Joseph C. Makarewicz, Ph.D., is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Environmental Science and Ecology, an interdisciplinary major at the College at Brockport.  While at Brockport, he was the founding father and Chair of the Environmental Science and Ecology Department and Chair of the Biological Sciences Department.  Professor Makarewicz, who received his Ph.D. from Cornell University, is a former Senior Fulbright Research Fellow to Germany.   

His interest in and participation on the Genesee RiverWatch Board results from his several years of USDA-funded research on the causes and consequences of nutrient and sediment pollution of the Genesee River. Through its restoration projects, Genesee RiverWatch provides Dr. Makarewicz the opportunity to continue his work to improve the water quality and aquatic habitat of the Genesee River. 

Dr. Makarewicz was the American co-lead for the binational LONNS project (Lake Ontario Nearshore Nutrient Transport Study), the Project Director of the USDA-funded Genesee River project, and a panel reviewer of the Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River lake level studies for the National Academy of Sciences. His research focused on Great Lakes Research in four areas: fate and transport of nutrients in watersheds, phytoplankton and zooplankton ecology, the ecology of exotic species and their effect on pelagic food webs, and pesticide movement in food webs. Dr. Makarewicz is an Editor and Board member for the Journal of Great Lakes Research.   He has received over $16 million in funding from EPA, NOAA, Sea Grant, NSF, NYSDEC, USDA, etc. and had over 120 refereed publications, many of them dealing with the Genesee River and nearshore Lake Ontario.   

He is originally from the Boston area and has a deep interest in the Red Sox and a love of golf.