The BEAT News May 1, 2013

News Headlines

Berkshire Volunteers Manage 90 Miles of Appalachian Trail

from the Appalachian Trail Conservancy

This month, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy highlighted the AMC-Berkshire Chapter’s A.T. Committee at massatprojects.blogspot.com. Stalwart AMC volunteers work with ATC staff and agency partners to manage about 90 miles of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, along with 5,345 acres protected by National Park Service (NPS) that connect a half-dozen state forests.

Below L to R, Massachusetts A.T. Committee volunteers Don Fairbanks, Jim Pelletier, Adam Brown (ATC staff), Pete Rentz, and John Sullivan

Berk AT Volunteers

Upper Goose Pond is reportedly the only pond in the county without road access. There is boat access from Lower Goose Pond via a connecting inlet. The pond was a plum for the Appalachian National Scenic Trail when the National Park Service purchased the entire lake shore in the mid-1980s, part of the agency’s A.T. land-acquisition program. It has been managed cooperatively ever since by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, NPS-Appalachian Trail Park Office, ATC, and the A.T. Committee of the AMC-Berkshire Chapter (see http://amcberkshire.org/at for more about the chapter). The current ten-year memorandum of understanding among those partners will be updated and renewed this summer.

BEAT Note: Thank you Jim Pelletier, who is also a Berkshire Wildlife Tracker!

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Winter Waterfowl Survey Results

This past winter the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife conducted a “Park Waterfowl” survey. The survey, which ran between January 6 and 26, 2013, has been conducted every 5 years since 1973. Park waterfowl are wild ducks and geese that spend part of the day during a given time of year, at sites where they have access to human provided food. These birds may be regularly fed by one or more people, rely on occasional handouts, or feed under or at a bird feeder. Sites may be in urban, suburban, or rural settings on fresh, brackish, or salt water and include both municipal parks and private properties.

This year a total of 10,108 mallards, 292 American black ducks and 1,583 Canada geese were counted on 145 sites in 84 municipalities. Five hundred twenty six other types of waterfowl were counted as well, including Gadwalls, American Wigeon, Northern Pintails, Ring-necked Ducks, Buffleheads, Hooded Mergansers, Mute Swans, American Coots, mallard-black duck hybrids, and scaup. This long term survey has revealed some interesting information, especially about mallard ducks and Canada geese. Mallard numbers have declined over time due to a decline in the number of feeding sites and increased competition for food with Canada geese. Despite their decreased numbers, the mallard is still the most common duck found in the Northeast. Canada geese on the other hand, are not as reliant on handouts from people as mallards and are thriving in the state, particularly in eastern Massachusetts.

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DFW Staff Honored

Recently, several Division of Fisheries and Wildlife staff members were honored by regional sporting and conservation organizations.  The Worcester County League of Sportsmen’s Clubs Words of Wisdom award recipient was Marion Larson, Chief of Information & Education for her service in providing information to sportsmen and women and for her assistance on the WCL newsletter publication.  Julie Delaney-English, recently retired Administrative Assistant to the Director was recognized for her years of service by the Massachusetts Sportsmen’s Council.  Peter Mirick, DFW’s Massachusetts Wildlife magazine editor received two Excellence in Writing Awards from the New England Outdoor Writers Association for articles he wrote for Massachusetts Wildlife. In the Best Magazine category, Mirick was awarded 1st Place for “Rivermaster” an article about striper fishing on the Connecticut River with one of the top anglers in the state and 3rd place for “Wildlife CSI”, an article about a bear poaching case in northern Worcester County investigated by the Environmental Police.  Finally, Dr. Tom French, Assistant Director of Natural Heritage and Endangered Species, was awarded a Professional Achievement Award from the New England Chapter of The Wildlife Society. French’s service within scientific societies, conservation organizations, and regional endangered species recovery teams as well as his scholarship and work with the media were recognized.

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Nesting Eagle Survey Results

 On April 5, 2013, the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (DFW) conducted its first Spring Eagle Survey.  Agency staff, volunteers and interested citizens checked known eagle territories and explored areas with potential eagle habitat to verify continued use of “old” and try to locate “new” eagle nests. The preliminary results of these efforts yielded a total of 30 active eagle nests throughout the Commonwealth with the highest concentrations of birds along the Connecticut River (8 nests) and Quabbin Reservoir (6 nests).  At the Quabbin Reservoir, a hardy boat crew of DFW, Department of Conservation & Recreation staff, and Fisheries and Wildlife Board member Dr. Brandi Van Roo reported 6 active nests.  The highest number of active nests (8) were seen along the Massachusetts stretch of the Connecticut River.  Four nests were documented along the Merrimack River. A single nest was observed on the Wachusett Reservoir and another was reported in Framingham, where Department of Fish & Game Commissioner Mary Griffin, DFW State Ornithologist Andrew Vitz and other DFW wildlife biologists observed an active nest on DCR’s Foss Reservoir.  In southeastern Massachusetts, active eagle nests were found in Middleborough, Fall River, and Plymouth.  One nest failure was reported at Assawompsett Pond where a nest and 2 eggs were blown out of the nest tree in the first week of April. Additional eagle sightings or “housekeeping” activities were reported in Arlington, Carver, Lunenburg, Pittsfield, Russell, Sandisfield, Webster and along the Housatonic River.

Bald Eagles have increased in numbers in the state ever since they were reintroduced to the Quabbin Reservoir in the 1980s, and Andrew Vitz, DFW State Ornithologist expects final results will surpass last year’s record high numbers of breeding eagles in Massachusetts.  “With higher numbers of eagles establishing nesting territories throughout their range, we can’t possibly cover the entire state.” said Vitz. “Citizen spotters play an increasingly important role in our survey efforts. We had 35 volunteers actively participate in the count on April 5th and have received dozens of e-mails this spring reporting eagle sightings.  Several of these reports are of new eagle nests, including one in Stoneham, that are in the process of being verified by DFW staff.

Vitz thanks everyone who participated in this count, especially to DCR (Department of Conservation and Recreation) for providing boat access to the Quabbin and Wachusett Reservoirs and all of the volunteers who dedicated their time to looking for eagles.  He encourages anyone to submit eagle sightings throughout the year by email to natural.heritage@state.ma.us or by postal service to “Eagle Survey”, DFW, Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program, 100 Hartwell Street, Suite 230, West Boylston, MA 01583.

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Documents submitted to Repositories from February 3, 2013 through February 23, 2013

Documents submitted to the Berkshire Athenaeum

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Richard Fisher (USEPA), February 4, 2013, Re: GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Groundwater Management Area 4 (GECD340); Long-Term Monitoring Program; Monitoring Event Evaluation Report for Fall

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Richard Fisher (USEPA), February 4, 2013, Re: GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; On-Plant Consolidation Areas (GECD210/220); Monitoring Event Evaluation Report for Fall 2012

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Michael Gorski (MADEP), February 5, 2013, Re: January 2013 Monthly Status Report; GE Pittsfield ACO/MCP Activities

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dean Tagliaferro (USEPA) and Michael Gorski (MADEP), February 7, 2013, Re: GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Monthly Status Report Pursuant to Consent Decree January 2013 (GECD900)

Documents submitted to the Connecticut Repositories

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dean Tagliaferro (USEPA) and Michael Gorski (MADEP), February 7, 2013, Re: GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Monthly Status Report Pursuant to Consent Decree January 2013 (GECD900)

Documents submitted to Repositories from March 31, 2013 through April 20, 2013

Documents submitted to the Berkshire Athenaeum

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to David Dickerson (USEPA), April 2, 2013, Re:  GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Unkamet Brook Area (GECD170); Final Removal Design/Removal Action Work Plan for Unkamet Brook Area-Remainder

VOLUMES I and II of II

Letter (with attachments) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dave Dickerson (USEPA), April 3, 2013, Re:  GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Silver Lake Area (GECD600); Analytical Results for and Evaluation of Proposed Backfill Material

Letter (with attachments) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Michael Gorski (MADEP), April 4, 2013, Re:  March 2013 Monthly Status Report; GE Pittsfield ACO/MCP Activities

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dean Tagliaferro (USEPA) and Michael Gorski (MADEP), April 9, 2013, Re:  GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Monthly Status Report Pursuant to Consent Decree March 2013 (GECD900)

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Richard Fisher (USEPA), April 12, 2013, Re:  GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Groundwater Management Area 1 (GECD310); Final LANPL Volatilization Assessment Report for East Street Area 1

Letter from Richard Fisher (USEPA) to Richard W. Gates (GE), April 17, 2013, Re:  Conditional Approval of General Electric’s January 30, 2013 submittal titled Plant Site 1 Groundwater Management Area, Groundwater Quality Monitoring Interim Report for Fall 2012, GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site

Letter from Richard Fisher (USEPA) to Richard W. Gates (GE), April 17, 2013, Re:  Conditional Approval of General Electric’s February 4, 2013 submittal titled Groundwater Management Area 4, Long-Term Monitoring Program Monitoring Event Evaluation Report for Fall 2012, GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site

Letter from Richard Fisher (USEPA) to Richard W. Gates (GE), April 17, 2013, Re:  Conditional Approval of General Electric’s February 4, 2013 submittal titled On-Plant Consolidation Areas, Monitoring Event Evaluation Report for Fall 2012, GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site

Letter from Richard Fisher (USEPA) to Richard W. Gates (GE), April 19, 2013, Re:  Conditional Approval of General Electric’s February 27, 2012 and February 27, 2013 submittals titled Groundwater Management Area 5, Annual Summary Report for 2011 and Groundwater Management Area 5, Annual Summary Report for 2012, GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site

Letter (with attachment) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dean Tagliaferro (USEPA), April 18, 2013, Re: GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; East Street Area 2-North (GECD140); Use of Access Road Material from Silver Lake Area as Backfill in Building 9 Vaults

Letter (with attachments) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dave Dickerson (USEPA), April 18, 2013, Re:  GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Silver Lake Area (GECD600); Re-submittal of Analytical Results for and Evaluation of Proposed Backfill Material

Documents submitted to the Connecticut Repositories

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dean Tagliaferro (USEPA) and Michael Gorski (MADEP), April 9, 2013, Re:  GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Monthly Status Report Pursuant to Consent Decree March 2013 (GECD900)

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Hilltown Families’ Family Community Service Event

Saturday, May 4th from 10am-1pm

Leeds Elementary School in Northampton, MA

Northampton, MA – Hilltown Families will host another Family Community Service Event on Saturday, May 4th from 10am-1pm at Leeds Elementary School in Northampton, MA with seven hands-on volunteer stations to benefit animal welfare organizations, conservation efforts and food security. Event is free but space is limited and participating families must preregister at www.HilltownFamilies.org

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Join Hilltown Families for a Saturday morning of volunteering together with your family during our spring Family Community Service Event on Saturday, May 4th from 10am-1pm in Northampton, MA!

This past fall at our inaugural Family Community Service Night we focused on human service organizations and families had a great time working together in support of several local non-profits.

Our spring event on Saturday, May 4th will be held at Leeds Elementary School in Northampton.  We will be offering seven volunteer stations for families to participate in hands-on service projects for ALL AGES that support animal welfare organizations, conservation efforts and food security.  Families will also be able to bring home several of their service projects to continue their community service together from home.

With a Community Service Passport in hand, families can travel to each station and have their passport stamped after completing their service project.  In their Passports parents will find conversation starters, online resources and recommended reading lists for each station, and children can share what they liked best about each project by filling in their Passport.  Parents can use the Passport to help guide youth participants in learning about animal welfare, conservation efforts and food security.

Our Spring Volunteer Stations include:

1.       BIRD HOUSE BUILDING: Bluebird houses will be constructed on site to be donated to the Franklin Land Trust.  Families can help assemble & sand houses… something for all ages. (Facilitated by the Northampton High School Woodworking Club)

2.       FELINE FUN: Make catnip toys for cats to be donated to the Dakin Humane Society for cats waiting for adoption. (Facilitated by Dakin Humane Society)

3.       FLEECE CHEWS FOR CANINES: Make and donate chew toys for dogs of families in need with Kane’s Krusade. (Facilitated by Give a Hoot Pets)

4.       SOW AN EXTRA ROW: Learn about growing extra food in your family garden plot or container gardens to harvest and donate to a local food pantry. Go home with a plant starter and seeds to plant and nurture this summer. (Facilitated by Grow Food Northampton)

5.       SEED BOMBS: Create dirt bombs with native wildflower seeds to use for promoting natural habitats for pollinators. Go home with your very on seed bombs!

GIVING BAGS: Upcycle old t-shirts into giving bags to take home for collecting food for animal shelters, food pantries or other service organization in need of donations. (Facilitated by Knack)

7.       LETTER WRITING: Learn about the work of participating organizations and write letters of appreciation, or participate in letter writing campaigns. (Facilitated by the Northampton High School Key Club)

Donation Stations: In addition to our volunteer stations, we will have several opportunities for families to bring and donate items from home, including:

·         Cat food & cat toys to be donated to Dakin Humane Society.

·         Dog food & dog toys to be donated to Kane’s Krusade.

·         Baby blankets, receiving blankets, baby wipes & kids polar fleece hats to be donated to Urban Wildlife Rehabilitation.

Pet Adoption: Stop by and visit Dakin Humane Society’s pet adoption station. Families can learn more about Dakin’s services and programs, and the adoption process. Who knows, maybe you’ll meet your new furry friend! If a family meets an animal they would like to adopt, they can complete their adoption process at either Dakin’s Springfield or Leverett Adoption Centers.

The Hilltown Families’ Family Community Service Event is a free event and all families are welcomed.  Cup & Top Cafe will be on-site selling coffee/tea, beverages, pastries and light lunch fare.

While the even it free, space is limited.  Participating families are required to pre-register for this morning of community service on Saturday, May 4th at www.HilltownFamilies.org. 

Hilltown Families’ Family Community Service Event is a Hilltown Families event and is co-sponsored by Northampton Public Schools/CFCE through a grant from the MA Department of Early Education and Care. Premier event sponsors include Hilltown Tree & Garden, Alternative Recycling Systems and Northampton Family & Cosmetic Dentistry.

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ABOUT HILLTOWN FAMILIES

Hilltown Families is an online grassroots communication network for families living throughout the four counties of Western Massachusetts: www.HilltownFamilies.org. Hilltown Families’ mission is to connect, collaborate, and create community building events, community based educational opportunities, and service learning experiences.  Hilltown Families is incorporated as a non-profit in the state of Massachusetts, currently awaiting the approval of 501(c)3 status.

 

Founded by Sienna Wildfield, a longtime activist, artist, mother, and a Hilltown resident, Hilltown Families has been serving thousands of families living throughout Western Massachusetts since 2005. Through an award winning blog/website, social networking platforms, listserv, radio show/podcast, online bulletin boards, program development and collaborations with civic and nonprofit groups, Hilltown Families connects people and organizations in the widespread communities of Western MA by helping area residents share ideas, organize activities, support their children’s education and increase participation in community life.

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Massachusetts Launches “Dashboard” to Track Greenhouse Gas Reductions

The 2008 Massachusetts’s Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA) set an aggressive greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction target of 25% below 1990 levels by 2020. Now Massachusetts launched the Global Warming Solutions Act Dashboard. This tool has been designed to encourage public engagement in GWSA implementation and make it possible for people to keep track of progress being made towards the 2020 target.

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The Demise of Northern Pass 1.0

from the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF)

Earlier this week, CLF brought a message from New Hampshire to a gathering of major players in the Northeast’s energy industry in lower Manhattan, the Platt’s Northeast Energy Markets Conference.

Remember Northern Pass, that novel Northeast Utilities transmission project that would import 1,200 megawatts of large-scale hydropower from Hydro-Québec?

The project, as it was conceived and pitched to the region and the industry, Northern Pass version 1.0 if you will, is dead.

CLF ran through the key financial elements of the original proposal, what CLFcalled the Northern Pass gambit:

·         $1.1 billion to build a new transmission line, funded wholly by Hydro-Québec.

·         A generous “return on equity,” or guaranteed profit on project costs, of 12.56% for project developer Northeast Utilities, paid by Hydro-Québec.

·         Easy and inexpensive siting approvals for the line, which would be located solely in New Hampshire, mostly in corridors controlled by Northeast Utilities subsidiary Public Service of New Hampshire, the state’s largest and most powerful electric utility.

·         Ample profits that would cover all Northern Pass costs and much more for Hydro-Québec, which would sell its hydropower in New England’s lucrative wholesale electric market, where energy prices were, in 2008 and 2009 when Northern Pass was conceived, orders of magnitude higher than Hydro-Quebec’s costs of generating power.

·         Unlike New England-based renewable projects, no public or ratepayer subsidies.

These elements looked good to investors on paper. But they have, one by one, fallen apart, and they no longer add up. CLFtook the audience through the Northern Pass reality:

·         Years of a stalled siting process, as Northeast Utilities tries to purchase a new route for the northernmost 40 miles of the project, where PSNH has no transmission corridor, with repeated missed deadlines for announcing the new route and restarting the federal permitting process.

·         Increasing costs – an estimated additional $100 million in project costs already, even without accounting for any new route, mitigation commitments, or any underground component.

·         Growing doubt (even more pronounced than a year ago) that Hydro-Québec can recover Northern Pass development costs and its hydropower costs (which will only increase as costly new dam projects continue in northern Québec) through energy exports, given that wholesale energy prices in New England are now much lower.

·         Opposition by the vast majority of communities affected by the project, 33 at last count, local chambers of commerce, political leaders, and a diverse, well-organized grassroots movement of residents.

·         No support from any New England environmental group.

·         Mounting risk to NU’s lucrative return on equity, with the underlying deal expiring in 2014, and any renewal subject to federal regulators’ recently more skeptical view of such incentives.

And finally, CLFgave the eulogy for the key financial element of Northern Pass 1.0 – the one that attracted so much interest in regional energy circles, was the project’s key distinguishing feature from New England renewable energy projects, and continues to reside within the project’s discredited and misleading media campaign: the promise that the project would not require any subsidies.

In the last several months, as CLF predicted, Northeast Utilities, Hydro-Québec, and their allies have launched a major initiative to secure out-of-market subsidies of one form or the other for Canadian hydropower.  These efforts are now raging in the legislatures of Connecticut and Rhode Island and are simmering in other New England states. CLF is deeply engaged in protecting our state Renewable Portfolio Standard laws from this incursion and in turning back any long-term deals that will supply Canadian hydropower to these states at above-market prices or in a way that threatens renewable deployment in New England.

To us and to others, the false urgency associated with these proposals seems transparently calculated to advance a “Northern Pass 2.0,” just as Northern Pass 1.0 falls apart.

What would Northern Pass 2.0 look like? On the ground, whatever the “new route” New Hampshire continues to wait for, it will almost certainly look the same as Northern Pass 1.0, suffering from many of the same failings. But there will be some key differences, as the project’s underpinnings shift to accommodate a new economic reality. It will rely on public and/or ratepayer subsidies that will mean that New England will pay an above-market premium for the power or will provide an out-of-market gift of long-term energy price certainty to Hydro-Québec, in part to finance the associated transmission. In addition, many in New Hampshire’s North Country believe that the project will need to be sited on public land that is legally off-limits to circumvent the strong, ongoing efforts of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests to secure blocking conservation easements – in effect, another public subsidy for the project that will face overwhelming pushback in New Hampshire. (Clearly, Northern Pass’s dogged legislative fight to secure an ability to use eminent domain for the project, which it lost in resounding fashion in 2012, was only a preview of coming tactics.)

As CLF has consistently said, there may be appropriate alternatives to Northern Pass that strengthen New England’s access to Canadian hydropower resources, but only if those alternatives are pursued through well-informed, fair, and transparent public processes, provide meaningful community and ratepayer benefits, displace our dirtiest energy resources, and verifiably result in carbon and other emissions reductions. It does not appear that the emerging Northern Pass 2.0 – buoyed by a set of special deals and no discernible improvements – would do anything to advance these basic common sense principles, which should guide the region’s transition to a resource mix that will power New England’s clean energy future.

With few signs that Northern Pass’s sponsors have learned lessons from their missteps so far, Northern Pass 2.0 looks to have an even tougher path in New Hampshire than the dead end road that Northern Pass 1.0 has traveled. This was a message from the Granite State that the world of energy industry insiders and analysts needed to hear.

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Massachusetts Rivers and Wetlands Months Calendar for 2013

MAY IS WETLANDS MONTH, and JUNE IS RIVERS MONTH!  The 2013 Massachusetts Rivers and Wetlands Months Calendar, covering river-and wetland-related events in Massachusetts taking place from Saturday, April 27th to Thursday, July 4th, has been compiled by the Mass. Department of Fish and Game’s Division of Ecological Restoration (DER) to provide you with the opportunity to participate in events in, on, along and about the rivers and wetlands of the Commonwealth. Take this opportunity to invite your friends, family, local leaders, legislators, and/or a favorite reporter to clean up, paddle, protect, enjoy and celebrate your favorite rivers, streams, salt marshes and freshwater wetlands, or experience new ones. Get some healthful exercise in and/or along the Commonwealth’s many scenic waterways and marshes.

Many activities require reservations in advance. Please call/e-mail ahead to inquire about any restrictions, fees, rain dates or cancellations that may apply. Any questions should be directed to the event organizers at the contact phone numbers and/or e-mails provided for each listing.

Click here to access the 2013 Massachusetts Rivers and Wetlands Months Calendar on DER’s web page.

If you know of an event that is not listed on this Calendar but should be, send the info along to Russ Cohen at Russ.Cohen@state.ma.us, and he may be able to add it. You may also want to re-visit this Calendar from time to time to look for any newly-added events, updated info, etc.  Lastly, don’t forget to check out the Mass. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs’ The Great Outdoors blog for more info on these and other outdoor events and activities.

Happy Rivers and Wetlands Months!

 

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The Hoosic River Revival Invites You to a Community Conversation

Saturday, June 15, 9 am – 1 pm
St. Elizabeth of Hungary, 68 Marshall St, North Adams

What if the Hoosic River flowing through North Adams could be a more attractive, accessible community resource that still provides effective flood control? It’s possible! Please join us for a community conversation to:

*  Learn about 10 potential options from river restoration engineers and city planners
*  Get answers to your questions
*  Exchange thoughts and ideas with community members

Sponsored by the Hoosic River Revival (hoosicriverrevival.org). Refreshments and babysitting provided. Details to come.

Please forward to friends, coworkers, and congregations, and include this info in newsletters and bulletins. See you there!

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Family Fun Day at Pleasant Valley 

Mass Audubon’s Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary welcomes all to Family Fun Day on Saturday, June 8 at 472 W. Mountain Rd., Lenox, from 10 am to 4 pm, rain or shine.  Underwritten by Greylock Federal Credit Union, all events are free of charge.

The award-winning Gerwick Puppeteers will present “Turtle’s New Home” at 11. At noon George Wilson will entertain young and old with funny songs and traditional tunes.   Brian Bradley’s Skyhunters in Flight, a live raptor program, will soar at 1:30 pm.

Indoors, children can create a Wind Sculpture or Nature Print, or build an imaginary bug to take home.  Outdoors, they can play Nature Quest, a fun variation on a scavenger hunt. Learn about how to make road crossings safer for wildlife with the Berkshire Environmental Action Team and their spotted salamander puppet.  The Northern Berkshire Beekeepers Association will teach why honeybees are so important and answer questions about beekeeping.  Guided nature walks are offered all day.

Lunches and snacks are for sale, as well as Project Native plants, and greeting cards by Hancock artist Evan Sanders.  Mass Audubon family memberships will also be available at half-price.

Throughout the day, families are invited to explore the sanctuary’s seven miles of pond, forest, and stream trails.  For sixty-six years, the sanctuary’s nature daycamp has offered outdoor education and fun for children.  Its birds, wildlife, plants, and natural environment have attracted visitors from around the world.

For further information: 413-637-0320 or www.massaudubon.org.

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Mud Day 2013

Spring has sprung, the frogs are awake, and loads of soil are on order for Mud Day 2013.  Muddy Brook Regional Elementary School’s annual event will take place on Saturday, May 18, from 11am to 3pm, on the school grounds in Great Barrington.  Mud Day is a celebration of the Berkshire landscape, our literal common ground.  It is about bringing the classroom outdoors.

 “Some of our best learning is messy,” said Peter Dillon, Superintendent of the Berkshire Hills Regional School District.  He added, “please join us to have fun while we connect with each other and the environment around important issues.”  One eager fifth grader put it simply.  “I can’t wait for Mud Day, because you can just totally cover yourself in mud, and that’s the funnest thing in the world,” she said.

 In 2012, Mud Day drew well over 600 participants.  “Now in year four, Mud Day has become part of the fabric of Muddy Brook,” said Thad Dingman, Principal.  “Our vision is to bring the community into the learning experiences at our school, and at the same time, push our children to ask big questions about the world outside our doors,” he said. 

Local conservation and education organizations will be hosting activities and information tables.  Food will be for sale from local vendors.  And of course, there will be MUD: mud between tug of war teams, muddy pools for digging up treasures, mud for making pies.  Cleaner activities include face painting, jump-rope spinning, and tie-dying (bring your own cotton item or purchase a white t-shirt). 

All activities are available to children for a one-time fee of $5 ($15 family maximum).  Bring a change of clothes and a towel.  “Come catch a frog, eat something local, meet important members of our community, and see the learning happening.  Oh, and most importantly, have fun,” implored Mr. Dingman.  Be there… or be clean.

For more information, go to: www.muddybrookpta.com

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