For Immediate Release: Monday May 16, 2016
Pomfret, Vermont – This spring the Connecticut River Watershed Council (CRC) and project partners planted 1,031 native trees and shrubs along nearly 4,000 feet of riverbank at 5 locations in Haverhill, Lisbon and Orford, New Hampshire and Groton, Vermont.
The riverside plantings along 3.6 acres of the Wells, Ammonoosuc and Connecticut rivers will help reduce erosion, improve water quality by filtering out pollutants, and increase habitat for fish and wildlife. The plantings build on work done by the CRC since Tropical Storm Irene ravaged the watershed five years ago. In that time, CRC has planted more than 12,000 native trees and shrubs along the main stem Connecticut River and numerous tributaries and smaller brooks in the watershed.
CRC works with farmers, towns and other landowners who have erosion problems on their property by applying for grants to fund conservation and restoration projects, as well as providing project management services free of charge to the landowner.
“What happens on the land doesn’t stay on the land,” notes to CRC River Steward Ron Rhodes, who coordinated the projects. “These trees and shrubs create buffers along rivers that filter out pollutants and help keep our rivers clean for swimming, fishing and boating. The buffers act like a sponge and are relatively low cost, easy to implement projects,” said Rhodes.
Funding for these spring 2016 plantings was provided by grants from the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation and from the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation. Project partners included Beck Pond LLC, the Northwoods Stewardship Center, and five separate landowners. Species planted included Sugar, Red and Silver maples, birch, willows, Red Osier dogwoods, elderberries and other native stock purchased from the Intervale Conservation Nursery in Burlington, VT and New England Wetland Plants in Amherst, MA.
CRC is a membership based nonprofit working to protect the watershed of the Connecticut River from “source to sea” through on-the-ground projects, public education and advocacy.
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CONTACT: Ron Rhodes, North Country River Steward, Connecticut River Watershed Council, (802) 457-6114 or rrhodes@ctriver.org
Ron Rhodes, North Country River Steward
Connecticut River Watershed Council
“The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.” – Nelson Henderson
