Mussel harvest is banned in Pleasant Bay

State environmental regulators yesterday decided yesterday to stop the harvesting of mussels in Pleasant Bay in Chatham, Orleans, and Harwich, because of concerns about red tide. Red tide is an occurrence of single-celled algae that carry toxins that concentrate over time in some shellfish, making them poisonous. Crabs, lobsters, fish, and shrimp are not affected. In the case of Pleasant Bay, red tide is only damaging mussels. Red tide has prompted closing of most of the coastline from the New Hampshire border to the Bourne-Sandwich town line.

The state's Board of Registration in Medicine took disciplinary action against three medical doctors yesterday, the board announced. The board revoked the right of Dr. Michael R. Brown, who had been certified in emergency medicine and internal medicine, to renew his license, which was suspended in August 2005 amid allegations of illegally distributing drugs, illegally possessing controlled substances, and committing Medicaid fraud. Brown, who was first licensed in the state in 1980, was convicted of those charges after his license was suspended. The board also suspended indefinitely the license of Dr. Howard R. Spivak, after finding that he had admitted to using illegal drugs. He will be able to petition for a stay of suspension after 12 months of continuous sobriety and entering a probation agreement. A third doctor, Dr. William S. Friedman, was reprimanded by the board for engaging in "inappropriate and disruptive behavior" with co-workers.

Boston University School of Law has named former congressional tax specialist Daniel M. Berman as the next head of its graduate tax program. Berman, a Washington, D.C., tax lawyer who was deputy international tax counsel at the US Department of the Treasury from 1995 to 1997, will begin July 1, dean Maureen O'Rourke announced yesterday. Berman will succeed associate dean Ernest M. Haddad, who will remain on the faculty.

Search and rescue teams in Utah were trying to recover the body of a Brookline, Mass., man who went missing while kayaking. Captain Kyle Ekker of the Emery County Sheriff's Department said Douglas Fisher left June 6 for a 10-day trip down the Green and Colorado rivers. Fisher's family reported him missing when he failed to return on time. Searchers from the state, the National Park Service, and the Sheriff's Department located Fisher's camp site and kayak Tuesday about 35 miles south of Green River. The 62-year-old man's body was later spotted about a half-mile from the camp by searchers in an airplane. Ekker said Fisher, an avid kayaker, appeared to have died days ago after falling from a cliff while taking pictures. (AP)

An executive with Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs & Co. has been named to Harvard University's new post of executive vice president. Drew Faust, Harvard's president, announced Edward Forst's appointment yesterday. He will begin working in September as a senior adviser to Faust. Forst is a 1982 Harvard graduate who most recently served as Goldman Sachs' global head of investment management, in charge of $895 billion in managed assets. (AP)

A Palmer man admitted to robbing the houses of families attending funerals, after finding their names in obituaries. Thomas Walker pleaded guilty to various charges, including four counts of breaking and entering in the daytime to commit a felony. The thefts last July were in Belchertown and South Hadley. The defense and prosecutors agreed Tuesday on a sentence of three-to-five years, but Hampshire Superior Court Judge Bertha Josephson called Walker's actions despicable and added 10 years of probation. Sentencing was postponed until July because defendants can withdraw a plea if a judge exceeds the recommended sentence. Walker, 20, is a heroin addict, according to his lawyer. Walker said in court that he would accept the sentence. (AP)