PROTECT YOUR WATERSHED
By Bill Rose
WRWA president
Most readers are familiar with the Westfield River, but how many know about the Westfield River Watershed? A watershed is all the land, water, streams and brooks that feed into a river. In the case of the Westfield River, 330,000 acres of land feed, or shed, water into the river. In all, the watershed includes 636 miles of rivers and streams, as well as over 4550 acres of lakes and ponds. When you think about it that way, you realize the health of the Westfield River and of the flora and fauna it supports depends on how we take care of the land and water bodies all the way along the river.
If you hike or canoe or kayak or fish, you may already appreciate this wonderful resource that we have in our region. You may have even helped the Westfield River Watershed Association (WRWA) with its annual river cleanups. But, there is more than picking up trash that we need to do to care for the Westfield River and all the waters and land that make up its watershed.
Think about a small culvert running under a road. In a storm, that culvert may not be able to handle the water flow, clogging with debris, preventing flow and even destroying the roadway. Wouldn’t it be great if we adopted smart culvert designs that allowed a natural flow in our river and streams? How about removing dams that no longer serve a real purpose, yet still threaten properties downstream if they give way after years of neglect? Wouldn’t it be great to remove them responsibly and open up new waterways to migrating fish species? How many people recognize invasive plant and insect species that are choking out important native species that help keep the watershed healthy? What did we learn from Hurricane Irene last year and can we do a better job at flood control?
On Saturday, March 24, WRWA will sponsor its eighteenth annual watershed symposium “Protecting Our Watershed: Challenges and Opportunities” to explore questions like the ones above. The symposium is free and takes place at Scanlon Banquet Hall at Westfield State University. Registration opens at 8:00 a.m. and programs run from 8:30 to 12:40. In the afternoon, there will be field trips to West Springfield Fish Ladder and the USACE Flood Control Dams.
You will be able to choose from an impressive lineup of speakers in three speaking sessions. Keynote speaker Andy Finton, Director of Science and Conservation at The Nature Conservancy (Mass.), will speak on “A Resilient Future for the Westfield River Watershed.”
The lineup of other speakers and topics includes: Dr. Caleb Slater, Mass. Division of Fisheries & Wildlife, “Challenges and Opportunities for Migratory Fish Restoration in the Westfield River”; Julie Richburg, The Trustees of Reservations, “Extreme Weather, Extreme Invasives?”; Alison Bowden, The Nature Conservancy, “Road Ecology in Massachusetts: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow”; Dana Ohman, Mass. Division of Fisheries & Wildlife, “Coldwater Fish: What Do They Wish For?”; Beth Lambert, Mass. Division of Ecological Restoration, “River Restoration and Dam Removal: Challenges and Opportunities in the Westfield River Watershed”; Carrie Banks, Mass. Division of Ecological Restoration, “Massachusetts’ Rivers Response to Tropical Storm Irene.” You can also check out “The Watershed Waltz,” a puppet show DVD developed with assistance from WRWA to teach young children about watersheds.
WRWA, since its founding in 1953, has worked hard to educate residents of all ages and to give them opportunities to enjoy our wonderful natural resources at annual events where they can: try out kayaks at Demo Day at Hampton Ponds (on Saturday, May 19), learn about fly casting and fly tying, help stock salmon fry in the river and its tributaries and help label storm drains, among other events, all brought to you by the volunteer board of directors of WRWA and financed by annual dues paid by our loyal WRWA members. To learn more about WRWA, visit www.westfieldriver.org. We would love to welcome you as a new member and we hope you will join us at the symposium.
