BOB SUMMERS, PH.D.
permitting & Siting

EMAIL

"Why, then the world's my oyster, which I with sword will open."
​~ William Shakespeare

Dr. Summers provides scientific and regulatory support for Solar Oysters related to water quality credit trading, wetlands and waterway permitting, and aquaculture lease requirements. He is a member of the technology design team to ensure that the SOPS complies with all regulatory requirements. In addition, he participates in planning and evaluation of oyster growth research to ensure SOPS oyster aquaculture activities grow oysters as efficiently as possible while maximizing the water quality and financial benefits of water quality trading credits as regulatory requirements are further developed and modified by the Chesapeake Bay Program in MD and VA.
 
At EcoLogix, Bob leads water resources practice in the mid-Atlantic region and supports government and industrial clients in the area of outreach and technical solutions. An internationally-recognized expert in water quality issues, he is an experienced multi-disciplinary environmental program executive, highly skilled in managing complex projects involving staff in scientific, engineering, technical program, regulatory, legal and administrative disciplines. Dr. Summers has been a key participant and leader in the multi-jurisdictional Chesapeake Bay Program since the first agreement was signed in 1983. The EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Program is the nation’s largest, most comprehensive and successfully integrated watershed planning and implementation effort.
 
Prior to joining EcoLogix Group in 2016, he served for 33 years in Maryland’s progressive environmental programs developing and leading a wide range of water, air, land, and waste management program activities. He was appointed secretary of the Environment by Maryland’s Governor where he led the Department of the Environment (MDE) and its 1,000 employees responsible for the state’s planning, regulatory, management, and financing programs to protect public health, restore and protect air and water quality, clean up contaminated land, and ensure proper management of hazardous and solid wastes. Dr. Summers oversaw an operating budget of $111 million and a capital budget of $191 million.
 
Before being appointed Secretary, his primary focus was on planning and management of Maryland’s water pollution regulatory programs, including stormwater management and MS4 permits, erosion and sediment control, wastewater discharge, wetlands and waterways, water supply protection, and state programs to assist local governments with financing of water and wastewater infrastructure improvements.
 
Dr. Summers has a doctoral degree in environmental engineering and a Bachelor of Arts Natural Sciences, both from The Johns Hopkins University. Bob serves on the Board of Directors for Blue Water Baltimore and enjoys canoeing the region’s beautiful rivers and sailing on Chesapeake Bay.