Grant Funds Project to Determine Current Condition of Shepaug River
Connecticut Community Foundation grant: $30,000
Thanks to a grant from the Connecticut Community Foundation, Rivers Alliance of Connecticut and a coalition of stakeholders worked to gather baseline information on existing ecological conditions in and along the Shepaug River.
The Connecticut Community Foundation determined two years ago to support major environmental work in the Waterbury region with emphasis on water resources and collaboration among environmental groups.
Rivers Alliance Executive Director Margaret Miner said, “With its leadership and generosity, Connecticut Community Foundation has created a cooperative, watershed-wide initiative that will protect this river for years to come.”
“Data on the effect of the increased water release, made possible through the grant, will assist the coalition of Shepaug River stakeholders and other river groups in Connecticut in managing and restoring rivers,” noted Ingrid Manning, CEO of the Connecticut Community Foundation.
Taking Action
In 2008, the Connecticut Community Foundation sponsored an assembly of groups and town officials in the Shepaug watershed to discuss the river and its needs.
The gathering, hosted by Rivers Alliance with help from the National Park Service, revealed an urgent need to gather data and information to develop a picture of the present condition of the river, aquatic life, and adjacent land. Going forward, this data will be used in a program of monitoring and upgrading.
Most of the work was done by volunteers, both individuals and members of groups like the Steep Rock Land Trust in Washington, the Roxbury Land Trust, town conservation commissions, and the Bantam River Watershed Association. Equipment and technical assistance is supplied through the grant and help from the Housatonic Valley Association, Rivers Alliance, CT DEP Fisheries, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Pictured above:
The Connecticut Community Foundation awarded Rivers Alliance of Connecticut a grant for $30,000 in 2009 to gather baseline information on existing ecological conditions in and along the Shepaug River. Pictured form left to right are Randy Bernard of the Steep Rock Association, Ingrid Manning, CEO, CT Community Foundation, Amanda Branson of Rivers Alliance of Connecticut, and Jenifer Gunther of the Housatonic Valley Association.
