ORONO – The Sen. George J. Mitchell Center for Environmental and Watershed Research will continue its fall seminar series at noon Fridays, in Norman Smith Hall on the University of Maine campus. Talks are open to the public.

. Dec. 2: Graduate student Chandra McGee will discuss her research on concentrations of cadmium in common moose browse. Native Americans consume more moose meat than the general population as part of traditional subsistence practices. The Passamaquoddy Tribe of Maine is concerned about high cadmium concentrations in moose liver and kidneys. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife have issued advisories against consumption of moose liver or kidneys because of high cadmium concentrations. However, the relative contributions of cadmium from different food sources to moose are unknown.

McGee will present findings from her research on the concentration of cadmium and other metals, including lead and nickel, in common moose browse vegetation and soils.

. Dec. 9: Andrew Carpenter, a representative from the Maine Wastewater Control Association, will discuss bio-solids recycling in Maine and offer a comparison of bio-solids and other soil amendments.

In Maine, more than 100,000 wet tons per year of sewage sludge is generated as a by-product in the process of cleaning wastewater. More than 75 percent of the sludge generated in Maine is processed to kill pathogens and recycled as a soil amendment called bio-solids.

Maine’s bio-solids recycling rate is significantly higher than the national average, and represents a successful diversion of the resource away from landfills and into programs that build soil fertility. The practice of bio-solids recycling is not without critics. The presentation will focus on placing bio-solids recycling in the context of other soil amendments used to build soil fertility in Maine.

For information, call Ruth Hallsworth, 581-3196 or visit www.umaine.edu/waterresearch/outreach/lectureseries.htm.