Massachusetts
An occasional update on conservation activities in the Bay State
June 2006
In this Connection:
Where do we go from here?
By Cecil B. Currin
No one builds a house without a blueprint or starts on a 500-mile journey
without a map. Whatever we want to accomplish, we need to begin with a vision
and proceed with a plan. NRCS is no different. If we want to preserve America’s
natural resources and get conservation on the land, we need a vision for what
needs to be done and a practical plan to bring our vision into reality. And we
have one.
Read more...
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The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
has approved up to $30,000 in federal funds for work to stabilize the Millbrook
Dam in Rockport, Mass. The funds are being provided to the Town of Rockport
through the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program administered by NRCS.
The agency is also providing technical assistance for the work.
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Sustainable Grasslands, a new
publication produced collaboratively by the Franklin County Conservation
District and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), will help
Massachusetts farmers protect and restore grasslands, which contribute to the
agricultural economy of New England and many other regions of the United States.
Read more...
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Massachusetts livestock graziers are invited to join a new on-line discussion
group to learn about educational grazing events and share information. The
"Graze-it-up" group can be joined by going to
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/graze_it_up/ and click on the “Join This
Group” button.
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A 70 foot gravel embankment at a Native American burial site in
Greenfield, Massachusetts, will soon be carpeted in native grasses if the recent
efforts of USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service staff and local
volunteers are successful.
Read more...
Normal tidal flow to a seven acre South Dartmouth salt marsh has been
restored thanks to a partnership between the USDA Natural Resources Conservation
Service (NRCS) and the Massachusetts Audubon Society. Through the federal
Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP), NRCS provided $13,128 in cost-share
assistance, as well as technical assistance, to replace a culvert in the Allens
Pond Wildlife Sanctuary that was too small.
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In
2004, Nuestras Raíces, a
grass-roots organization that promotes economic, human and community development
for the Latino community in Holyoke, Massachusetts, contacted the USDA Natural
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) field office in Hadley for assistance with
conservation planning on land the organization had recently purchased along the
Connecticut River.
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A partnership of local and federal agencies and
non-profit organizations marked Earth Day 2006 by announcing the protection of
95 acres of open space in Plymouth that will be open to the public and known as
the Eel River Preserve.
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Nearly 300 Bay State high school students from 40 public and private schools
across the commonwealth, along with nearly 200 coaches, judges and volunteers,
converged on the Blackstone River Canal and Heritage State Park in Uxbridge
today for the 19th annual Massachusetts Envirothon, a statewide competition that
tests students’ knowledge of aquatics, forestry, soils, wildlife, and
environmental issues.
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Frederic Winthrop of Ipswich was honored recently as founding member of
Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom at a dinner at the Topsfield
Fairgrounds. The celebration also marked the group's 25th anniversary and was
attended by farmers, friends and past and present board members of the statewide
organization.
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To receive the Massachusetts Conservation Connection by e-mail, to be removed
from the list, or to submit news items, please send an e-mail message to
Diane.Petit@ma.usda.gov.
The Natural Resources Conservation Service provides leadership
in a partnership effort to help people conserve, maintain and improve our
natural resources and environment.
NRCS Massachusetts State Office: 451 West Street, Amherst, MA
01002 | 413-253-4350 | fax 413-253-4395 |
www.ma.nrcs.usda.gov
Cecil Currin, State Conservationist
Jeffrey Anliker, Assistant State Conservationist
Massachusetts Conservation Connection editor:
Diane Baedeker Petit, Public
Affairs Specialist
NRCS field offices are located at USDA Service Centers in
Barnstable, Greenfield, Hadley, Holden, Pittsfield, Westford and West Wareham.
Visit www.ma.nrcs.usda.gov for
addresses and phone numbers.
An Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer
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