Androscoggin Watershed Conference 

May 7th: 8:45 AM

Auburn Senior Community Center

Pettengill Park Road, Auburn 

Keynote Address

Melanie Loyzim, Commissioner

Maine Department of Environmental Protection

8:45 – 8:50 – Welcome  

8:50  - 10:00 – Concurrent Sessions 

Session A - Threats to Our Lakes:  Scott Williams, Lake and Watershed Associates, will review the primary threats to our lakes, and Jeff Stern, ARWC Environmental Director, will provide examples of Best Management Practices to mitigate the threats.  Information on the water quality and issues affecting Lake Auburn will be covered by Dr. Holly Ewing who has made the study of Lake Auburn a focus of her work at Bates College.

Session B – Impacts of Climate Change on the Outdoor Recreation Economy:  Participants will review and discuss the impacts that Climate Change has had on Outdoor Recreation.  This winter has been an especially tough year for businesses and individuals that rely on and/or enjoy outdoor recreation. Participants include Nate Harvey, Great Glen Trails, Andy Cutko, Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, and Jeff McCabe, Maine Office of Outdoor Recreation.

 10:00 – 10:15 – Break  

10:15 – 11:20 - Concurrent Sessions  

Session C – Water Levels, Flows and Climate Change: Androscoggin River, our lakes and tributaries:  The session will focus primarily on the Androscoggin River, but will also address how Climate Change is impacting our lakes and tributaries.  Speakers include: Tom Mapletoft, River Manager, Brookfield Renewables; Nick Stasulis, USGS; and Sarah Jamison, National Weather Service.

 Session D:  Student Presentations: Students from Bates College and University of Maine at Farmington will present on a several varied, but definitely interesting topics. Amelia Wallis, Bates College, will discuss the status of Lake Auburn Tributaries.  Bates students Verina Chatata ('26), Enathe Muhawenimana ('26), and Caleb Ireland ('23) will present on Sabattus Pond phytoplankton blooms.  Riley Boucher, UMF, will present her research on using eDNA to assess the distribution of the smallmouth bass, an invasive species, in Maine.  Gillean Hamilton, UMF, explored the continuation of stream geochemical analysis near the Plumbago North lithium deposit in West-Central Maine.  Sadie Gray, UMF, while not being able to attend, will share a poster of her project on calculating how climate change is impacting essential organisms in the food chain in higher elevation Maine ponds. 

 11:20 – 11:30 – Break

11:30 – Noon – Keynote Address: Melanie Loyzim, Commissioner, Maine DEP

 Noon – 1:10 – Lunch, ARWC Annual Meeting, Election of Board Members and Officers of ARWC, and Presentations on BioRegional Resilience and Creating Resilient Streams and Infrastructure.  

1:10 – 2:30 – Historic and Current Water Quality of the Androscoggin River. This session will cover many but not all of the historic and current water quality aspects of the Androscoggin River.  Speakers include Ken Gallant, retired Environmental Manager, Verso Paper; Rob Mohlar, Maine DEP; and Scott Reed, Environmental Manager, Nine Dragons. 

For more information contact Ferg Lea at flea.arwc@gmail.com