On Sunday, August 21 from 2:00 – 5:00 pm the Quintown Collaborative will host a free Resilience Tour to highlight completed on-the-ground projects that prepare the Quintown valley for the next flood.
In 2011 Tropical Storm Irene devastated the Quintown valley, which includes the towns of Granville, Hancock, Rochester, Stockbridge, and Pittsfield along the Upper White River. Although these communities recovered quickly and efficiently, the valley is vulnerable to future flood damages.
The Quintown Collaborative is a grassroots effort to build support for on-the-ground projects that will reduce flood damages in Quintown communities and keep the White River healthy. The Quintown Collaborative steering committee includes representatives from the White River Partnership (WRP), Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission, Towns of Hancock, Rochester & Stockbridge, Green Mountain National Forest, Vermont River Conservancy, and Vermont Water Quality Division. The High Meadows Fund is underwriting the project.
The tour will start on the Rochester Green where attendees will get on a bus to tour 3 Quintown sites: a flood-damaged, river-front property in Granville that is being converted into a town-owned park; the new Hancock town office, which was relocated from a flood-prone location into the village; and a new bridge at the site of a flood-damaged, stream-crossing culvert in Rochester.
The tour will wrap-up at the Huntington House in Rochester. Attendees will enjoy light refreshments while learning about new funding opportunities available to Quintown communities interested in implementing on-the-ground projects.
Space is limited, so RSVP today: 802-763-7733 or info[at]whiteriverpartnership.org.
For more information
To learn more visit our Quintown Collaborative page.
News
Posted: August 2, 2016 by wrp_admin
Resilience Tour will highlight Quintown projects
On Sunday, August 21 from 2:00 – 5:00 pm the Quintown Collaborative will host a free Resilience Tour to highlight completed on-the-ground projects that prepare the Quintown valley for the next flood.
In 2011 Tropical Storm Irene devastated the Quintown valley, which includes the towns of Granville, Hancock, Rochester, Stockbridge, and Pittsfield along the Upper White River. Although these communities recovered quickly and efficiently, the valley is vulnerable to future flood damages.
The Quintown Collaborative is a grassroots effort to build support for on-the-ground projects that will reduce flood damages in Quintown communities and keep the White River healthy. The Quintown Collaborative steering committee includes representatives from the White River Partnership (WRP), Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission, Towns of Hancock, Rochester & Stockbridge, Green Mountain National Forest, Vermont River Conservancy, and Vermont Water Quality Division. The High Meadows Fund is underwriting the project.
The tour will start on the Rochester Green where attendees will get on a bus to tour 3 Quintown sites: a flood-damaged, river-front property in Granville that is being converted into a town-owned park; the new Hancock town office, which was relocated from a flood-prone location into the village; and a new bridge at the site of a flood-damaged, stream-crossing culvert in Rochester.
The tour will wrap-up at the Huntington House in Rochester. Attendees will enjoy light refreshments while learning about new funding opportunities available to Quintown communities interested in implementing on-the-ground projects.
Space is limited, so RSVP today: 802-763-7733 or info[at]whiteriverpartnership.org.
For more information
To learn more visit our Quintown Collaborative page.
Posted: July 15, 2016 by wrp_admin
Volunteers improve access to White River
On July 12 a group of 10 Russian students from Project Harmony International, along with WRP, Vermont River Conservancy, and Project Harmony staff, improved public access to the White River at Clifford Park in West Hartford, VT.
In 4 hours the students built a 10-step stone staircase leading down to the river’s edge; cleared and widened a second path; and installed 2 signs to alert both park and river users about the access trails. These projects will not only improve access for users, but also reduce erosion from the park’s trails into the river.
Clifford Park is one of 3 town-owned parks maintained by the Hartford Parks & Recreation Department along the newly-formed White River Paddle Trail. The town has a long history of partnering with the WRP on river restoration projects – after Tropical Storm Irene, the WRP worked with the town, Community College of Vermont, and 150 volunteers to restore riparian vegetation along the length of the flood-damaged Clifford Park.
The White River Paddle Trail includes 30+ sites, and extends from the White River’s headwaters in Granville to its confluence with the Connecticut River in White River Junction. The impressive work done by the Project Harmony volunteers was the first official access improvement project along the White River Paddle Trail; there are several more projects planned for this summer.
For more information
Contact Jim Armbruster: jim[at]whiteriverpartnership.org or 802-763-7733.
Posted: July 1, 2016 by wrp_admin
Floodplain field conserved in Hancock
The White River Partnership (WRP), Vermont River Conservancy (VRC), and 2 private landowners have conserved 15.4 acres of floodplain along the White River in Hancock.
Tropical Storm Irene flood waters deposited large amounts of sediment on the field, which often floods during high water events. The floodplain conservation project prohibits future development and compensates the landowners for flood-related property loss on the 15.4-acre field. Allowing the river to access this critical floodplain will reduce the speed and erosive power of flood waters before they reach Hancock village.
The WRP received a Vermont Ecosystem Restoration Program (ERP) grant to work with VRC on acquiring the permanent conservation easement and to recruit volunteers to help restore 50-feet of native trees along the length of the field.
The WRP has worked with the ERP, VRC, and Vermont Land Trust to complete 7 floodplain conservation projects since 2008, conserving 107.8 acres on river-front properties in Granville, Hancock, Randolph, Rochester, and Royalton.
The WRP has received ERP funds to work with VRC and 4 private landowners to complete 2 additional floodplain protection projects in 2017: conserving 12.3 acres on the White River in Hancock and 23.2 acres on the White River in Stockbridge.
For more information
Please visit our River Corridor Protection page.