HISTORICAL EUTROPHICATION IN A RIVER-ESTUARY COMPLEX IN MID-COAST MAINE.

The article examines diatoms, pollen, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, stable isotopes, total phosphorus, biogenic silica and trace metals in intertidal sediments and established a chronology with radiocarbon, 210pb and indicator pollen horizons to document the natural baseline conditions and investigate the recovery of a severely degraded river-estuary complex in mid-coast Maine. The objectives of the study were to determine baseline conditions associated with natural climatic variability, investigate the effects of European settlement and industrialization within the watershed and examine ecosystem response to environmental regulation in the late 20th century.