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BEAR BROOK WATERSHED PROVIDES CHALLENGES TO GRADUATE STUDENT By Jennifer Boothroyd
As a graduate research assistant at the Mitchell Center, Mel works as the hydrology field coordinator for the Bear Brook Watersheds in Maine. This paired-watershed study site on Lead Mountain in Washington County was established by researchers at UMaine in 1986. In 1989, researchers began artificially acidifying one watershed by helicopter, leaving the other as a reference site. Mel has worked closely with John Cangelosi on the project, and her responsibilities include weekly sampling, chemical analyses, quality control and quality assurance, statistics and flux preparation and interpretation, and data delivery. Research goes on at Bear Brook year-round, so Mel often has to deal with cold, wet, and muddy conditions. The site can only be accessed via logging roads, so a four-wheel-drive field vehicle is a necessity. She even uses a snowmobile to access the sampling sites in the winter. Her job ties in well with her own thesis research; Mel is trying to determine what effects the acid treatments and Clean Air Act Amendments are having on the water chemistry at the Bear Brook study site. Melinda is planning on defending her thesis in March of 2006, which will coincide with the start of her Ph.D. research here at UMaine. She is planning to build on questions that surfaced during her Master’s research, looking at soil processes that mitigate the effects of acidic deposition and how they may affect a watershed’s recovery from acidification. Mel currently resides in Brewer with her partner, François, and her two cats, Chukka and Samantha. She also maintains a large freshwater fish tank full of Tanganyika cichlids. She is an avid gardener, and preserves much of her fall harvest. True to her German roots, she is famous for her homemade sauerkraut. She also enjoys camping, fishing, and other outdoor activities. Mel says that in addition to the beautiful scenery and recreation opportunities that Maine has to offer, she appreciates the independent mindset and can-do attitudes of Mainers.
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Melinda Diehl came to the Mitchell Center in the summer of 2003 from Morris, Minnesota. She jumped headfirst into college as a full-time student at the age of 16. After a few years as an undergraduate, she chose to enter the working world. She worked as a bank teller, plumber, electrician, pig farmer, and was working as a property manager for a non-profit corporation when she decided to return to college. She re-entered with a renewed enthusiasm for science. She graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from Southwest Minnesota State University in 2003, and left ten days later for the University of Maine. Mel is pursuing a Master’s degree in Ecology and Environmental Science under co-advisors Katherine Webster and Steve Kahl. She came to Maine to “get out of the Midwest”, and chose the Mitchell Center because of its wide variety of research opportunities.