- 1970-73 Assistant Professor and Instructor, Department of Biological Sciences, Barnard College and Columbia University.
- 1968-1970 Technical Editor, Department of Geography Research Papers, University of Chicago.
- Association of American Geographers
- Ecological Society of America
- New York State Wetlands Forum, Inc.
- Society of Wetland Scientists
RELEVANT EXPERIENCE
Dr. Schmid's career in environmental analysis began in the late 1960's. He has participated in a broad range of environmental consulting projects, particularly wetland analyses and environmental impact statements. Dr. Schmid routinely participates in fieldwork and has written and edited hundreds of interdisciplinary reports. He has published six books on urban vegetation and the flora of the mid-Atlantic States, as well as two dozen journal articles and book chapters on environmental topics. The contract work of Schmid & Company has included more than 300 projects in New Jersey and 200 projects in Pennsylvania, not to mention work in New York, Maryland, Indiana, Texas, and California. The firm's diverse clientele includes major corporations, utilities, developers of residential, industrial, and commercial real estate, land brokers, banks, government agencies, appraisers, attorneys, engineers, architects, conservation groups, and individuals. Dr. Schmid has served as an expert witness at countless public hearings on proposed construction, as well as in the state and federal courts. Dr. Schmid's principal expertise and professional interest lie in the analysis of urban vegetation and in the design and establishment of functioning ecosystems in the form of new wetlands, reclaimed landfills, and other vegetated spaces in the increasingly human-dominated environment.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
Dr. Schmid has been a guest lecturer on environmental analysis and wetlands at the University of Pennsylvania, Clark University, West Chester State University, Rutgers University, and the Polley Associates School of Real Estate. He has served on the Standing Committee on Environmental Education for the Association of American Geographers and has contributed reviews to the Geographical Review, Ecology, and Wetland Journal. He has served on the Board of Professional Certification of the Ecological Society of America and the Certification Standards Committee of the Society of Wetland Scientists. For 30 years he served as member or chairman of the Environmental Advisory Board of Marple Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania. He has peer-reviewed grant proposals submitted to the National Science Foundation, the US Department of State, and the National Geographic Society. He has served two terms on the Citizens Advisory Council to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection by gubernatorial appointment.