ORONO — The Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions at the University of Maine is set to host a talk, “Marshes for Maine’s Future — Turning the tide on marsh loss in Maine” at 3 p.m. Monday, Jan. 29.

All talks in the Mitchell Center’s Sustainability Talks series are free and offered both remotely via Zoom and in person at 107 Norman Smith Hall on the Orono campus.

Salt marshes in Maine are not as iconic as the rugged rocky coast, but their value as places that support fish and shellfish and migrating and resident birds makes them one of the state’s most productive coastal habitats. Coastal communities benefit from salt marshes’ natural ability to buffer storms, filter pollution and store carbon. But salt marshes that have adapted to changing sea levels for millennia are now threatened by the current pace of sea level rise and coastal development, according to a news release from Ruth Hallsworth with the center.

Chris Feurt, coastal training program director at Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve and research associate at the University of New England, will share her story of a dedicated group of researchers, managers and conservationists who are collaborating to help turn the tide and sustain marshes for Maine’s future.

Feurt’s love affair with salt marshes began decades ago with a career-altering summer job at the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge on Assateague Island in Virginia. On track for a job as a medical technologist, that summer in the Virginia salt marshes helped her chart a different path resulting in a master’s degree from William and Mary focused on the sea level rise impacts of barrier beaches and marshes.

The marshes of Cumberland Island, Georgia; Everglades, Florida; and Big Thicket, Texas inspired a career that led Feurt to Maine salt marshes over 20 years ago. In Maine, a second transformation occurred. This transformation will be revealed in her story of marshes for Maine’s Future.

Registration is required to attend remotely. To register and receive connection information, visit the event webpage at umaine.edu.

To request a reasonable accommodation, contact Hallsworth at 207-581-3196 or hallsworth@maine.edu.

Check out other upcoming area events!