Time to dust off your work gloves... and help plant a rain garden (or two!) Please mark your calendars for the following events, and please RSVP here.
Hurd Field Rain Garden - Drake Road
Planting date: Sat. May 4th, 10am-1pm (or until it's complete!)
Hardy School Rain Garden - 52 Lake St.
Planting date: Sat. May 11th, 10am -1pm (or until it's complete!)
Learn more about rain gardens here.
The Mystic River Watershed Association encourages you to contact your State Representative and Senator in support of three FY 2014 budget items that we feel will help restore the natural resources of the Mystic River Watershed. (You can easily look-up contact information for your Representative or Senator here.) Thank you in advance for your phone call and/or email.
A $75,000 increase to the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s budget, 2810-0100 line item, specifically targeted for water chestnut removal in the Mystic River. Large portions of the Mystic River are almost entirely blanketed with water chestnuts, resulting in significant impairment of navigation and a harmful impact on native habitat. The plants are spreading rapidly; since 2001, the population has expanded from 1 to 30 acres. Water chestnuts form mats over the water surface, which in turn impede boating, fishing, and swimming, and crowd out native plants. If serious efforts are not made to remove the plants, recreational use of the much of river will become impossible in just a few short years.
Creation of a Mystic River Water Quality Commission to study the feasibility of bringing the water quality of the Mystic River to a level consistently safe enough for fishing, boating and swimming. The proposal to establish a Water Quality Commission has also been filed as a stand-alone bill, H.785, by Representative Denise Provost. The bill is a re-file from the 2011-2012 legislative session, during which it received a favorable report from the Joint Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture.
A $500,000 increase to the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s 2800-0100 line item specifically targeted for the implementation of the Mystic River Master Plan (http://www.mass.gov/dcr/pe/MysticRiverMasterPlann-Final.11-09.pdf). The Mystic River Master Plan proposed comprehensive improvements to more than 370 acres of this park system which when complete will transform the park and the lives of more than 800,000 Massachusetts residents within easy reach of the park's amenities. The Department of Conservation and Recreation requires funding ($500,000) to complete design development plans and construction specifications for the park improvements that are delineated in detail in the Master Planning document. Once these plans and specifications are complete, DCR can apply for various State and Federal funds to construct these park improvements.
Thank you for your consideration.
If you have any questions, please contact Tim Snyder at Senator Jehlen’s office at Tim.Snyder@masenate.gov or 617.722.1578, or EkOngKar Singh Khalsa at MyRWA at EK@MysticRiver.org or 781.316.3438. For any questions regarding H.785, An Act establishing a Mystic River water quality commission, please contact Mark Kennedy in Representative Provost’s office at Mark.Kennedy@mahouse.gov, or at 617-722-2263.
At the April 2nd MyRWA Committee Meeting, a group of Tufts University graduate students enrolled in the Water: Systems, Science and Society (WSSS) program will present their practicum work on the Malden River. The WSSS program is a graduate research and education program that provides Tufts students with interdisciplinary perspectives and tools to manage water-related problems around the world. Please join us for the presentation at 7:00PM at Tufts University, Lincoln Filene Center, Rabb Room, Medford.
Please join MyRWA on Tuesday, June 11th for a Citizen Scientist Training Workshop. This workshop allows interested volunteers to learn about water quality monitoring methods and concepts. By completing this workshop, you’ll be prepared to join MyRWA’s Baseline Monitoring Program. The Baseline Monitoring Program requires a monthly commitment between 6am and 8am. No experience is necessary - all are welcome!
When: Tuesday, June 11, 2013, 6:00PM – 8:00PM
Where: Cambridge Health Alliance, 195 Canal St., Malden
This training will be held both indoors and outdoors (rain or shine). Please wear close-toed shoes. Pizza will be provided.
Space is limited! Please register today by emailing Beth@Mysticriver.org or calling 781-316-3438.
State and federal officials have received a $4.25 million settlement from the Pharmacia Corporation and Bayer CropScience Inc. for damages to natural resources at the Industri-plex Superfund site in Woburn, Mass. Contaminants from this site significantly impacted resources in the Aberjona River and the surrounding watershed.
MyRWA would like to thank the dedicated team of professionals who worked on this settlement, including: Assistant Attorney General Matthew Brock, Attorney General Martha Coakley’s Environmental Protection Division; Karen Pelto and Jennifer Davis from MassDEP; Dale Young and Anna Blumkin from MA EEA; Karen Sughrue, Molly Sperduto, Kenneth Munney, Veronica Varela from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Mark Barash and Marcia Gittes from the U.S. DOI Office of the Solicitor; Don Frankel from U.S. DOJ; and Ken Finkelstein and Gwendolyn McCarthy from NOAA.
Community outreach opportunity!
Volunteers are needed to assist in planning and staffing “open houses” at the dam. These events will be held in May during the afternoon/evening and on the weekends to allow the public to view the migrating herring from the fish ladder which is otherwise closed to the public. We are seeking a lead volunteer coordinator for this effort, as well as volunteers to staff the events for a minimum of one hour. Contact Beth at Beth@MysticRiver.org or 781-316-3438 to get involved and for more information.
Another summer internship with MyRWA!
The Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA) seeks a Data Visualization Intern to assist in the exploration and display of environmental data.
The Mystic River Watershed Association has developed a sophisticated MS Access Database with nearly all water quality data collected during the past 15 years for the watershed. The challenge is to take this information and convert it into figures, maps and statistics that will assist the public to understand existing conditions. The Data Visualization Intern will develop and analyze spatial data related to water quality, drainage basins, green infrastructure, sediment contamination and demographics within the Mystic River Watershed. The intern must be able to work independently and as a team. This is a part-time position that requires a commitment of two to three days a week during the Monday through Friday work week.
An interest in data visualization, science and the environment is encouraged. Experience with either R or D3 is preferred. But if you have other programming/skills/design experience- we welcome your creativity!
Exact dates can be flexible depending on the candidate. This is an unpaid position.
Since 1972, the Mystic River Watershed Association has played a unique role in the whole of the watershed by its science, advocacy, and outreach efforts. The Mystic River Watershed Association is based in Arlington, MA and is accessible via several bus routes. The Mystic River Watershed Association is an equal opportunity employer.
If interested, please send your resume and cover letter to DataInternship@MysticRiver.org. No phone calls please.
Deadline for application: April 1, 2013.
Join us on Monday, March 18th from 6:00 to 7:30PM for a special meeting: The Malden River: What you need to know? What is the River’s Future?
Come hear from experts from the Mystic River Watershed Association and Alternatives for Community and Environment about the current conditions of The Malden River. We'll hear from other groups about their successes in reclaiming environmentally compromised waters.
EVENT DETAILS:
Monday, March 18th from 6:00 to 7:30PM
Malden Public Library, Maccario Meeting Room
36 Salem St., Malden - (use Park Street entrance)
For more information contact: Geobany Rodriguez at geobany@gmail.com or Bob Marra at rmarra@challiance.org; 617-591-6947.
The Herring Migration Documentary is a series of 3 in-depth films by Illuminating Minds Media, focused on the natural history, latest science and conservation efforts surrounding the River Herring.
Shot over a year and spanning tens of locations across Massachusetts and Maine, the series feature cutting edge science, rarely witnessed behavior and insightful analysis form a leading panel of herring experts. The 3rd film of the series depicts the historic return of herring to the Mystic Lakes for the first time since the American Civil War and its biological implications.
Can you support this project? Please make a donation on the Herring Migration Kickstarter page today!
Kindly consider spreading the word by sharing, tweeting and forwarding the link to potential backers in your network: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/imm/the-herring-migration-documentary-series-3-episode
MyRWA was very pleased to see the Mystic River featured on the front page of the Boston Globe on Feb. 18th. The article by Beth Daley, A steady flow of troubles for the long-foul Mystic: River draws scrutiny, but cleanup a complex challenge, details the plight of the Mystic and offers a comparison to nearby urban rivers. Please feel free to circulate the article, and your comments to the editor are encouraged and most welcome!
TOGETHER FOR THE MYSTIC RIVER Photo Credit: Margaret Walsh