Earth Day 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011 at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory
Downloadable pdf flyer Media Release
Gulf Coast Research Laboratory is excited to announce a community event to celebrate Earth Day and to celebrate and promote research, outreach, and education. The event will be held at GCRL from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on April 16, 2011. (Note that the date is six days prior to the general Earth Day celebration on April 22.)
Gulf Islands National Seashore in Ocean Springs has previously sponsored an annual Earth Day event. They no longer plan to schedule such an event. The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory will hold a similar event. GCRL's Earth Day will provide an opportunity for families with young children to learn about our environment, as well as offering activities, presentations, and field experiences for older students and adults. Families with young children can take a ride on our pontoon boat in Davis Bayou. Adults (and students age 12 and older) will have the opportunity to take a trip on one of the Lab's research vessels. We plan to have information on the health of the Gulf of Mexico post oil spill.
It is more important than ever before to provide education to coastal residents about our natural resources. This event will have something for everyone — from families with children to adults who want to understand current research and ways to conserve our environment and become more aware of coastal and environmental issues.
Opportunities for Exhibitors
Opportunities for exhibitors are described in the invitation below.
Activities for the Public
Lecture Series
- 9:15 Jennifer McKinney – Whale sharks in the Gulf
- 9:55 Dr. Mark Peterson – Gulf sturgeon: a canary in the coal mine
- 10:35 Dr. Joe Griffitt – Oil Toxicity
- 11:15 Dr. Paul Mickle – the Rivers of Mississippi
- 11:55 Mike Lowe – Human Alterations to the Coastal Zone: Past, Present, and Future Impacts to Important Fisheries Habitats
- 12:35 Read Hendon – Mississippi Marine Finfish Studies
- 13:15 Jim Franks - pelagic fish and their habitats
- 13:55 Brett Nave – GREEN architecture
Lectures are 20 – 30 minutes long with a 5- to 10-minute question and answer session. This schedule is tentative and flexible.
Oil Spill Round Table, Year One
Dr. Jay Grimes, Dr. Richard Fulford, and Dr. Bill Hawkins
- 14:20 to 15:15 lecture/ discussion
- 15:15 to 15:30 Question and answer session
Boat Trips
A local naturalist will be aboard each boat
- R/V Tom McIlwain - trawling: ages 12+ and up,
25 people per trip
Four trips: 09:30, 10:45, 12:00, and 13:15 - Sea Explorer pontoon boat - all ages toward Davis Bayou, 20 people per trip.
Five trips: 09:30, 10:30, 11:30, 12:30, and 13:30 - Kayaking -20 people per trip, with naturalists, across from the guard shack
Four trips: 09:30, 10:45, 12:00, and 13:15
GCRL Touch Aquarium
30-minute tours at 9:10, 10:00, 10:40, 11:20, 13:00, 13:40, and 14:20
Nature Trail
Start at west trail head, 9:30, 10:30, 11:30, 12:30, and 1:30
Educational Activities
- Marine debris - problems and solutions
- Oil spill demonstration
- Recycling
- Fish Printing
- Shark Lab Demonstration, featuring various species of shark jaws and ray, several jar specimens, field guide flip book.
Exhibitors
- Bring Your Own Brush - exhibit naturally inspired art & face painting
- Marine Technology Society from Stennis - ROV demonstration(Remotely Operated Vehicle, "underwater robot")
- Ocean Springs Fire Department - Fire prevention trailer and program for wild fire
- Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge - photographs, snakes
- Mississippi Power Company - efficiency tips and services; cfl light bulb give away; kid give away items
- Crosby Arboretum - flyers for visitors
- Sierra Club - membership forms, t-shirt sales, brochures
- NOAA - turtle hurdle, a replica of a 40-ft shrimp trawl with TED (turtle excluder device)
- Land Trust for the Mississippi Coastal Plain - display handouts
- Ocean Conservancy
- Historicl Ocean Springs Saltwater Fly Fishing club - fly fishing demonstration, kayak fishing discussion
- GCRL summer programs for the public - Sea Camp, Shark Fest, and Explorer a Seashore
- American Fisheries Society
- Audubon Society