PLEASE NOTE CORRECTED TIME. This event takes place from 7:00 to 9:00 PM.

Join The Darling Marine Center, aquaculture industry partners and the Damariscotta River Association for a forum on current research and findings in the Damariscotta River Estuary.

Presenters will provide synopses of research being conducted by the Sustainable Ecological Aquaculture Network (SEANET). The oceanographic research ranges from nitrogen cycle assessment to water quality monitoring planned for 2017 in the Damariscotta River Estuary.

Sarah Gladu, Damariscotta River Association Director of Education and Environmental Monitoring, will talk about observations based on water quality data collected by citizen volunteers over the past several years in the estuary.

Kathleen Thornton from the University of Maine Darling Marine Center will present water quality findings based on data from Maine Coastal Observing Alliance (MCOA), a midcoast alliance of citizen monitoring groups that provide a regional perspective on changing estuarine conditions.

Working with nine partner institutions and more than a hundred researchers, the SEANET project is conducting oceanographic studies in the Damariscotta River and five other study areas along Maine’s coast. This five-year, $20 million grant from the National Science Foundation is helping scientists explore how different types and scales of aquaculture fit into Maine’s multi-use working waterfront and the river ecosystem.

Attendees will have an opportunity to speak with presenters, ask questions and participate in discussions. Refreshments will be provided. For more information, or to request a disability accommodation, contact Meggan Dwyer at 207.745.0834 or meggan.dwyer@maine.edu.