WRC Planners Attend 2017 Leahy Summit with Green River Project Partners
Marion Major and Emily Davis from the WRC attended the Summit to focus on the Green River Watershed Alliance, a budding watershed collaborative that includes the towns of Halifax, Guilford, and Marlboro. The project team hopes to apply for funding from the High Meadows Fund's Watershed Resilience Grant to launch this group and begin on implementing projects. The planners were joined by other project partners from the VT Department of Environmental Conservation, Vermont Rivers Conservancy, Windham Country Natural Resources Conservation District, Vermont Performance Lab, and the Connecticut River Watershed Council.
Through the process, the Green River watershed team was able to develop a working project scope, goals, main programmatic elements, and preliminary desired results and outcomes. The fundamental purpose of the collaborative is to support a better relationship with the river and with each other, and through that simplified intention we create a sense of place and community cohesion that in turn make the watershed more resilient to future disturbances.
The overarching project goals of the Green River Watershed Alliance are to:
- Enhance flood resiliency; through supporting long-term community-based resilience.
- Support community cohesion; through creating cooperative and lasting relationships between the watershed towns.
- Establish a watershed identity; by creating cultural connections between people and their place.
- Improve water quality; by implementing ecological restoration and conservation projects, and supporting an improved relationship with the Green River.
The three main programs of the collaborative will be: planning, conservation and restoration, and civic engagement. These three implementation categories were identified because they are a logical way to organize smaller projects and desired outcomes, and can be lead by a smaller team or group of people. They will also directly inform and support the overarching project goals.
Following the Summit, the planning team will go back to the town's Planning Commissions, Selectboards, and Conservation Commissions to further develop these ideas and to receive feedback on how the Green River Watershed Alliance will best serve and advance their town's goals, while also improving flood resilience for all. After receiving feedback and support from the towns, they will then pursue grant funding to help catalyze these efforts.
For more information, contact Emily Davis at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or 802-257-4547 x 116.
