NEWS FROM THE FRIENDS
Friends of the Mad River is hosting a community workshop for homeowners, contractors, and landscape designers on flood preparedness and creating flood resilient homescapes and driveways. "Not if, but When: Preparing for Floods and Managing Stormwater" will take place Tuesday, September 11 from 6:00-7:30 PM at the Moretown Town Hall.
Friends of the Mad River is hosting the second annual Rock the River event at American Flatbread in Waitsfield on Sunday August 26th from 3:00 pm-9:00 pm. The benefit will feature a great line up of homegrown music, with local musician Colleen Mari opening, followed by Tim Holter and the Mad River Mini Stars. Tim is a seasoned performer from Warren and will be joined on stage by his amazing and talented kids. The lovely Burlington songstress Kat Wright and her Indomitable Soul Band will wrap up the event; Kat was named in the 2012 Daysies “best up and coming performer” category by the Seven Days.
Join us July 25th at 6:00pm at the Big Picture Theater for a workshop for homeowners: Not if but When: Preparing for Floods and Managing Stormwater. Can't make the workshop? Check out our online resources and/or attend the workshop on September 11.
Sampling results from the most recent round of the Mad River Watch volunteer water quality program on July 23rd show most sites with favorable swimming conditions, with only 2 of thirty-five sites testing above Vermont Health Department’s new water quality standard for E.coli in recreational waters (235 colonies of E.coli per 100 mL water). The sites were north of Warren village and along Pony Farm Road in Moretown.
Sampling results from the third round of Friends of the Mad River’s Mad River Watch volunteer water quality program show most sites with favorable swimming conditions, with only 2 of thirty-five sites testing above Vermont Health Department’s new water quality standard for E.coli in recreational waters (235 colonies of E.coli per 100 mL water). The sites were Lareau swim hole and along Pony Farm Road in Moretown.
Sampling results from the second round of Friends of the Mad River’s Mad River Watch volunteer water quality program show only some sites with favorable swimming conditions, with 11 of thirty-five sites testing above Vermont Health Department’s water quality standard for E.coli in recreational waters. The standard was recently revised upwards, increasing from 77 to 235 colonies of E.coli per 100 mL water. E. coli is a type of coliform bacteria and is used as an indicator of pollution from human or animal waste and the potential presence of disease causing organisms. It is estimated that at the level of 235 colonies E.coli per 100 mL water, approximately 8 out of every 1,000 swimmers are likely to contract a water borne illness related to fecal contamination.
Mad River Watch kicked off its 27th season of water quality monitoring this Monday as volunteers headed to sites throughout the watershed to collect samples. The Mad River Watch program will conduct water testing every two weeks throughout the summer; results are reported in the newspaper and on signs at various swim holes.
On August 29, 2011 Tropical Storm Irene caused the most devastating flooding that Vermont has experienced in the last 83 years. One of the hardest hit areas was Waitsfield, Vermont. Volunteers for Peace is partnering with the Friends of the Mad River to host a two week volunteer workcamp to clean up the Mad River, which was seriously impacted by the storm.
Volunteers For Peace (vfp.org) is a Vermont non-profit celebrating our 30th year! VFP sends Americans around the world to volunteer as well as organizes and subsidizes projects in the US for international volunteers.
"It's a Mad River: A look at flooding in the Mad River Valley & the evolution of river management"
A presentation led by river scientists from the VT Department of Environmental Conservation, local river experts & historians. In addition, Harwood's 7th grade science class will present posters on their exploration of the Mad River.
November 10th, 6:30-8:30pm
1824 House Inn, Waitsfield
Friends of the Mad River conducted a special "post Irene" Mad River Watch on Monday September 12th.
While only two sites sampled were in violation on the Vermont standard for E.coli in recreational water (Pony Farm Road in Moretown and the north end of Moretown Village), please be aware that there could be dangerous debris or other chemicals in the water that washed in during the flood.
Next
