Urban Conservation
 Check dams along a gully in Williston Hills |
Oak Hill: An unnamed tributary of Allen Brook, which runs along Oak Hill Road in Williston, was stabilized this summer after being subject to years of stormwater damage. The tributary was experiencing active headcutting and channel adjustment that was causing erosion and adding a substantial amount of sediment and phosphorous pollution into the already impaired waters of Allen Brook. Project partners: Town of Williston, EPA, VT Agency of Transportation, NRCS, VT Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).
Williston Hills: A variety of erosion stabilization mechanisms were constructed along two gullies in the Williston Hills neighborhood in Williston. The gullies are a result of the neighborhoods disconnected stormwater system that directs the stormwater onto a steep forested landscape. Project partners: Town of Williston, EPA, VT Agency of Transportation, VYCC, Mt. Mansfield High School, NRCS, DEC.
Art & Science of Rain Barrels Project: Students and teachers from Rice Memorial High School in South Burlington and U32 High School in Montpelier helped the WRNCD decorate and distribute 60 rain barrels to residents in Montpelier, Berlin, Barre, and South Burlington. Students painted the barrels and created informational brochures to hand out to barrel recipients. Want a rain barrel? See ad on page 7. Project partners: DEC, EPA, UVM Extension, Towns of Montpelier, Berlin, and Barre.
Watershed Stewardship
 Partners planning river corridor in Marshfield |
Winooski Headwaters Community Project: This summer, community members, local businesses, and school groups within the towns of Cabot, Marshfield, and Plainfield joined various partnering agencies during a field day in the headwaters of the Winooski River watershed. Participants were engaged in the drafting of a Landowner Stewardship Assistance guide, conducted water quality monitoring, participated in community service riparian buffer plantings, and enjoyed river education and celebration through the Winooski Headwaters Festival. Project partners: Friends of the Winooski River, Headwaters Advisory Committee.
Marshfield River Corridor Planning: Marshfield landowners are working to promote a sustainable relationship with their local river while restoring the ecological potential of the river ecosystem. Riparian landowners are considering CREP, conservation easements, planting riparian forest buffers, stream restoration projects, and changing land management practices. Project partners: Friends of the Winooski River, CV Regional Planning Commission, municipal officials, landowners, The Johnson Company, VT River Conservancy, and VT DEC River Management Division staff.
Stream Geomorphic Assessment Data: Stream data collection continues in the Winooski River watershed. Additional information was collected this year in: Kingsbury, North Branch, Upper Winooski, and Browns River watershed. Contact us for details!