Wind Energy Program Manager, Operational Systems Engineering Group Leader
Wind Energy Program Manager, Operational Systems Engineering Group Leader

Biography

Dr. Alicia M. Mahon is a group leader, program manager, and ocean engineer in the Coastal Research Group of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. She combines a diverse and interdisciplinary background of environmental, ocean, and coastal engineering to support ocean energy development in an environmentally responsible manner. Specifically, Dr. Mahon contributes both her technical and management expertise to projects sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. In 2019, Dr. Mahon was a PNNL Energy and Environment Directorate Project Manager of the Year finalist and was a recipient of the 2020 Best Publication Award in the Coastal Sciences Division for her contributions to the “OES-Environmental 2020 State of the Science Report: Environmental Effects of Marine Renewable Energy Development Around the World.”

As an active member of several professional associations, Dr. Mahon serves on the editorial board of the Marine Technology Society Journal. In 2019, she was featured in the Department of Energy's "Women @ Energy" series. Dr. Mahon was also selected as one of ten New Faces of Civil Engineering by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2015, who recognize "young, diverse, and talented engineers who demonstrate a clear vision, good managerial and technical skills, and who possess inspirational leadership qualities and a desire and willingness to change the world for the better."

She holds B.E. in Environmental Engineering and a M.E. and Ph.D. in Ocean Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology (Hoboken, HJ). She is also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP).

Disciplines and Skills

  • Marine renewable energy
  • Offshore wind energy
  • Coastal processes, sediment transport, and beach morphology
  • Data management and visualization
  • Project management
  • Proposal writing and business development

Education

  • Ph.D. Ocean Engineering, Stevens Institute of Technology, 2012
  • M.E. Ocean Engineering, Stevens Institute of Technology, 2009
  • B.E. Environmental Engineering, Stevens Institute of Technology, 2008
  • PMP (Project Management Professional), Project Management Institute, 2018
  • EIT (Engineer in Training), New Jersey Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors, 2008

Affiliations and Professional Service

  • Marine Technology Society (MTS)
  • Project Management Institute (PMI)

Awards and Recognitions

  • 2020 Coastal Sciences Division Core Values Award recipient, PNNL
  • 2020 Coastal Sciences Division Best Publication Award recipient, PNNL, for "OES-Environmental 2020 State of the Science Report: Environmental Effects of Marine Renewable Energy Development Around the World"
  • 2019 Project Manager of the Year finalist, Energy and Environment Directorate, PNNL
  • 2019 Women @ Energy, Department of Energy(Offsite link)
  • 2017 Graduate of the Scientist and Engineer Development Program, PNNL
  • 2015 New Faces of Civil Engineering, ASCE(Offsite link)
  • 2013 John P. Breslin Award for Outstanding Research Accomplishments in Ocean Engineering, Stevens Institute of Technology
  • 2010 Good Neighbor Community Award (for rip current education and awareness), Girl Scouts of America

Publications

2022

  • Mahon A.M. 2022. "Foreword: Message from the MTS Journal Editor." Marine Technology Society Journal 56, no. 2:7. PNNL-SA-172363. doi:10.4031/MTSJ.56.2.9
  • Mahon A.M. 2022. "Forward: Message From the MTS Journal Editor." Marine Technology Society Journal 56, no. 4:6. PNNL-SA-175953. doi:10.4031/MTSJ.56.4.15
  • Robertson T., D. Aubrey, and A.M. Mahon. 2022. "Use of a Compliant Tether to Decouple Observation Buoy Motion for Auxiliary Wave Power." Marine Technology Society Journal 56, no. 6:18-24. PNNL-SA-181157. doi:10.4031/MTSJ.56.6.9
  • Sheridan L.M., R. Krishnamurthy, G. Garcia Medina, B.J. Gaudet, W.I. Gustafson, A.M. Mahon, and W.J. Shaw, et al. 2022. "Offshore Reanalysis Wind Speed Assessment Across the Wind Turbine Rotor Layer off the United States Pacific Coast." Wind Energy Science 7, no. 5:2059-2084. PNNL-SA-169723. doi:10.5194/wes-7-2059-2022

2021

  • Krishnamurthy R., G. Garcia Medina, B.J. Gaudet, A.M. Mahon, R.K. Newsom, W.J. Shaw, and L.M. Sheridan. 2021. "Potential of Offshore Wind Energy Off the Coast of California." In OCEANS 2021, September 20-23, San Diego, CA, 1-6. Piscataway, New Jersey:IEEE. PNNL-SA-164552. doi:10.23919/OCEANS44145.2021.9705976
  • Severy M., A.M. Gorton, R. Krishnamurthy, and M.S. Levin. 2021. Lidar Buoy Data Dictionary: For the 2020 - 2021 California Deployments. PNNL-30947. Richland, WA: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Lidar Buoy Data Dictionary: For the 2020 - 2021 California Deployments

2020

  • Copping A.E., A.M. Gorton, R. May, F. Bennet, E. Degeorge, M. Repas, and B. Rumes. 2020. "Enabling Renewable Energy While Protecting Wildlife: An Ecological Risk-Based Approach to Wind Energy Development Using Ecosystem-Based Management Values." Sustainability 12, no. 22:9352. PNNL-SA-157942. doi:10.3390/su12229352
  • Copping A.E., L.G. Hemery, D.M. Overhus, L. Garavelli, M.C. Freeman, J.M. Whiting, and A.M. Gorton, et al. 2020. "Potential environmental effects of marine renewable energy development - the state of the science." Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 8, no. 11:Article No. 879. PNNL-SA-156387. doi:10.3390/jmse8110879
  • Copping A.E., M.C. Freeman, A.M. Gorton, and L.G. Hemery. 2020. "Risk Retirement - Decreasing Uncertainty and Informing Consenting Permitting Processes for Marine Renewable Energy Development." Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 8, no. 3:172. PNNL-SA-150723. doi:10.3390/jmse8030172
  • dePeralta F.A., A.M. Gorton, M.D. Watson, R.M. Bays, J.R. Boles, B.T. Gorton, and J.E. Castleberry, et al. 2020. "Cybersecurity Resiliency of Marine Renewable Energy Systems. Part 1: Identifying Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities and Determining Risk." Marine Technology Society Journal 54, no. 6:97-107. PNNL-SA-154414. doi:10.4031/MTSJ.54.6.9
  • Gorton A.M., and D.M. Overhus. 2020. "Foreward: Advancing the U.S. Offshore Renewable Energy Industry through Marine Renewable and Offshore Wind Energy Development." Marine Technology Society Journal 54, no. 6:3-8. PNNL-SA-157673. doi:10.4031/MTSJ.54.6.7
  • Gorton A.M., and W.J. Shaw. 2020. "Advancing Offshore Wind Resource Characterization Using Buoy-based Observations." Marine Technology Society Journal 54, no. 6:37-43. PNNL-SA-155821. doi:10.4031/MTSJ.54.6.5
  • Shaw W.J., J. Draher, G. Garcia Medina, A.M. Gorton, R. Krishnamurthy, R.K. Newsom, and M.S. Pekour, et al. 2020. General Analysis of Data Collected from DOE Lidar Buoy Deployments Off Virginia and New Jersey. PNNL-29823. Richland, WA: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. doi:10.2172/1632348.General Analysis of Data Collected from DOE Lidar Buoy Deployments Off Virginia and New Jersey
  • Sheridan L.M., R. Krishnamurthy, A.M. Gorton, W.J. Shaw, and R.K. Newsom. 2020. "Validation of Reanalysis-Based Offshore Wind Resource Characterization Using Lidar Buoy Observations." Marine Technology Society Journal 54, no. 6:44-61. PNNL-SA-154410. doi:10.4031/MTSJ.54.6.13
  • Yang Z., A.M. Gorton, T. Wang, J.M. Whiting, A.E. Copping, K. Haas, and P.J. Wolfram, et al. 2020. Multi-resolution, Multi-scale Modeling for Scalable Macroalgae Production. PNNL-29881. Richland, WA: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Multi-resolution, Multi-scale Modeling for Scalable Macroalgae Production

2019

  • Copping A.E., M.C. Freeman, A.M. Gorton, and L.G. Hemery. 2019. "A Risk Retirement Pathway for Potential Effects of Underwater Noise and Electromagnetic Fields for Marine Renewable Energy." In OCEANS 2019 MTS/IEEE, October 27-31, 2019, Seattle, WA. Piscataway, New Jersey:IEEE. PNNL-SA-147090. doi:10.23919/OCEANS40490.2019.8962841
  • Gorton A.M., R.K. Newsom, W.J. Shaw, and J. Draher. 2019. "Contributing to Long-term Wind Resource Characterization through Buoy-based Observations of Meteorological and Oceanographic Conditions." In OCEANS 2019 MTS/IEEE, October 27-31, 2019, Seattle, WA. Piscataway, New Jersey:IEEE. PNNL-SA-147232. doi:10.23919/OCEANS40490.2019.8962727

2018

  • Copping A.E., A. Livecchi, H. Spence, A.M. Gorton, D.S. Jenne, R. Preus, and G.A. Gill, et al. 2018. "Maritime Renewable Energy Markets: Power from the Sea." Marine Technology Society Journal 52, no. 5:99-109. PNNL-SA-134407. doi:10.4031/MTSJ.52.5.3
  • Copping A.E., A.M. Gorton, and M.C. Freeman. 2018. Data Transferability and Collection Consistency in Marine Renewable Energy. PNNL-27995. Richland, WA: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Data Transferability and Collection Consistency in Marine Renewable Energy
  • Copping A.E., M.C. Freeman, A.M. Gorton, and S. Dreyer. 2018. "Managing Environmental Effects to Facilitate Marine Renewable Energy Development." In The 4th Asian Wave and Tidal Energy Conference (AWTEC 2018), September 9-13, 2018, Taipei, Taiwan. Keelung City:National Taiwan Ocean University. PNNL-SA-135255.
  • Gorton A.M., T.O. Herrington, and E.R. Smith. 2018. "Investigation of scour adjacent to submerged geotextiles used for shore protection." Journal of Marine Environmental Engineering 10, no. 2:71-83. PNNL-SA-126095.

2017

  • Copping A.E., M.E. Grear, R.A. Jepsen, C. Chartrand, and A.M. Gorton. 2017. "Understanding the Potential Risk to Marine Mammals from Collision with Tidal Turbines." International Journal of Marine Energy 19. PNNL-SA-120984. doi:10.1016/j.ijome.2017.07.004
  • Jensen P.J., T. Tran, B.G. Fritz, F.C. Rutz, S.B. Ross, A.M. Gorton, and R. Devanathan, et al. 2017. "Preliminary Evaluation of the DUSTRAN Modeling Suite for Modeling Atmospheric Chloride Transport." Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health 10, no. 1:25-31. PNNL-SA-113805. doi:10.1007/s11869-016-0404-5

2015

2014