Programs
and Projects
Long-Term Monitoring Programs
Coastal
Habitat Invasives Monitoring Program
Clean Beaches & Streams Program
Wetland Health Assessment Toolbox
Adopt a Tidepool Program
Current
Projects
Greenscapes
North Shore
Trees and Forests for a Healthy Watershed
North River System - Salem and Peabody
Marine Sanitation - Clean Water for Boating
Peabody St. Park on the South River
Anadromous Fish Run Restoration
Beach Buddies
Manchester Coastal Stream Team
For more information
or to get involved contact Barbara Warren.
Long-Term Monitoring Programs
Coastal Habitat Invasive Monitoring Program
The presence of nonindigneous,
invasive species or "bioinvaders" has emerged as one of the leading
environmental and economic threats to our coastal area. To develop effective
management policies and identify locations of highest risk, we must first
collect information on the current locations, abundance and characteristics
of these species along our shores. To do this, we need the help of volunteers--individuals
who are willing to learn more about these species and then take their knowledge
into the field, making periodic visits to a rocky shoreline or floating dock
to observe and record the presence of these species. Ongoing training will
cover species identification, survey techniques and the pathways of introductions.
Contact us if you are interested in taking part in our Coastal
Habitat Invasives Monitoring Program.
Adopt A Tidepool
Salem Sound Coastwatch trains volunteers to monitor tidepools through the Adopt-A-Tidepool program. Volunteers will help us focus special
attention on local tidepools and catalog the diversity of both native and
invasive species. This information will be passed on to scientists working
on strategies to address marine invasive species.
Clean Beaches and Streams
The goals of the Clean Beaches and Streams
Program are to keep the public from exposure to water pollution at area beaches
by: 1) providing education on the health threats linked to bacterial contaminated
water; 2) increasing water quality monitoring; and 3) partnering with local
Boards of Health and Departments of Public Works to identify, post, and fix
pollution problems. To read more about the program and what you can do to
be part of the solution, check out "Making
the Stormwater Connection".
From June to September, trained volunteers take water samples from streams
and outfall pipes as they empty out on to our coastal beaches. Test
results for 2003 through 2007 are available on this web page, as well as a
link to the Mass. Dept. of Public Health website to learn of beach closures.
Current Projects Greenscapes
North Shore Trees and Forests for a
Healthy Watershed In the spring of
2006, SSCW reestablished ten stream teams to survey the North River and Peabody
brooks, engaged graduate students from the Tufts Universtity Department of
Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning to research the river's recovery,
and held its 4th annual North River Awareness Week. To read the reports and
learn more about proposed next steps, please read
on. Marine
Sanitation - Clean Water for Boating Salem Sound Coastwatch
Marine Sanitation Needs Assessment for Salem Sound was
completed in December 2005. A Salem Sound Working Group has been formed to
prioritize recommendations and begin next actions. We look forward to working
with the boating community to implement some of the recommendations that came
out of this study. The Salem Sound Working Group completed a "No Discharge"
application for Salem Sound. Peabody
St. Park on the South River AND MORE NEWS!! Tufts students win a national design
award. Anadromous
Fish Run Restoration
Beach
Buddies/Coastsweep Manchester
Coastal Stream Team
Volunteer Wetland Health Assessment Toolbox
Salem Sound Coastwatch works with scientists from the
Massachusetts Bays Program and
Massachusetts Coastal Zone Management
Office, and other local experts to train volunteer citizens to assess
the health of regional wetlands. Volunteers learn to measure the health of wetlands
using the W.H.A.T. Technique. This technique assesses wetland health
by measuring seven parameters: birds, fish, plants, water chemistry, land use,
tidal hydrology, and benthic macroinvertebrates.
Over 135 volunteers have been trained to date, and we have monitored North Shore
salt marsh systems since 1999 to evaluate salt
marsh restorations.
Greenscapes are landscapes that look great, require little
maintenance, are environmentally- friendly, and save water too! Check out
our new Greenscapes program and find out about presentations in the region
on how to be a Greenscaper in your own backyard.
The Greenscapes Massachusetts Coalition,
led by the Massachusetts Bays Estuary
Association, is a diverse group of organizations that collectively implement
the GreenscapesTM program in their respective
geographic regions across Massachusetts.
Salem Sound Coastwatch has joined with two other regional organizations to
bring the program to the North Shore. We partner
with local municipalities and nurseries to bring Greenscaping practices
to you.
For the first
time, SSCW, with this project, has focused attention on the value and importance
of community trees and forests for stormwater management and watershed health.
The first project mapped the watershed for potential priority areas for conservation,
restoration and stormwater management. We involved the watershed communities
and the various stakeholders, to build cooperation and support for future
action-oriented forest protection and stewardship of a valuable and limited
resource in this urbanized, coastal watershed and make the connection between
trees reduce runoff and help maintain a healthier watershed.
Next through a grant
from DCR and assistance from MA Riverways, we took a closer look at the Greater
North River System. We are in the process of adding a new tree
link that will be updated with more information soon.
Salem
Sound Coastwatch is focusing time and energy on the the North River and its
tributaries to develop an understanding of the current issues facing this area
of Salem and Peabody and to become a proactive voice for ecologically sound
development in the North River system watershed.
The North River is the largest source of fresh water to Salem Sound and one
of the oldest industrial rivers in America. It has a long history of pollution
when it served as an open conduit for sewage, tannery and othe industrial wastes.
Although now cleaner with small numbers of rainbow smelt and other wildlife
returning to live in and near the river, the area still needs much attention.
To this end, SSCW continues to expand environmental awareness and open communication
among the cities of Salem and Peabody, their citizens and leaders.
SSCW's
2005 Salem Sound Marine Sanitation Needs Assessment evaluated the marine sanitation
practices of vessels
to develop a better understanding of boater knowledge and behavior, an evaluation
of the current pumpout facilities, and the obstacles experienced by recreational
boaters, commercial vessels and facility operators.
Yacht club members, marina customers, and individual boaters with mooring
permits in Salem Harbor, Beverly Harbor, Bass River, Danvers River, Waters
River, Porter River and Crane River were asked to complete an anonymous questionnaire.
A team
of Tufts University graduate students of Urban and Environmental Policy and
Planning worked with SSCW, the City of Salem Dep. of Planning and Community
Development, and the Salem community to design a future park along the South
River. The park will join the Point Neighborhood with the South River Harbor
Walk and downtown Salem. The Final Report helped the City of Salem receive
EPA funding to clean up the contamination at 15 Peabody St., the first step
to making the park, and then the City received
an Urban Self-Help grant of $474,000 from the State to fund the construction
of the Park.
Together with Massachusetts Division of
Marine Fisheries, Salem Sound Coastwatch continues to work to restore smelt
spawning habitat on the North River in Salem and Peabody and in Sawmill
Brook in Manchester. For the latest smelt count on the North River
- spring 2006, check out this Salem News story. We are glad that the 5th graders
of Witchcraft Heights could join us. These projects have received support
from numerous partners including the FishAmerica Foundation, Five Star Restoration
Grants Program, National Marine Fisheries Service, the communities of
Salem, Peabody, and Manchester, and many volunteers! Check SSCW's calendar
for North River Awareness Week in May.
The Beach Buddies program aims to curb preventable marine
debris at our regional recreation areas by encouraging users to clean up after
themselves and become stewards of their local beach by removing others' trash
too. Join us for our annual Coastsweep
2008 this September. Contact
us at info@salemsound.org for more information.
With help
from Salem Sound Coastwatch, local citizens of Manchester by the Sea formed
the Manchester Coastal Stream Team (MCST). MCST has undertaken
many successful projects including water quality monitoring, publication and
distribution of three educational brochures, removal of purple loosestrife
from Dexter Pond, clean up of Sawmill Brook, coordination of dam openings
for the Spring smelt run, and much more!
Upcoming Events.
If you would like to get involved, please email Manchestercoastal@yahoo.com .
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