July 21 , 2008
News from the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Environmental and Watershed Research Headlines:
2008 Senator George J. Mitchell Lecture on the Environment
Thursday, September 18th at 1:00pm
Hauck Auditorium, University of Maine, Orono
Reception to follow at Buchanan Alumni House
2008 Mitchell Lecturer: MARY EVELYN TUCKER
The Environmental Crisis as a Moral & Spiritual Challenge
Remarks by Senator George J. Mitchell
Mary Evelyn Tucker from Yale University is one of the world’s most articulate and passionate scholars focused on the role of religion and religious movements in confronting the growing environmental crisis. Together with religious leaders around the world, she has catalyzed a profound dialogue about the moral, ethical, and spiritual values that are needed to guide society towards more effective environmental stewardship.
This event is free and open to all. However, tickets are required and will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. Please call 207/581-3244 for reservations.
Event sponsors:
- Senator George J. Mitchell Center
- Maine Interfaith Power and Light
- University of Maine Cultural Affairs Committee
Diadromous Species Restoration Research Network
In spring 2008, the Mitchell Center in collaboration with the University of Southern Maine received funding from the National Science Foundation to set up the Diadromous Species Restoration Research Network (DSRRN).
The goal of this network is to develop and sustain facilitated interactions of multiple research, government and stakeholder entities focused on restoring diadromous (sea run) fish populations throughout the North Atlantic region. The strength of this network is in its connection to and integration with the Penobscot River Restoration Project. Within this context unparalleled opportunities exist to study questions fundamental to diadromous fish ecology and restoration, including: the role of diadromous fish in marine-freshwater linkages, the interdependency of co-evolved diadromous species, multi-species interactions in a restoration context, and the effects of multiple stressors on restoration results.
The network will work to coordinate the overlapping/interconnected research efforts of academic, government and watershed stakeholders, provide administrative structure, and support data management.
A Web site to support the network is under construction at http://searunfish.maine.edu, and information on all aspects of the project will be posted as it becomes available. Additional information is also available from Karen Wilson, Research Coordinator for DSRRN.
Children's Water Festival seeks presenters & exhibitors
On Tuesday, October 14, the 2008 Northern Maine Children’s Water Festival will be held at the University of Maine in Orono. Over 700 fifth and sixth grade students from across northern Maine will participate in the festival. Our goal is to educate about water: its role as an animal habitat; its uses in meeting human needs; water quality protection for human and ecosystem health; the different forms water takes in the water cycle, and water conservation. Each water science concept is presented in a hands-on and exciting manner and encourages kids to explore the ways water is important in their lives.
Opportunities are still available for presenters and exhibitors. If your organization is interested in participating, please contact Kathy Hoppe at Maine DEP.
A Coastal Companion: A Gulf of Maine Almanac, from Canada to Cape Cod
by Catherine Schmitt
A Coastal Companion is a journey through the year in the Gulf of Maine and its watershed, which includes land from eastern Massachusetts to southwestern Nova Scotia. A chronicle of changes through the seasons both above and within the sea, A Coastal Companion follows the arrival and departure of migrating shorebirds in spring and fall, schools of fish as they move in and out of our region, and the natural cycles of our bays, rivers, marshes, and coastal forests. Part field guide, part almanac, the book also highlights writers, artists, and scientists who have chosen the Gulf of Maine as their subject matter.
Poems by twelve contemporary poets open each chapter, and illustrations by two Maine artists, Kimberleigh Martul-March and Margaret Campbell, are featured throughout the text. This is a book to keep close at hand, to be read not all at once, but through the seasons, one day at a time, and enjoyed year after year.
Published by Tibury House. Available from local bookstores.
2008 National Hydraulic Engineering Conference
The 2008 National Hydraulic Engineering Conference "Partnering for Progress in a Changing Environment" will take place from August 26-29 in Portland, ME at the Holiday Inn by the Bay. Agenda topics include: Changing Climate Impact on Transportation; Fish Passage: the Progress and the Partnerships; Bridge/Culvert Hydraulics and Scour; and more...
Additional information is available at: http://www.maine.gov/mdot-stage/nhec/
Registration deadline for the conference is August 8. Registration by fax is encouraged. In extenuating circumstances, and up to August 12, check with Jackie Guimond (207/624-3017) at MaineDOT to see if the late fee might be waived.
Online Demonstration of "Storm Water Steward"
The Bangor Area Storm Water Group (BASWG) has been working to develop a new model for regionalizing stormwater management data, inspections and inspection trainings, based on a successful collaborative program developed by the seven municipalities and three state-owned Municipal Storm Sewer Systems in the Bangor Urbanized Area.
The resulting web-based system, produced in collaboration with Pinnacle Development Group, is called Storm Water Steward. For those interested, an online demonstration of this unique system will take place on September 10, 2008 at 11am. Please contact Phil Ruck, Technical Consultant to BASWG, at 207/989-4824 or pruck@ces-maine.com for details.
|
