| Activity | Museum Staff: appointed to Department of Zoology 1965, principal scientific officer 1973; retired 1998
David George was a distinguished marine biologist, polychaete taxonomist, underwater photographer, professional SCUBA diver, coral reef ecologist and marine environmental consultant. He worked at the Natural History Museum in London in a variety of roles from 1965 to 2016, over 50 years.
The 1990s saw George create the first environmental consultancy unit at the rebranded Natural History Museum in London. This was at a time when environmental consultancy was a rare and nascent sector, and quite innovative in showcasing the importance of natural history expertise in contributing to the regulation of industry, as well as the use of scientific data to monitor long-term impacts. Drawing on his expertise in marine biology, diving, marine invertebrates and pollution indicators he created a new team at the NHM which took on contracts on a range of projects such as monitoring the impacts of sewage outfalls or collecting data on whale-strandings around the UK. The work became international when he went on to lead consultancy contracts in the Middle East after the NHM took over a Newcastle University project assessing damage to coral reefs caused by the grounding of vessels in the Red Sea.
Staff obituary held by Museum Archives. |