Midsummer Eco-News

Paddlers Urgently Needed After Hartford Storage Pond MishapAlmost one year ago, the city of Hartford released thousands of water chestnut plants into the Connecticut River from its North Meadows floodwater storage pond near Riverside Park. At the time, the plants had ripe seeds ready to fall, so this negligent release of plants resulted in the spread of mature seeds downriver from Hartford to Essex. This summer, new plants emerged at regular intervals along both shorelines, posing a huge challenge to the volunteers trying to manage water chestnut infestations in the CT River and its tributaries. Since this release, Hartford has agreed to treat its storage point with herbicides to kill the invasive plants that threaten the river.

After many volunteer-hours of paddling, pulling, and disposing of plants during June and July, we have managed to clear many areas of shoreline, but some larger patches remain. We need help from paddlers before the seeds drop sometime in August. Click here for more information on how to help.

Your Lawn Questions Answered: This summer, we have heard lots of voices calling homeowners to diversify the plants in their yards and to mow less often, especially in the spring, These recommendations raise questions related to the possibility of increased tick disease and restrictions imposed by homeowner associations. Here is an article in the New York Times by Margaret Roach that addresses these issues.Forest Bathing 101Come to Middletown’s beautiful parks and enjoy reconnecting to nature and the planet. Each month the Middletown Recreation Department offers a mix of nature connection exercises, breathing techniques, and a sit spot meditation that will help you become more present in nature. Time: 10am on the 4th Sunday of the month. Locations vary. All ages are welcome! (Though parents may enjoy dropping their young children (4+) at the Everyone Outside kids nature program that meets at the same time nearby.) Learn more and register at: https://middletownct.myrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=30002.

Meet the PeecyclersA shortage of chemical fertlizer, worsened by the war in Ukraine, has growers desperate. It just so happens that human urine has the very nutrients that crops need. This article in the New York Times by Catrin Einhorn explains it all, based on her investigation in Vermont.

State Grants For Portland
Middlesex Land Trust has been awarded a state grant in the amount of $364,000 toward the purchase of a 147-acre property bordering Meshomasic State Forest in Portland. Rattlesnake Brook that feeds Great Hill Pond runs north to south through the property. This new property acquisition will allow creation of a buffer for the brook and ensure that clean water enters the pond. The award of this grant is only the first step toward protecting this land, brook, and pond in perpetuity. MxLT will launch a fundraising campaign in the coming months to raise the matching dollars required by the terms of the grant. Read more here.

The Town of Portland has been awarded a $300,000 grant by the state bond commission to create public access to the shore of the Connecticut River on town property located between the Meriden Motor Boat Club and Riverside Marina, directly opposite Harbor Park in Middletown. Rick Sharr and Lou Pear are co-chairs of the River Access Committee that developed the plan in cooperation with Tilcon, whose property on Air Line Avenue will need to be crossed. Senator Norm Needleman and Representative Christie Carpino were instrumental in obtaining this grant. The project was previously awarded a $4,000 planning grant by the Rockfall Foundation.

ALT-FCT Connector Funding The Jonah Center's most ambitious project -- to connect the Air Line Trail in Portland with the Farmington Canal Trail in Cheshire -- has now been awarded 3 grants for route study and design. A $315,000 CT Department of Transportation grant for the route study was awarded to the Lower Connecticut River Council of Governments, and a $500,000 state bond commission grant was awarded to the City of Middletown for additional route study, to plan improvements to Newfield Street for bike-ped safety, and for preliminary design work. After the terms of these grants and the sources of matching funds have been settled, an engineering consulting company will be selected for the Middletown and Portland portions of the connector. A separate route study grant for the Meriden section of the connector trail was awarded to the Southern Connecticut Region Council of Governments in 2021. That study is now nearing completion. More information on the ALT-FCT Connector can be found here.