We
are excited to be entering our 20th year
and are planning some special activites to commemorate this
anniversary!
First
we want to announce our newest PROGRAM -
ADOPT
a BEACH
We
will be recruiting teams of community volunteers to serve as
“beachkeepers.”
Beachkeepers will be trained to identify and monitor sources
of contamination,
identify invasive species, observe conditions such as erosion
and sedimentation,
and clean up trash and debris at their adopted beach on a year-round
basis.
Our
first informational meeting will be January
20, Wednesday evening, 7:30 - 8:30 pm at the
Barnett Gallery, Beverly Public Library. To
learn more about the program and to volunteer.
The
development of this program has been funded in part by the
Massachusetts Environmental Trust,
which receives much of its funding from motorists
who choose
to purchase speciality "Trust plates" such as
the Northern Right Whale,
Leaping Brook Trout and Blackstone Valley Mill.
Free
Tour Essex Sewerage District Wastewater Treatment Facility!
Thursday February 18, 6:30-8 pm
Check out our programs and past results.
Adopt a Beach Program
Clean Beaches and Streams Program
Salt Marsh Restoration and Monitoring Projects
Coastal Habitat Invasive Species Program
Invasive Pepperweed Removal Project
Horseshoe Crab Project
Mill River, Gloucester Clam Study
Let us know if you want to volunteer.
Our
programs and the environmental improvements in Salem Sound
are made possible by member support and contributions.
BECOME A MEMBER - MAKE
A DONATION
- GIFT MEMBERSHIP online
Thanks
to all our members, corporate
sponsors, and funders.
Become a group member of "Salem
Sound Coastwatch" on Facebook!
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Successful
Winter Waterfowl Survey conducted
on Sunday, November 15
Salem
Sound Coastwatch, partnering with Mass Audubon, will be conducting
winter coastal bird surveys from Nahant to Rockport three times
this winter. We are following the protocols used by TASL,
a group of birders who have been collecting winter waterfowl
data for the Boston Harbor regions since 1980. If you are interested
in joining one of our teams, please contact:
For Rockport and Gloucester – Kathy Leahy, 978-927-1122
x 2700 kleahy@massaudubon.org.
For Nahant thru Manchester -- Salem Sound Coastwatch, 978-741-7900
info@salemsound.org.
Future
survey dates are Sunday, January 17 and February 14.
Winter
Waterfowl ID SESSION held on January 9 at Winter Island
Fifteen
people joined Salem Sound Coastwatch to identify waterfowl in
the Salem Sound waters. We saw 10 different species during our
visit to Winter Island. Thanks Jan Smith for sharing his knowledge.
_________________________________________________________________________
Stormwater
runoff is a major source of pollution to Salem Sound.
New Federal and State stormwater management requirements will
soon be in place.
SSCW co-sponored a workshop for municipalities to learn about
a
Stormwater Utility, an innovative way to fund stormwater program.
Learn more about stormwater,
the regulations and Stormwater Utility! ______________________________________________________________________________________________
Learn
more about Ocean Acidification and what you
can do!
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Eelgrass
-one of the largest eelgrass meadows in Massachusetts
is right here in Salem Sound. Learn why
this is so important!
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Salem
Sound
IS a NDA ( No
Discharge Area) as of June 23, 2008.
Salem
Sound Coastwatch is pleased to have worked on behalf of Salem
Sound, the Salem Sound Harbormasters and the five communities:
Marblehead, Salem, Danvers, Beverly and Machester-by-the-Sea,
to have the state of Massachusetts and EPA
Region 1 designate Salem Sound as an area where boaters with
MSD Type I & II (marine
sanitation device - heads)
can no longer dump within 3 miles of shore.
Resources
for Boaters
Salem Sound NDA Poster: what
boaters need to know and chart of Salem Sound NDA boundaries
(96 kB PDF)
Pumpout
Services (hours and phone numbers) (36 KB
PDF)
Map
of No Discharge Areas in MA, RI, NH as of
2/17/2009 (710 KB PDF).
We
continue to work on increasing boater awareness of pump-out
facilities in our region and expanding these services.
The
Salem Sound Working Group has also
begun implementation of recommendations from the SSCW Marine
Sanitation Needs Assessment.
To Learn more...
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Citizens
Monitoring for Marine Invasive Species:
SSCW is conducting on-going research
on Marine Invading Species. Check out our
Marine Introduced Species Resource Center
and our Coastal
Habitat Invasive Monitoring Program.
SSCW is working with the international SETL-project
to study marine fouling communities in
Salem Sound. SETL's goal is to gather data from temperate regions
around the world.
To get involved, send us an email.
Chinese
Mitten Crab ALERT!!
40 in New Jersey alone and more are being found in the Hudson
River, New York!
______________________________________________________________________________________________
GREENSCAPES
-
environmentally-friendly
landscaping
Salem
Sound Coastwatch in cooperation with its many partners provides
information on how to have environmentally-friendly lawns and
yards that are safe, attractive, save money on water bills and
keep our coastal waters cleaner.
Sixteen
communities have signed up to participate in Greenscapes
in 2009.
A colorful pocket calendar (April 09 - March 2010) with gardening
hints will be available in each of these communities.
Also,
receive a 15 % discount on the 23
Greenscapes-Recommended plants when you mention Greenscapes
at the following participating nurseries
and stores.
For more, check out the Greenscapes
Massachusetts website.
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Become a member and volunteer.
Learn how you can support and participate in environmental monitoring
and scientific research in the Salem Sound Watershed. | 
