Maas, who joined UNC Asheville in 1987, was a founder and co-director of UNC Asheville�s Environmental Quality Institute (EQI), which has served government agencies, non-profit organizations and the private sector as a center for education, research and technical assistance on environmental issues for the past 18 years. As one of the nation�s largest repositories of lead contamination data, EQI has ongoing projects concerning the water quality of Western North Carolina streams and lakes, arsenic exposure from pressure-treated lumber and mercury exposure from fish consumption.

In his role at EQI, Maas served as a frequent consultant to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Greenpeace, the State of California Office of the Attorney General, the New York City Environmental Protection Agency and many other organizations.

�Rick Maas was a visionary,� said Steve Patch, the UNC Asheville mathematics professor who co-directed EQI with Maas for the past 16 years. �He not only knew the most pressing environmental issues of the time, but he could foresee what would be regarded as the most pressing issues five years into the future,� Patch said.

�And Rick was extremely generous with his time. He regularly consulted with national authorities on strategies for reducing the public�s exposure to environmental toxins, yet he was equally happy to help individuals who were concerned about lead exposure to their children.�

Maas was beloved by his students, and his classes in air and water pollution control, alternative energy and environmental management helped launch many of them into successful environmental science careers.

Tamara Pandolfo, an EQI staff member who graduated from UNC Asheville in 2003 with a major in environmental studies, took a number of classes from Maas and worked with him as a researcher in EQI Lab while still a student.

�Dr. Maas was inspirational in class and was always willing to give you time outside of class no matter how busy he was. He had a great sense of humor. And he would always ask about my career plans. He was just great man. I am really going to miss him,� she said.

The UNC Asheville campus community will miss him as well, said Mark Padilla, UNC Asheville provost and vice chancellor for academic and student affairs.

�Dr. Maas was a gifted natural scientist, a teacher truly dedicated to his students, and a regional, national and international leader who cared deeply about science-based environmental reform,� Padilla said. �Dr. Maas� work has made a profound difference. UNC Asheville has benefited immeasurably from his dedication and collegiality. We will miss him greatly.�

Maas was well known for his service to the Western North Carolina region. He helped found the Volunteer Water Information Network, which now has some 100 volunteers monitoring the water quality at 212 sites along Western North streams and rivers. He also helped found the Clean Air Community Trust and served on the boards of the Metropolitan Sewage District of Buncombe County, Asheville-Buncombe Water Authority, WNC Regional Air Pollution Control Agency and RiverLink Inc.

Maas received a number of honors for his work. In 1989, he was presented Quality Forward�s Clean Community Award for outstanding contributions to improving the quality of life in Buncombe County. Maas also received UNC Asheville�s Ruth and Leon Feldman Award for outstanding research and service in 1994. He was named a North Carolina Humanities Council Distinguished Lecturer in 1993.

A graduate of Bucknell University, Maas earned a master�s degree in chemistry from Western Carolina University, and a master�s degree in public health and a doctorate in environmental chemistry from UNC Chapel Hill. He joined UNC Asheville as an assistant professor, moving up through the ranks to become a full professor in the Department of Environmental Studies in 1998. Maas was chair of the department from 1996 to 2002.

(Images provided by UNCA.)

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