Renaissance Fine Arts is seeking a success driven sales professional for our Baltimore gallery. We are an established fine art galleries with a long family tradition. For over 35 years, we have been helping our clients create beautiful and unique collections.  With three locations, we house the largest collection of art in the Mid-Atlantic region. We are dedicated to providing our clients with the highest standards of service and finest artwork and custom framing available.

The remains of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after a collision with a malfunctioning cargo ship on March 26. (Photo source: Corey Jennings '10, Maryland Comptroller/Flickr)

Examining the environmental impacts of the collapse 

The ship that collided into the bridge was carrying 56 containers of hazardous materials, including corrosives, flammables, and lithium-ion batteries. The cargo ship was also carrying more than one million gallons of fuel at the time of the impact. City officials began their investigations into the incident, which included determining the environmental impacts to the Patapsco River and surrounding communities. 

Upal Ghosh, professor of chemical, biochemical, and environmental engineering, whose research includes examining the effects of toxic pollutants in soils, sediments, and aquatic environments, was among the experts who weighed in on assessing the potentially hazardous effects of the containers that were resting at the bottom of the river. 

Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman and representatives of the Office of the Governor take a tour of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse site on a Maryland Department of Natural Resources police boat. (Photo source: Corey Jennings ’10, Maryland Comptroller/Flickr)

Ghosh told the Baltimore Sun days after the collapse that environmental officials’ first priority would likely be making sure none of the intact containers were breached.

“If you have containers that contain oily material, those things will, if they are breached, be releasing over time,” Ghosh said. “I would think if there is a release that goes down into the sediments under the water, it would be a local impact right there.” 

Farah Nibbs, assistant professor of emergency and disaster health systems, is also thinking about future ways to contain the effects of similar disasters. Contributing factors to the bridge’s collapse, she says, can be tied to the 2012 expansion and modernization of the Port of Baltimore. Those changes did not happen hand in hand with improvements in safety management needed to accommodate ships of such huge sizes that now were able to port in the city. Risks from collisions, fuel spills, and contamination still lack proper oversight and regulation.

“A novel approach for decision-makers may be to view Maryland’s emergency management and transportation experts and service providers—as well as the physical bridge infrastructure itself—as part of the community’s lifeline systems,” said Nibbs. 

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Read the full article: Infrastructure Of Support After Key Bridge Collapse - UMBC: University Of Maryland, Baltimore County

Renaissance Fine Arts is searching for a dynamic individual to join our team as a full time Gallery Administrative Assistant.

About The Gallery:
For over 40 years, we have been helping our clients create beautiful and unique collections. With three locations, we house the largest collection of art in the Mid-Atlantic region. We are dedicated to providing our clients with the highest standards of service and finest artwork and custom framing available.

Here’s my advice as a fourth-year GES student: Take GES 386 as soon as possible! 386 is notorious for filling up quickly during the Fall and Spring semesters. Luckily, if you’ve already taken 286 or if you’re a grad student, you can beat the crowd!

Professor Kaylor will be teaching two sections of GES 386 during UMBC’s Summer Session II. One section will meet on Tuesday and Thursday at 1pm, and the other on Monday and Wednesday at 4:30pm. Each meeting will last about 2.5 hours with additional time allotted for working on assignments in the computer lab.

GES 386: “Introduction to GIS” explores analytical tools and workflows that will give you the foundational skills to excel in GIS. The six-week time frame will make the work schedule more compressed, but there will be ample time for group collaboration and one-on-one time with the professor and TA.

The typical class meeting will include discussions of ongoing and past assignments, a lecture or demonstration of new material, and lab (computer) time. Work can be done independently or in small groups based on that week’s topic. Lab assignments can be completed at home or in-person; you can make that decision based on your schedule and what environment you work best in.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Charlie Kaylor at ckaylor@umbc.edu. He is more than happy to work with you to reach your goals!