Suzette Kimball, director of the U.S. Geological Survey, presented a lecture “Science in the world of public policy” Friday afternoon at Watermen’s Hall on the Virginia Institute of Marine Science campus, Gloucester Point.

Kimball said she was happy to return to the VIMS campus, where she had been a marine scientist more than 20 years ago. She noted the growth Gloucester and VIMS have experienced since she last worked here.

Also, Kimball described the growth of the agency she now heads, which is the chief science agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior. Kimball said that, unlike some other federal agencies, USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility.

The scientists of USGS study the country’s landscape, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten. Kimball said the agency, which is headquartered in the Northern Virginia community of Reston, has more than 11,000 employees and operates from approximately...