Community Oil Spill Forum invites members of the public to learn from and ask questions of oil spill scientists
The
Central Gulf of Mexico Center for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence
(COSEE), housed at The University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast
Research Lab (GCRL) is partnering with Louisiana Sea Grant, Audubon
Aquarium of the Americas and Sci-Port: Louisiana’s Science Center to
offer a Community Oil Spill Forum at each location on Saturday, November
19th.
One
and one half years after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill began in 5000
feet of water off the southeast coast of Louisiana, many questions
remain about the effects of this catastrophe. The Community Oil Spill
Forum has been designed to address some of these questions for members
of the general public, including adults and their children over the age
of 12. Classroom teachers who attend will earn continuing learning
units (CLUs). The event will feature presentations by scientists geared
to a general level of understanding, an opportunity to ask questions of
the scientists and activities that will clarify aspects of the oil
spill – specifically seafood tasting and turtle rehabilitation.
The
event will be a videoconference among the three partner sites with all
speakers presenting to and answering questions asked at all sites.
Speakers at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge include resident
scientists: Dr. Ed Overton will provide an overview of the oil spill
event. Dr. Julie Anderson will discuss dispersant use. Dr. Lucina
Lampila will explain the current knowledge regarding seafood safety. At
the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans, Ms. Suzanne Smith,
of the Louisiana Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Rescue Program, will
discuss rehabilitation of large animals. At Sci-Port: Louisiana’s
Science Center in Shreveport, Dr. Jessie Kastler, Gulf Coast Research
Laboratory and producer of SpillScience.com, will summarize lessons of
the oil spill and how science uncovers them.
Registration
for this event is strongly encouraged because space in
videoconferencing facilities at each location is limited. Links to
register at each location and more information about the event are
available at http://cosee-central-gom.org/community_forum_la.htm.
Contact Dianne Lindstedt at Louisiana Sea Grant, 225-578-1558, lsged@lsu.edu; Tricia LeBlanc at Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, 504-378-2675, tleblanc@auduboninstitute.org; or Michele McKee at Sci-Port: Louisiana’s Science Center, mmckee@sciport.org, (318) 424-8688, for more information.
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