Conservation

Organic Lawn Care Program

Organization: 
Connecticut Northeast Organic Farmers Organization
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
14 000.00
Description: 
To support the creation and development of the Organic Land and Turf Handbook for school, municipal, and commercial groundskeepsers to manage lawns and turf without the use synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.

Created the NOFA Organic Lawn and Turf Handbook in consultation with organic practitioners and scientists, and paid and volunteer writers. Representatives from the towns in the Watershed and from Watershed organizations attended the celebration/press event. One thousand copies were printed.

Freedom Lawn Campaign

Organization: 
Watershed Partnership, Inc
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
19 000.00
Description: 
Funds are requested to support the continuation and extension of the successful Safe Grounds Campaign in efforts to reduce non-point source pollution from lawn pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.

Through its efforts as a lead advocacy organization, the Connecticut legislature banned toxic lawn pesticides at all K-8 Schools. Thus all Quinnipiac River watershed municipalities will start to use some form of pesticide-free organic lawn care.

Landscape Structure & Dynamics in Lower Quinnipiac River Marshes

Organization: 
University of New Haven
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
23 135.00
Description: 
Funds are requested to support an environmental study assessing relationships among habitat structure, marsh topography, ecological dynamics and potential conservation initiatives in the Lower Quinnipiac River marshes.

unavailable

The Clean Rivers Project w/Plainville Conservation Commission

Organization: 
Farmington River Watershed Association, Inc.
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
2 000.00
Description: 
Funds are requested to support implementation of informational and educational efforts and activities advocating for pesticide use reduction. These efforts will focus on the 80 property owners whose properties abut the Quinnipiac River in Plainville, CT. The activities will include 2 river clean-ups, coordination of a fishing derby, Earth Day Extravaganza, promotion and advocacy of Freedom Lawn Initiative, and a Tomasso Nature Park clean-up. (see grant notes)

Eighteen of 58 parcels along the Quinnipiac River and 13 of 33 parcels along the Pequabuck River joined the Clean Rivers Project and are now pesticide free.

Short Courses

Organization: 
Yale School of Forestry/Environmental Studies
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
8 260.00
Description: 
Funds are requested to support the continuation of short courses concerning river processes to local members of the conservation/inlan wetland commissions and environmental activists.

Course evaluations were received from 19 of the 22 participants and were positive overall on factors including lectures, field trips, readings, problem sets, whether the course met students' expectations and whether students would recommend the course to others.

Organic Land Care Program

Organization: 
Connecticut Northeast Organic Farmers Organization
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
6 530.00
Description: 
Funds are requested to support the implementation of an intensive workshops to teach 100 Connecticut school groundskeepers how to mamnage fields without the use of harmful pesticides.

Ninety percent of attendees rated their knowledge of organic turf management as competent or high upon completion of the workshop. In follow-up calls with participants, grub control and initial program cost were determinded to be the greatest barrier to implementing an organic program. CT NOFA and other invested groups have initiated dialog with CT DEP to work to improve legislation to allow some type of grub control mechanism.

Safe Grounds Campaign

Organization: 
Watershed Partnership, Inc
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
18 000.00
Description: 
To support the Safe Grounds Campaign which helps reduce non-point source pollution from lawn pesticides and synthetic fertilizers in the Quinnipiac River watershed.  

As a result of the Partnership’s advocacy, the Connecticut legislature extended and strengthened the pesticide ban to include all day care facilities in Connecticut. Additionally, the Partnership collaborated with the DEP and NOFA in three compost workshops for municipal officials. The Partnership also worked with the staff at the Connecticut Governor’ Residence to convert the lawns to organic care.

Two day training program for local land use leaders

Organization: 
Land Use Leadership Alliance (LULA)
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
7 500.00
Description: 
To support a two-day training program for local land use leaders to educate them on the scope of their jurisdiction, the flexibility they have under the law, tools for natural resource and watershed protection and collaborative techniques including consensus building, facilitated decision-making, community participation and effective meetings management.

The program's presentations provided a comprehensive perspective on the myriad of alternatives available to communities through their activism, preparation, and
the law.

Homeowner workshops on organic land care

Organization: 
Northeast Organic Farming Association of Connecticut, Inc.
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
5 000.00
Description: 
To support homeowner workshops and outreach and to initiate data analysis and focus group research to design a program to best serve homeowners who want organic land care for their properties.

Offered 4 workshops attended by a total of 76 people. Conducted an analysis of its website to better understand what homeowners are looking for and how it could meet their needs.

Definition and granting of land easements

Organization: 
North Haven Trail Association
Date Issued: 
Amount: 
3 000.00
Description: 
To support consultant/professional work required to support the definition and granting of land easements from private property owners along the river where the intended route of the trail is located.

Focused on preparing digital maps of proposed easements across private property to facilitate assembling its Tidal Marsh Trail along the eastern shore of the Quinnipiac River.

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