When communities and scientists realized there was a lack of data about ocean acidification along the coast of Maine, local residents rolled up their sleeves, organized a regional partnership known as Maine Coastal Observing Alliance (MCOA), and got to work.

MCOA leaders Kathleen Thornton and Sarah Gladu will share the success stories and findings collected by this unique partnership in a talk titled, “Working together for Maine's Estuaries: Citizen Science Groups Collaborate with University of Maine Scientists.”

The talk will be held at 10:30 a.m. Aug. 3 in Brooke Hall at the University of Maine’s Darling Marine Center, at 193 Clarks Cove Road, Walpole.

The MCOA comprises 10 citizen science monitoring groups that measure several water quality indicators in coastal and estuarine waters. Their research provides an assessment of water quality in individual estuaries and insights into coast-wide trends.

Kathleen Thornton is a research specialist at the Darling Marine Center and Sarah Gladu is the current MCOA chair as well as Damariscotta River Association’s Education and Environmental Monitoring Director.

This talk is part of the DMC’s science seminar series. The free, public Friday seminars provide opportunities to discuss current marine research.

Visit dmc.umaine.edu/seminars to preregister and for the list of other featured speakers and topics. For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, call 207.563.3146.