The Brentwood Conservation Commission and Planning Board are co-hosting a free program on landscaping practices that help protect and improve water quality on Wednesday, June 8 at 7:00 PM at the Brentwood Library, 22 Dalton Road, Brentwood, N.H.
UNH Cooperative Extension's "Landscaping at the Water's Edge" program will be presented by Cathy Neal who will provide
an introduction to landscape strategies for protecting and improving water quality. In addition to discussing fertilizer and landscaping chemical use, the program will also focus on control our stormwater - "Slow it Down, Spread it out, and Soak it in!" Vegetated areas such as buffers and rain gardens are meant to enhance filtration through soils and plants that absorb water and filter out contaminants. With practices suitable for ev ery residential property, you will see that you can make a difference and still have attractive landscapes that serve an important pollution-prevention function in your watershed. A brief review of town drinking water, shoreland and wetland resources will also be presented by Truslow Resource Consulting.
As part of a Source Water Protection (SWP) grant provided by the NH Dept of Environmental Services (NHDES), the Town of Brentwood has worked with Truslow Resource Consulting LLC to update its aquifer, wetland, and shoreland protection ordinances and provide source water resource education. One of the goals of this SWP project, which started in April of 2015, was to inform decision makers and residents of the town about the characteristics and value of the town's water resources.
Dr. Cathy Neal is an Extension Professor in the Dept. of Biological Sciences at UNH, and the state specialist in Landscape Horticulture for UNH Cooperative Extension. She frequently conducts training in sustainable landscape practices that protect our soil and water resources. Current areas of special interest include rain gardens, pollinator habitat and meadow establishment strategies for New England. She is author of several fact sheets and books including Landscaping at the Waters Edge: A Manual for New Hampshire Landowners. Copies of this publication will be available for $19.95 (check or cash only, please) or download a free copy from the UNH Cooperative Extension website.
For more information about this program please contact Danna Truslow at (603) 498-2916 or [email protected].
