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Leslie Dorworth
Water Ecology Specialist
Leslie is located at Purdue University Calumet in
Hammond, Indiana. Her major program emphases are (1) effects of point source
pollution, including toxicants, on the food web, plant and animal ecology,
and diversity, (2) restoration of aquatic/wetland ecosystems, and (3)
ecologically sound sustainable development of coastal and inland water
resources.
Dorworth has written and co-written several publications concerning various issues in the area of water quality. She has partnered with several organizations. Her collaborative efforts include Indiana’s E. coli Inter Agency Task Force, Save the Dunes Conservation Fund and Indiana University Northwest to develop Indiana’s Lake Michigan Beaches Monitoring and Sampling Plan and Public Notification Plan. She has also collaborated with federal, state, academic and non-governmental organizations to develop River Restoration Workshops.
Program Accomplishments
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (Dorworth), Save the Dunes Conservation Fund and Indiana University Northwest were awarded a Beach Grant from Indiana Department of Environmental Management in 2002 for its proposal ‘Developing the Beach Monitoring and Public Notification Plan for Indiana.” The plan meets specific performance criteria, outlined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, that address evaluation and classification; monitoring; public notification and prompt risk notification; and public evaluation.
Dorworth has been working with a researcher from the Department of Foods and Nutrition, Purdue University, West Lafayette, to examine the public’s perception of current fish consumption advisory information. Efforts are currently under way to reach populations considered to be at risk (pregnant women, women who plan to be pregnant and children) and or underserved (resource limited) concerning the possible impacts consuming fish contaminants may have on their health.
Dorworth and several partnering organizations from Chicago Wilderness, a coalition of over 150 federal, state, academic and non-governmental organizations, have developed an annual series of river restoration workshops. The audience that usually attends and finds the information useful are the natural resource managers, environmental consultants, park department staff, landscape architects, consulting engineers, city planners, public works directors and municipal engineers. Topics covered at the workshops are pertinent to the issues encountered in the mid-west and have ranged from in stream habitat restoration to dam removal.
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Curriculum vita EDUCATION
- PhD Marine Science (without dissertation). North Carolina
State University, 1989 to 1999. Raleigh, NC. Dissertation Topic: Biological and chemical
changes in the Cape Pear River Estuary as an alternate measure of physical forcing.
- M.S., Biological Oceanography. Old Dominion University, 1986
to 1989. Norfolk, VA. Thesis Topic: The effects of the spring-neap tidal cycle on the
distribution of phytoplankton and bacteria it the mouth of the Chesapeake
Bay.
- B.S., Biological Sciences, Lake Superior State University,
1981 to 1985. Saint Ste. Marie, MI
POSITIONS
- 1996-present. Aquatic Ecology Specialist, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant
Program.
- 1996. Technician, Research Triangle Labs.
- 1989-1995. Graduate Research Assistant, North Carolina State
University.
- 1988-1989. Graduate Teaching Assistant, Old Dominion
University
- 1981-1985. Technician, Great Lakes Forest Research
Center.
TEACHING DUTIES
- Biology 124, Introduction to Environmental Biology
- Biology 102, Introductory Biology
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
- American Society of Limnology Oceanography
- American Geological Society
- Estuarine Research Federation
- Great Lakes Women's Leadership Network
- Phi Kappa Phi
- Sigma Xi
PRESENTATIONS
- How clean is our drinking water. Presentation.
2000. St. Elizabeth Ceton Church. Valparaiso,
Indiana.
- Lake Links for Teachers: A Web Resource for K-12
Teachers. Poster. 1999. American Water
Resources Association. Seattle, Washington.
- Water Issues and Concerns: A new series tailored to
the individual's needs. Poster. 1999.
American Water Resources. Seattle, Washington.
- Let's go swimming...Maybe not! Presentation.
1999. Association of Great Lakes Outdoor
Writers. Merrillville, Indiana.
- Are our beaches clean? Poster. 1999.
Coastal Zone 1999, San Diego, Californie.
- Water Issues and Concerns: A new series tailored to
the individual's needs. Poster. 1999.
Rockford, Illinois.
- Water Issues and Concerns: A new series tailored to
the individual's needs. Poster. 1998.
Urbana, Illinois.
- Environmental Education in the Southern Lake Michigan
Area, K-12. Presentation. 1998. Illinois
Renewable Natural Resources Conference. Springfield,
Illinois.
- Photophysiological response due to hydrodynamic forcing at
the mouth of the Cape Fear River. Presentation.
1997. Estuarine Research Federation. Providence,
Rhode Island.
- A National Healthy Beaches Symposium: Research,
Monitoring and Cooperative Efforts. Conference
Coordinator and Moderator. 1997. Chesterton,
Indiana.
PUBLICATIONS (Journal)
- Dorworth, L.E. and D. Kamykowski 1998. Temporal and spatial
variability of phytoplankton in the Cape Fear River due to the physical/chemical dynamics
of the systems. In prep.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Natural variations in photosynthetic
parameters at the mouth of the Cape Fear River. in prep.
- Dorworth, L.E. and D. Kamykowski. 1998. Photobiological
responses to hydrographic forcing of resident phytoplankton populations at the mouth of
the Cape Fear River. In prep.
PUBLICATIONS (Other)
- National Healthy Beaches Symposium Research, Monitoring
and Cooperative Efforts. ed. L. E. Dorworth. Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant College Program,
IISG-98-13.
- Baker, R. and L. E. Dorworth. 1998. Combined Sewer Overflows
(CSO): A discussion of IDEM’s CSO program. In A National Healthy Beaches Symposium
Research, Monitoring and Cooperative Efforts. (ed. L. E. Dorworth). Illinois-Indiana Sea
Grant College Program, IISG-98-13.
FACT SHEET
- Beach Watch (series of 16 fact sheets)
- Dorworth, Leslie and Debra Levey Larson (ed.) Beach
Watch Series. Newspaper/internet. "Beach
Watch: Grass that holds the ground!";
"Beach Watch: Why is the beach closed?";
"Beach Watch: What's eating the beach?";
"Beach Watch: What is E.coli?";
"Beach Watch: How does E. coli get into the
water?"; "Beach Watch: Flooding and
Flushing."; "Beach Watch: Toilet on
Board!"; "Beach Watch: Singing
Sands."; "Beach Watch: Delicate
Dunes."; "Beach Watch: Why does the water
taste bad?"; "Beach Watch: Tiny Food for
Fish."; "Beach Watch: E. coli at the
beach?"; "Beach Watch: Is the lake green
or blue?"; "Beach Watch: Anatomy of a
Wave."; "Beach Watch: Recipe for a
Beach."; "Beach Watch: Why can't I see the
bottom?"
- Water Issues and Concerns
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Defining Water Quality.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant College Program, IISG-98-11.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Swimming in Clean Waters.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant College Program, IISG-98-3.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Drinking Water Supplies.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant College Program, IISG-98-8.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Dissolved Oxygen. Illinois-Indiana Sea
Grant College Program, IISG-98-9.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Water Clarity. Illinois-Indiana Sea
Grant College Program, IISG-98-12.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Water Taste and Odor Problems.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant College Program, IISG-98-11.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Drinking Water: Disinfection with
Chlorine. Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant College Program, IISG-98-14.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Exotic Species. Illinois-Indiana Sea
Grant College Program, IISG-98-10.
- Other
- Dorworth, L.E. and F. Lichtkoppler. 1998. GIS: A Tool to
Help Coastal Communities. Great Lakes Sea Grant Network Coastal Land Use Committee Fact
Sheet, IISG-98-2.
- Dorworth, L.E. 1998. Ask the Experts (Drinking Water:
Disinfection with Chlorine). Scientific American. www.sciam.com. May 4, 1998.
NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
- Out of Sight Out of Mind, L.E. Dorworth. Bridgeport News,
October 14, 1998.
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