History of Air Pollution in Maine

Friends of Sears Island and the Belfast Free Library will co-host a presentation on the history of air pollution in Maine by Dr. Stephen Norton, at the Belfast Free Library on June 5th, at 6:30pm. Humans have only been able to accurately characterize the chemical climate of Earth for about 50 years. To study pollution prior to the 1950s, scientists study the archives of pollution that are stored in soils, tree cores, museum collections of vegetation, ice cores from high elevation and/or high latitude, lake sediments, and peat accumulations in bogs. Dr. Norton’s presentation will focus on what soil surveys and lake and peat sediments can reveal, including a discussion of research done at Sargent Mountain Pond in Acadia National Park, most likely the oldest lake in the state. He will cover other archives as time allows.
Steve Norton is a Professor Emeritus in the School of Earth and Climate Sciences at the University of Maine. He graduated from Princeton and Harvard University, earning his PhD in 1967. He joined the Department of Geology faculty at the University of Maine in 1968 where he taught and did research until his retirement in 2008. His research is in the field of aquatic geochemistry.
This event is free and open to the public. To learn more about Friends of Sears Island check out www.friendsofsearsisland.org. For more information and program updates visit facebook.com/friendsofsearsisland, or call 207-975-3878.