The society is devoted to the science of benthic ecology, which is the study of organisms living on or near the bottom of all bodies of water. The society has a membership of 2,000 scientists from industry, government and academic institutions, primarily in North America. The society's research interests concentrate on the study of physical, chemical and biological processes in streams, rivers, wetlands and the bottoms of lake and marine ecosystems.
Mulholland also serves on the editorial board of The Journal of the North American Benthological Society.
He joined ORNL in 1979 and has served as a group leader in the Biogeochemical Cycling Group of the Environmental Sciences Division. He won the 1991 Scientific Achievement Award in the division.
Mulholland's research at ORNL includes the ecology of stream ecosystems, biogeochemistry and hydrology of watersheds and the effects of climate change on freshwater ecosystems.
In addition to his membership in the North American Benthological Society, Mulholland is a member of the Ecological Society of America, American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, International Society of Limnology and Sigma Xi. Mulholland is also past associate editor of the journal Ecology.
Mulholland is a 1973 graduate of Cornell University with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. He earned his master's degree in environmental engineering in 1975 from Cornell before receiving a doctorate in 1979 in environmental biology from the University of North Carolina.
Mulholland and his wife, Cathy Daniels, live in Oak Ridge with their children, Anna, 10; Rick, 8; and Joe, 5. Mulholland is active as a coach in the American Youth Soccer Organization and the Oak Ridge Boys Club.
ORNL, one of DOE's multiprogram national research and development facilities, is managed by Lockheed Martin Energy Systems, which also manages the Oak Ridge K-25 Site and the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant.