Ecologist to discuss effects of pollution on local environment

MIDDLETOWN-A Powerpoint lecture will be presented by Gary M. Lovett on the subject “Chemical and Biological Pollution of our Forests: Acid Rain and Introduced Pests in the Hudson Valley and Catskill Mountains.” The free lecture, part of the Lyceum Fall 2005 Lecture Series, will take place at 7:15 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 27, in the Biology-Technology Building, Room 207, at Orange County Community College in Middletown. Lovett received a bachelor of science degree in biology from Union College and a doctorate in plant ecology from Dartmouth College. He is an ecosystem ecologist and senior scientist at the Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, Dutchess County. His research focuses around air pollution, insect defoliators, and introduced pests and insects, and their effects on the forests in the Catskill Mountains and the Hudson Valley. His talk will explain the fundamental changes in the forests, and how that effects the maintaining of healthy ecosystems. For more information, call 341- 4891 or write to cultural@sunyorange.edu.