Describing our services is one thing; Implementing what we say is another....and is what we do best. These examples provide solid evidence of the types of projects completed for organizations in the past few years.

Many of these files are in Adobe's portable document format (PDF). Adobe's free Acrobat Reader software can be downloaded from www.adobe.com.

Working with constituents, The Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the Maryland Environmental Service and others, Andrew Loftus and associates developed the first-ever Artificial Reef Management Plan for the State of Maryland.

The Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council and the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies engaged Loftus Consulting to assemble fisheries professionals to develop criteria for the National Fish Habitat Initiative. More than 120 profesionals participated in this landmark scientific meeting to establish citeria and standards for this national initiative.

Andrew Loftus tied together the importance of sound management of natural resources to sound fishing and boating industries during a consultancy to aid the National Federation of Sea Anglers and the Bass Angler's Sportfishing Society in Great Britain.This information was used as they developed their input into the European Union's Common Fisheries Policy.

Working with a team of boating industry leaders and government officials under the auspices ofThe Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council, Loftus Consulting coordinated the execution and reporting of a review of the first five years of the federally-funded Boating Infrastructure Grants (BIG)Program. A one-year review was completed and recommendations were presented to the Secretary of the Interior.

Andrew Loftus teamed with Southwick Associates to produce the widely used legal reference for fish kill restitution values, "Investigation and Monetary Values of Fish and Freshwater Mussel Kills". This contains the first-ever published replacement values for nearly 300 species or subspecies of freshwater mussels found in the United States. Print and CD Rom copies may be ordered from The American Fisheries Society.

Loftus Consulting is involved in the development of several initiatives for the U.S. Geological Survey's National Biological Information Infrastructure program, including development of a North American sturgeon information system; development of a strategic plan for the Aquatic Gap Analysis Program; and feasibility analysis of a mid Atlantic freshwater fisheries information system.

The U.S.D.A. Forest Service enlisted Loftus Consulting to conduct an assessment of the status and trends of aquatic species in the U.S. The resulting report documents general trends in water quality, specific fish populations, resource utilization, and imperiled aquatic fauna. Relationships between land use, water quality, and aquatic species are explored.

The National Marine Fisheries Service, Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission have each used Loftus Consulting's expertise and network of profesionals to conduct indepedent peer reviews of components of their fisheries data collection programs.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission sought Loftus Consulting's expertise in developing and applying the concept of "conservation equivalency" in adaptive fisheries management. The results of this project are used to guide this 23-state organization as they move forward with this management model for Atlantic coast fisheries.

The Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program (ACCSP), involving 23 state, federal, and regional fishery management organizations, engaged Loftus Consulting to provide information to, and solicit input from, fisheries constituents. Through a unique and highly interactive roundtable structure which incorporated the expertise of veteran policy makers, the first comprehensive view of fisheries data collection from recreational fishing leaders was compiled.

The American Fisheries Society, an association of 10,000 fisheries professionals, engaged Loftus Consulting to compile and produce a publication documenting the success of the Sport Fish Restoration Program, a highly popular fisheries funding program. Within 7 months, an 84 page, 4-color , peer reviewed publication involving over 34 authors was produced and distributed to 50,000 individuals, policy makers, and institutions worldwide.

The National Marine Fisheries Service retained Loftus Consulting for assistance in resolving an escalating conflict between private organizations/individuals and fishery management agencies involved in fish tagging. Through facilitated discussions and open forums with fisheries managers, steps were taken to alleviate the conflict by developing protocols and an interactive web-based information system for sharing information about tagging programs.

The Conservation Management Institute at Virginia Tech University retains Loftus Consulting on an ongoing basis to coordinate the development of the Multi-State Aquatic Resources Information System (MARIS). When fully implemented, this web-based system will provide single-point access for state and federal agencies to fishery information commonly collected by state agencies.

Private organizations and companies have enlisted the assistance of Loftus Consulting to provide expert analysis and testimony regarding fishery issues and policy development. This arrangement allows organizations to significantly expand their available skills base without adding additional staff. (Detailed information is proprietary to clients.)

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service have retained Loftus Consulting for a variety of services designed to improve communications. These range from providing professional facilitation services for internal agency meetings and external consensus-based workshops with constituent groups to enhancing web sites to be more user friendly to constituent groups.

The Fisheries Conservation Trust, of New Gretna, NJ, retained Andrew Loftus for guidance on foundation management and issue development projects. The Foundation's goals include providing information and scientific data on rebuilding and preserving fisheries through the fisheries management process. It is a supporting arm of the Recreational Fishing Alliance.

DEDICATED TO PROFESSIONAL SERVICE: Andrew Loftus serves as Secretary/Treasurer and Software Lbrarian for the American Fisheries Society's Computer User Section and served as citizen advisor for the Chesapeake Bay Program's Citizens Advisory Committee to the Chesapeake Executive Council (CAC) for eleven years, including positions of chair and vice-chair. CAC provides advice and guidance to the governors of 3 states, the administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Mayor of the District of Columbia, and the Chesapeake Bay Commission on the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay.