By Amy Picotte Amy Picotte is a scientist with the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation where she works as the Vermont Lake Wise Coordinator and Lakeshore Manager. With the drama of March behind us, soggier but warmer April days deliver opportunities to dust off the porch furniture and prepare for new planting and landscaping projects. … Continue reading
It was a day of seasonal contrast. The temperature was rocketing past 80 by mid-morning, and the air shimmered as it would in mid-July. The trees were bare and leafless, and the lakes and ponds of Woodbury held a surprise – a near-full cover of ice, albeit rotten and eating away at the edges. … Continue reading
Stormwater Master Planning has become a critical tool to identify and address sources of water quality problems in developed areas throughout Vermont. The Town of Hardwick is located in Caledonia County and situated around the Lamoille River, draining to Lake Champlain. The Caledonia County Conservation District was awarded a grant from the Vermont Department of … Continue reading
Thursday, May 11, 2017 11:00 AM – Noon National Life Main Building – Winooski Room, M240 Vermont wetlands provide a multitude of functions including wildlife habitat, recreation, and water quality protection. Learn from Julie Follensbee, DEC Wetland Ecologist, about how wetlands can reduce phosphorus and sediment load to Lake Champlain and to identify sites for … Continue reading
Editor’s Note: This is the third in a series of posts about how the communities of Plymouth and Ludlow restored areas devastated by Tropical Storm Irene and created more resilient rivers, lakes, and wetlands. We thank intern Sarah Kwiatkowski for researching and writing the series. As Tropical Storm Irene’s waters raged though Money Brook ravine, … Continue reading
The weather couldn’t have been better for a day of tree planting. With the sun shining and the temperature in the mid-60s a group of ECO AmeriCorps members, the Windham County Natural Resources Conservation District, Rockingham Conservation Commission, Saxtons River Permaculture Project, Bellows Falls Union High School, the Southeastern Vermont Watershed Alliance and local volunteers … Continue reading
A large former hayfield between Route 7 in Colchester and the I-89 Interstate will be restored and preserved as a natural wetland. This 110-acre parcel is within an area known as “Munson Flats”, a wetland complex rich in fish, wildlife, and natural communities. It comprises the meandering Allen Brook and Lake Champlain-influenced wetlands, including seasonally … Continue reading
Look at the new information and resources on the Wetlands Program Homepage! Did you know you might qualify to get money for protecting the wetlands on your property? Learn about the process of wetland restoration. Do you know what a wetland buffer is and why the Vermont protects the buffer of a significant wetland? Have … Continue reading
Inland wetlands include marshes, ponds, lakes, fens, rivers, floodplains, and swamps. Coastal wetlands include saltwater marshes, estuaries, mangroves, lagoons and even coral reefs. Fish ponds, rice paddies, and salt pans are human-made wetlands. Celebrate wetlands for what they provide for us around the world and in Vermont. Clean Water: Less than 3% of the world’s … Continue reading
The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation released new fact sheets that summarize the management strategies to reduce phosphorus load into Lake Champlain and presented in the document entitled, “Vermont Lake Champlain Phosphorus TMDL Phase 1 Implementation Plan” (released on May 29, 2014). There are a total of 6 factsheets. Each factsheet outlines actions specific to … Continue reading
