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Menunkatuck Audubon Society has partnered with Audubon Connecticut, Yale Peabody Museum, and other local environmental organizations on a project to raise awareness among legislators, homeowners, and the general public about ways to reduce both non-point and point sources of pollution and to improve habitat for birds and other wildlife within the Quinnipiac River Watershed. Improving Water Quality and Wildlife Habitat in the Quinnipiac River Watershed will promote legislative, municipal, corporate and personal actions to improve water quality and habitat for wildlife in the QRW through a combination of (1) legislative forums in New Haven and Wallingford, (2) a film series coupled with panel discussions to be held at the Yale Peabody Museum in New Haven, and at venues in Wallingford and Meriden, and (3) outreach materials to be displayed and disseminated at a wide range of venues.
Funded by a grant from the Quinnipiac River Fund to Audubon Connecticut, the project will address the need to reduce non-point and point sources of pollution and to improve habitat for wildlife by providing people with the tools, resources, and motivation to take on actions that can make our homes, schools, businesses, and municipal spaces in the Quinnipiac River Watershed healthy and vibrant while also providing sustainable habitats for birds and other wildlife. Improving habitat for wildlife also improves natural infrastructure for reducing non point source pollution.
The project is part of the Audubon At Home in Connecticut program of Audubon Connecticut, part of the larger National Audubon Society’s mission. The goal of the AAH program in Connecticut is to inspire people to incorporate conservation actions into their daily lives by providing the support and resources necessary to do so, in order to conserve birds, wildlife, and habitat. AAH educates the public on water conservation and water quality issues, encourages reduction of pesticides and other harmful chemicals, removing invasive plant species and replacing them with native plants that support wildlife naturally.
The film screenings at the Yale Peabody Museum are:
• Vanishing of the Bees, October 26 The film starts at 6:30 with the doors opening at 5:30.
• Green Fire, Aldo Leopold and a Land Ethic for Our Time, November 12
Doors will open at 1:00. After the screening of the film you will have a chance to ask local environmental leaders questions about their work and address concerns about the Quinnipiac River.
• Living Downstream, December 9
The film starts at 6:30 with the doors opening at 5:30.
• The Work of 1,000 will be shown during the Peabody’s annual Earth Day celebration.
Visit the Peabody website for complete details.
Representatives from local environmental organizations (please see below for a complete list of organizations) will be at each of the film screenings to speak with the public about the Quinnipiac River Watershed and the work they are doing to protect its valuable natural resources.
Local environmental organizations involved in the project include Audubon Connecticut, Menunkatuck Audubon Society, Quinnipiac Valley Audubon Society, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Connecticut Fund for the Environment/Save the Sound, Quinnipiac River Watershed Association, and The Watershed Partnership.
The Quinnipiac River Fund was created “to improve the environmental quality of the Quinnipiac River and the New Haven Harbor and the watersheds of these water bodies, and otherwise to benefit the environment of these resources.” The fund was established in 1990 by a court settlement of litigation between the Connecticut Fund for the Environment, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Upjohn Company, concerning wastewater discharges from the Upjohn Company’s plant in North Haven. The Upjohn Company was required to pay $1.2 million dollars over a three year period. This money was used to establish a permanent fund. The net income from this fund is used to fund projects that will improve the quality of the Quinnipiac River Watershed.
(From the November 2011 Newsletter)
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