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Casin’ the Basin E-Newsletter
March 2017 Issue No. 31 Spacer Dark Blue
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LCBP Welcomes Ellen Kujawa

Ellen Kujawa

The LCPB is pleased to welcome Ellen Kujawa to its staff at the Grand Isle office. As Technical Associate, Ellen will help to facilitate water resources research and coordinate implementation projects in the Basin. She holds an M.S. in conservation biology and sustainable development from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a B.A. in environmental studies from Mount Holyoke College. Her past experience includes paleoecology and invasive species research, statistical analysis and climate change modelling, and fieldwork in lakes, prairies, and forests. Most recently, she worked for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, studying long-term aquatic plant population dynamics and helping to develop statewide lake management guidelines. Ellen is an avid gardener and cook, and lives in Burlington with her boyfriend and many plants.



LCBP Report of Activities Released

2016 Report of Activities Cover

Fiscal year 2016 was a watershed year for the LCBP. The Program celebrated its 25th anniversary, navigated staff transitions, and began updating the Lake Champlain management plan Opportunities for Action. All the while, staff continued work on the Program’s key functions of identifying needs and priorities for research and implementation projects; ensuring efficient and coordinated actions among many partners; and providing financial and technical support for local organizations that conduct vital on-the-ground work.


In February, the LCBP released a report documenting the activities, achievements, and milestones of the last year. The 2016 Summary Report of Activities includes select highlights from FY16 while the Appendix includes a detailed account of all local grants, technical projects, and staff accomplishments. These documents provide a sense of ongoing efforts by LCBP partners to improve the watershed.

Read the 2016 Report of Activities

LCBP Revising Management Plan

Governors Jim Douglas of Vermont and George Pataki of New York sign the first renewal of OFA in 2003.

LCBP is close to releasing an update of the Lake Champlain management plan Opportunities for Action. The plan provides a road map of management objectives and priorities for the improvement of water quality and ecosystem integrity in Lake Champlain and its watershed through 2022. Conditions and management priorities in the watershed have changed since the plan was first endorsed in 1996, and each iteration of Opportunities for Action has evolved to address new concerns and issues. The updated plan will focus on four primary goals of clean water, healthy ecosystems, thriving communities, and an informed and involved public that understands Lake Champlain and its watershed. The plan will be used as a guidance tool by the LCBP Steering Committee, to help direct LCBP programs and funding.


The LCBP hosted public meetings with the Citizens Advisory Committees in Vermont, New York, and Québec this winter to gather feedback from the public on the plan, and accepted public comments from late January to March 6. Once finalized, the plan will be signed by the governors of New York and Vermont, and endorsed by the Premier of Québec. The final version of the plan will be released in June.



Education and Outreach Highlights

Carved wood panel mosaics created by Flynn Elementary students with the help of the Burlington Generator makerspace are backlit with the setting Lake Champlain sun.

World Water Day
The LCBP and its partners in the Champlain Basin Education Initiative (CBEI) hosted the fourth annual celebration of World Water Day at ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain on March 22. The event brought together artwork, writing, photography, and videography from 18 classrooms in New York and Vermont. Awards were presented to student submissions in each of four categories: Celebrate Water, Spread the Word, Citizen Science & Civic Action, and Act Locally-Think Globally. Keynote speaker Becky Tharp, Program Manager of the Vermont Green Infrastructure Collaborative, shared with students and parents her work in using cool new technologies to improve water quality in the Basin.

 

International World Water Day was designated by the United Nations in 1992, and is held annually on March 22nd as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. CBEI is a consortium of environmental and place-based education groups throughout the Lake Champlain Basin. CBEI holds workshops on teaching about the Lake Champlain Basin for K-12 educators, and interested citizens.
Learn about future CBEI events at WatershED Matters >


Love the Lake
The LCBP hosted five nights of free, public lake-related talks at the Grand Isle office this winter. Between 35 and 45 people attended each evening to enjoy desserts and hear about underwater shipwrecks and archaeology, Vermont’s small boat traditions, wildlife habitat connectivity, the Champlain line of the Underground Railroad, and the comeback of the American eel. The Love the Lake speaker series was started in 2005 in memory of the contributions of long-time lake lover and LCBP supporter Jane Potvin. The series provides an opportunity for local residents to come together and hear from expert historians and scientists who are passionate about the Lake and watershed.


Diving In
The LCBP released “Rowing to a Thriving Community,” the latest video in the Diving In series. In the summer of 2015, the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum brought community rowing to the village of Champlain, NY. The pilot project became the focus of a popular community gathering, with dozens of citizens coming out on Friday evenings to picnic and row a replica of an historic rowing gig on the Chazy River. Participants learned about the boat-building heritage in their community and about water quality and habitat issues in the Lake Champlain Basin. Watch the video >


Meet the Scientists
The LCBP has launched “Meet the Scientists,” a web page that connects the media and others with experts in a broad range of lake-related disciplines. These experts, many of whom help to inform and guide the LCBP’s work by serving on advisory and partnership committees, can provide current science-based information around lake and watershed issues. Search the database >



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Grant Results

Since 1992, the LCBP has awarded more than $7.3 million through more than 1,000 grants to local organizations. These grants support a variety of pollution prevention, habitat restoration, and other projects that address the goals and priorities of the Lake Champlain Steering Committee as outlined in the Lake Champlain management plan Opportunities for Action. A sample of recently completed projects include:


Lamoille County Conservation District Stormwater Solutions
The Lamoille County Conservation District (LCCD) identified, planned, and implemented two Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) projects on Vermont state lands. With in-kind services provided by Vermont Building and Grounds Service and VTRANS, an infiltration gallery was constructed to replace a failing sediment basin in the Village of Hyde Park, and a new stormwater collection system was installed to replace a failing rain garden at a VTRANS garage in Morrisville. The LCCD and a subcontracted engineer met with state partners and landowners, analyzed site hydrology and other conditions, developed construction plans, and completed construction. The projects are part of a larger and continued effort under the umbrella of the Lamoille Stormwater Improvement Project by LCCD to reduce the effects of non-point source pollution from developed land areas.
Grant Category: Pollution Prevention and Habitat Conservation


Trout in the Classroom
The Vermont chapter of Trout Unlimited (TU) established Trout in the Classroom programs at nine schools in the Lake Champlain Basin with the LCBP’s help. A 55-gallon tank, along with chiller, filter, aerator, and other equipment, was set up at each school. TU volunteers delivered brook trout eggs from the Roxbury Fish Culture Station to the schools. The program has permitted students to raise brook trout from eggs to fingerlings, which they will release in local streams between mid-May and early June. Students have learned about water chemistry, the characteristics of healthy watersheds, and  ecosystems in general. They also learned about trout anatomy, lifecycle, habitat, and the benthic macroinvertebrates that trout eat.
Grant Category: Education and Outreach


Lake George Watershed Stream Habitat Improvement
The Lake George Association (LGA) enhanced aquatic habitat and stabilized streambanks within two stream corridors in the Lake George Watershed. Lake George is listed as a 303(d) waterbody on the NYS DEC’s List of impaired TMDL Waters as sediment impaired. Hague Brook and Jenkins Brook in the town of Hague, New York, had severe undercutting of their banks and unstable channels. The project also created areas to improve fish passage and areas of fish habitat. LGA worked with a consultant on the survey and design work for the Hague Brook site, and worked with the NYS DEC fisheries and Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District for the Jenkins Brook site.
Grant Category: Pollution Prevention and Habitat Conservation

 

Installation of stormwater collection system at the Morrisville VTRANS facility; students setting up an aquarium for trout at Camels Hump Middle School; bank erosion prior to restoration in Jenkins Brook. Photos: VTRANS, Joe Mark, and LGA.


Search our grants database to learn about other projects supported by the LCBP. >>



Research and Technical Projects

Each year, the LCBP funds several research projects that help to improve the understanding and management of the watershed. These projects include scientific research, best management demonstration projects, education and outreach efforts, and other initiatives that are key to implementing Opportunities for Action and improving the Lake Champlain ecosystem.


Lake Champlain Meteorological Stations
The Vermont Monitoring Cooperative (VMC) at the University of Vermont operated three on-lake meteorological data collection stations at Colchester Reef, Diamond Island, and Burton Island. The grant helped VMC to maintain equipment and sensors, and to make high quality, near real-time, meteorological data publicly available. VMC provided the LCBP with an annual summary of the data collected, including statistical analyses of current year data in comparison to long-term climate trends.


These data are provided primarily to support ongoing research, monitoring and recreation on Lake Champlain, and they are a valuable asset to many efforts across agencies, jurisdictions and disciplines. The Colchester Reef data in particular are heavily used by both recreational and commercial users of the Lake. The National Weather Service continues to use data from these on-lake stations for predicting conditions and issuing lake advisories. This project supplies invaluable wind data used by researchers to model the movement of pollutants such as mercury through and across the lake. The data have helped to develop flooding models, predict harmful algal blooms, and determine where water and air quality samples should be collected. This project provides a baseline of data against which changes over time can be compared, which will help to achieve LCBP’s goal of identifying potential changes in climate.

 

Flood Recovery and River Management Training Modules
Staff from the environmental consulting firm Milone & MacBroom developed training materials and implemented pilot trainings to improve flood recovery and river management practices to increase flood resiliency, reduce future risks, and reduce river impacts. These materials build on training and resources developed in New York and Vermont. Noting that flood recovery efforts can have a greater environmental impact than the floods themselves, they developed four training modules to address common components of flood response: sediment and large wood removal; channel stabilization, floodplain restoration; and geomorphic-engineering design of bridges and culverts. Each module includes a lesson plan, teaching notes, handouts, review questions, and design examples. A pilot training was conducted for each module with professionals from state agencies, conservation districts, and watershed organizations. Feedback from the pilot trainings was used to tailor the final training modules.
Read LCBP Technical Report No. 84: Development of Advanced Flood Recovery and River Management Training Modules >>

 

Tile Drainage Literature Review
A literature review prepared by Stone Environmental summarized the current state of knowledge about the use of tile drains in agricultural fields. Tile drainage is a water management practice used on many farm fields to improve growing conditions by lowering the water table and allowing upper soil layers to dry out. The report summarizes the effects of subsurface drainage on the hydrology of the landscape; phosphorus concentrations and loads in tile drainflow, the factors controlling phosphorus losses in drainage water, and measures to reduce phosphorus loads in tile drainflows. While recognizing that the extent of tile drainage in the Lake Champlain Basin and characteristics that might lead to phosphorus loading are largely unknown, managers now understand that tile drainage systems are a potentially significant source of phosphorus loading.
Read LCBP Technical Report No. 83: Tile Drainage Literature Review >>

 

Nutrient Concentration and Loading Report
The U.S. Geological Survey, with support from the LCBP, has published the report Concentration, Flux, and Trend Estimates with Uncertainty for Nutrients, Chloride, and Total Suspended Solids in Tributaries of Lake Champlain, 1990–2014. The report estimates daily and 9-month concentrations and loads of total and dissolved phosphorus, total nitrogen, chloride, and total suspended solids from 1990 (or first available date) through 2014 for 18 tributaries of Lake Champlain.
Read the full report >>


To learn about Grants and RFPs in the future, please visit the LCBP Grants and RFPs web page. >>



LCBP Events & Activities

Upcoming Events

Annual Nonpoint Source Pollution Conference
April 12-13, 2017, Northampton, MA
The NPS Conference is the premier forum in the region for sharing information and improving communication on NPS pollution issues and projects. The conference brings together all those in New England and New York State involved in NPS pollution management, including participants from state, federal, and municipal governments, private sector, academia, and watershed organizations.
Learn more >>


LCBP Meetings
Technical Advisory Committee
April 5, 2017, Grand Isle, VT
Staff Contact: Matt Vaughan, (802) 372-3213

 

Technical Advisory Committee
May 3, 2017, Grand Isle, VT
Staff Contact: Matt Vaughan, (802) 372-3213

 

Lake Champlain Steering Committee
May 9, 2017, QC, Location TBD
Staff Contact: Kathy Jarvis, (802) 372-3213.



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Blue Spacer About The ProgramThe Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP) works in partnership with government agencies from New York, Vermont, and Quebec, private organizations, local communities, and individuals to coordinate and fund efforts which benefit the Lake Champlain Basin’s water quality, fisheries, wetlands, wildlife, recreation, and cultural resources. Learn more or view our Management Plan. Blue Spacer 2 Other SitesOpportunities for Action
State of the Lake
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