Buzz Scott - Educator, administrator, vessel operations lead, ROV pilot and mechanical engineering technician

My Story

As a young boy on Matinicus Island Buzz spent a great deal of time listening in awe to stories told by the elders in the community. Fishermen, travelers, Island women and veterans would gather around the potbelly woodstove at the General store, they would visit each other in fish houses along the shore or in the wheelhouse or fo'c'sle of their fishing boats and often in their kitchens to share stories of adventure and tales of travel to far off places. 

It was a great way to socialize, but it also inspired the imaginations of the younger generation living on the small 720 acre island and led many to leave the island in search of their own adventures, stories and experiences.

Buzz has been going to sea for 50 years. Buzz started his at sea adventures hauling old wooden traps out of a double ended rowing boat known as a pea-pod off Matinicus Island in the Gulf of Maine during the early 1970’s.

He worked his way up to a 38-foot lobster boat and eventually a 63-foot fishing boat. After leaving Matinicus Island Buzz enlisted in the Navy Seabees as a heavy machinery operator and engineering aid. After working with the Seabees Buzz was offered a job onboard an Antarctic Research vessel as a marine technician in charge of deploying and recovering scientific equipment, fabricating and maintaining scientific equipment as needed and leading small boat operations.

Later, still with the US Antarctic Program Buzz sailed as a marine projects coordinator, coordinating scientific teams, ships crew and shipboard technicians to successfully carry out research cruise logistics and operations. After 8 years working in Antarctica Buzz moved north to warmer climes where he took a position as a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) pilot.

Over the next 10 years and 2,400 dives he worked with the ROV teams operating, maintaining and upgrading the remotely operated unmanned submarines Tiburon, Doc Ricketts and Ventana. After 10 years working as a ROV pilot with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute Buzz sailed as a contract pilot and operated ROVs with Dr. Robert Ballard at Ocean Exploration Trust, onboard his exploration vessel Nautilus, with Schmidt Ocean Institute onboard Falkor, with the US Navy and eventually returned to operate another ROV in Antarctica.

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Looking back at the unique opportunities that lead to an incredibly full and adventurous life and career, Buzz decided to take the advice of an old friend, Clayton Young, who mentored him as a young man, and another who advised him later in life, Mr. David Packard. They both advised him to learn as much as he needed to learn so he could return home/move on to make the world a better place.

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Buzz founded OceansWide, designed as an organization to help students in Maine explore the depths of the Gulf of Maine. Over the past 15 years OceansWide has successfully shared the adventure of ocean exploration using SCUBA, ROV operations, boat operations and marine safety. ​

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As students joined the adventure they became concerned about the amount of marine debris (specifically ghost lobster traps) they were seeing on the seafloor. Because of this Buzz and the board at OceansWide decided to expand the mission to include taking action to clear the Gulf of Maine of Marine Debris.

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Working to make the world a better place

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