Geological Engineering Advisory Board

William Griffin, Ph.D., P.E.
U.P. Engineers & Architects, Inc.

Bill grew up through high school in suburbs of Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia and earned a BS in Geological Engineering from Michigan Tech.  He has had a varied career starting as an oilfield production engineer with Amoco Production Company in Wyoming followed by work as the mine geologist for a large taconite mine in northern Minnesota.  He then went to grad school back at MTU in Civil Engineering (water resources).  He also served three years as a visiting instructor in the Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences Department.  Bill then entered the consulting engineering arena and has worked on projects in Wyoming, Montana, New Mexico, Wisconsin and Michigan over the last 35 years, while also earning a PhD from the University of Wyoming.  Areas of interest in consulting primarily include exploration and development of drinking water supplies, environmental regulatory compliance and various aspects of geotechnical engineering.  He has also been involved in consulting firm management as a principal for ten years and an employee of U.P. Engineers & Architects, Inc.  for the last 26 years.

Shannon Lemke, Vice President of Exploration
Epsilon Energy

Shannon Lemke is the Vice President of Exploration at Epsilon Energy in Houston, TX.  She has 18 years of experience working for both public and private equity backed companies focusing on Onshore US conventional and unconventional exploration and development.  Prior to joining Epsilon, she was the Vice President of Exploration for NewVista Energy Partners and held various technical positions at Vitruvian Exploration I and II and Newfield Exploration.   Shannon graduated with a B.S. in Geological Engineering from Michigan Technological University.  She is a member of AAPG and Houston Geological Society, is a trustee and secretary for the HGS Undergraduate Scholarship Foundation and serves on the Michigan Tech Presidential Council of Alumnae. Shannon and her husband, Seth (a 2000 MTU graduate with dual degrees in Geological Engineering and Applied Geophysics) and their four children currently reside in Houston.

Andrew Smits, P.E.
GEI Consultants, Inc.

Andrew Smits (Andy) is a Senior Engineer at GEI Consultants, Inc. with more than 33 years of experience in environmental and geotechnical engineering. Andy works as a licensed, Professional Engineer with his practice focused upon environmental and geotechnical engineering. He is a graduate of Michigan Technological University and has extensive experience working with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), developing innovative remedial action plans and completing remedial investigation designs for many complex projects involving surface water and groundwater provisions of Michigan’s Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act (NREPA).  Andy served as a technical advisor to the Director of the DEQ from 2012 to 2015 and was reappointed by the Director to serve again through 2017.  He is an active member of the Michigan Manufacturing Association’s Environmental Policy Committee and is a contributor to the various legislative initiatives updating and reforming environmental regulations.

Andy has been married for 30 years to Becky Smits, his partner in life and in Inland Seas Engineering, Inc., a businesses they started together in 1993 and recently sold.  Becky also graduated from MTU (’86) with a Geological Engineering degree.

Patricia Morris Bryan, P.G., President/Principal Geologist
Bryan Environmental Consultants, Inc.

Patricia Morris Bryan is the President and Principal Geologist at Bryan Environmental Consultants, Inc. and is responsible for overall management of the company, including business development, project execution, staffing and financial performance. She  has over thirty years of experience in environmental consulting including Phase I and Phase I Environmental Site Assessments, remedial investigations, hydrogeological and geological investigations, UST investigations, brownfield investigations and remediation, risk assessments, and remedial response actions pursuant to the Illinois EPA SRP, TACO and LUST programs as well as other state programs.

Senior Project Manager and Client/Program Manager for public and private sector clients.

Ray Wuolo, P.E., P.G.
Barr Engineering Co.

Ray Wuolo has over three decades of experience in the characterization and investigation of groundwater flow and groundwater contamination. He specializes in computer modeling of groundwater flow and contaminant transport, aquifer testing, well design, pump-and-treat system design, and automated inverse calibration methods. At Barr, he leads projects involving groundwater supply and sustainability, hydrogeologic site evaluation, mining hydrogeology, aquifer remediation, environmental chemistry, and environmental impact statements.