Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 13, 1991 TAG: 9102130083
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Short
John Cairns Jr., university distinguished professor of biology and director of the Center for Environmental and Hazardous Materials studies at Tech, received the Life Achievement Award in Science.
William Berry, chairman of Dominion Resources Inc. and Virginia Power, received the Life Achievement Award in History.
The awards are given to recognize contributions to science or industry.
They are given at the discretion of the judges, not necessarily every year.
Cairns has focused his career on improving the quality of information used in making environmental decisions.
He is a major contributor to several areas of environmental studies and has introduced new methods of research.
Cairns has been called the "father of restoration ecology in North America."
His research is the basis for work in the fields of toxicity, ecology, engineering and geosciences.
In the past five yers, Cairns has producted more than 200 publications, including eight books, 50 book chapters and 115 journal articles.
by CNB