Comox Valley Nature is pleased to host Dr. Sarah Dudas for a lecture on “Microplastics in the environment and implications for the Salish Sea”. Recently featured on the CBC for her work on microplastics, Dr. Sarah Dudas is Canada research chair at the Shellfish Research Centre at Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo , BC. Her research of micro-plastic impacts on marine food chains has drawn international attention, and on the national webinar series of the Canadian Society for Environmental Biologists. She is currently supervising a project tagging some 3,000 shellfish Vancouver Island to study the impacts of micro-plastics on marine food-chains.
The impact of micro-plastics ingested by marine organisms is a growing recent concern. Relatively little is known about the fate of micro-plastics and their ultimate potential impacts on marine food chains. The ability of micro-plastics to sorb a large variety of chemicals makes them a potential danger for natural ecosystems and human health. Dr. Sarah Dudas , together with Dr. Katie Davidson, is the author of one of the few recent in-depth study on the presence of micro-plastics on manila clams in Baynes Sound and potential impacts of micro-plastics. She is currently undertaking a project to monitor some 3,000 shellfish in the Salish Sea.
The lecture is on Sunday, January 15 and will start after introductions at 7pm in the Rotary Room of the Filberg Seniors Centre 411 Anderton, Courtenay. Lecture is free, though a $4 contribution from non-members is appreciated. New memberships are always welcomed.
