Insights from Outside
Spring Happenings at the NRC
March 2019
|
|
Mark your calendars for
Friday April 26 through Monday April 29
to j
oin the NRC and the Wellesley Conservation Council for the City Nature Challenge 2019. This bio-blitz encourages citizen scientists from all across the globe to get outside and document wildlife and vegetation in their hometowns. It's easy with the free
iNaturalist app
!
Come to the informational meeting
April 23 at 6pm in the Wakelin Room at the Wellesley Free Library
to learn more
.
Data collection teams will be coordinated at a number of Wellesley's parks and open spaces throughout the weekend of the 26th. Join in or go it alone in your neighborhood park or your own backyard.
Contact us
for more info, and stay tuned!
|
Wellesley Rain Barrel Program
|
Spring is upon us and it is the time of year to start thinking about water conservation.
The NRC
is offering residents the opportunity to purchase rain barrels at a discount through the Great American Rain Barrel Company.
- Barrels are $69
- Pick up on Saturday, May 11, from 9:00am-11:00am, at the Wellesley DPW Park and Tree Division, 30 Municipal Way, Wellesley MA 02481.
- Deadline for purchase is midnight on May 5.
Click
here
for more information.
To see a sample rain barrel stop by the NRC table at the
Wellesley STEM Expo,
April 6, 10am-2pm at the Wellesley High School
|
Girl Scouts and Tree Benefits
|
There are over 6,000 public shade trees in Wellesley. These trees are part of the town's infrastructure. The
NRC
is partnering with
Wellesley Girl Scout Troop 73505
to educate residents on the importance of trees. The Girl Scouts "One Tree Makes A Big Difference" project will be placing
"Tree Nutrition Labels"
on trees along Central Street. The labels will explain in detail the benefits each tree provides.
|
Don't Miss Dr. Spencer Meyer of the Harvard Forest!
|
The Wellesley Conservation Council proudly presents Dr. Spencer Meyer for its Spring Lecture,
COMMUNITY CONSERVATION:
Health, Climate, and Economic Benefits
Monday April 22, 7:00pm, Wakelin Room, Wellesley Free Library.
|
NRC Offering Free "Healthy Yard" Signs!
|
As part of the NRC's continued
Grow Green Wellesley
campaign,
the NRC is inviting residents who are committed to eliminating chemical fertilizers and pesticides on their property to show their pride with a new
Healthy Yard
sign this spring. We will even come install it for you.
Email
us to get yours!
|
The NRC has partnered with the Wellesley Conservation Council and the Town of Wellesley Youth Commission on their incredibly popular
Wellesley Summer EcoCamp 2019.
The week long camp gives 20 Wellesley Middle School students the chance to explore the outdoors and natural resources in town. Participants learn fishing skills, wilderness survival skills, go kayaking and swimming, and learn how to protect and preserve the natural environment in Wellesley. Click
here
for more information.
|
|
NRC and Wellesley Green Schools at Bates
|
NRC Environmental Education and Outreach Coordinator Lisa Moore, along with NRC board member Katie Griffith and
Wellesley Green Schools
member Jing Jiang, helped six classes of Bates Elementary School students plant plug trays with vegetable seeds and flowers for a refurbished vegetable and pollinator garden. Lisa taught a lesson about the seed-to-plant life cycle which had the students building a forest in the classroom. It was a huge hit! After the lesson, students observed different types of seeds and planted them in seed starter trays. The students will watch for growth in their classrooms and keep the plants watered. In a few weeks, when the plants have sprouted, Lisa, Katie, and Jing will return to the classes to help the students transplant the seedlings into their vegetable and pollinator garden.
|
Town Forest Management Plan
|
Some of you who visit the trails around Longfellow Pond may have noticed that work has started on the Wellesley Town Forest plan. The plan recommends the removal of invasive species as well as selective tree thinning in order to preserve and enhance the Town Forest and protect native bird habitat.
For more information
about the plan
click here.
|
A Fond Farewell to Natural Resources Commissioner Lise Olney
|
After over 5 years of service on the Wellesley Natural Resources Commission, Lise Olney has resigned her seat in order to continue her leadership role in Wellesley as a Selectman. The NRC would like to congratulate Lise on her election to the Board of Selectmen, and thank her for her dedicated service on the NRC, which included serving on the Unified Plan Steering Committee, raising awareness about and addressing gas leaks, helping to form the 3R Working Group, initiating the Grown Green Wellesley campaign, and spearheading the passage of the plastic bag bylaw. She will be dearly missed on the board, but we wish her every success in her new role.
|
Candidates Sought for 1-Year Appointment to the NRC
The NRC is now seeking applications from Wellesley residents to fill a one-year appointed position on the Commission. Residents may apply by submitting a letter or resume stating qualifications and reasons for desiring to serve to NRC Director Brandon Schmitt at
nrc@wellesleyma.gov
by end of day April 5, 2019. Click
here
for more information.
|
Congratulations, Wellesley!
|
The Tree City USA program has been greening up communities since 1976. It is a nation wide movement that provides the framework needed for communities to manage and expand the number of public trees.
For the 36th year, Wellesley has been named a Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation.
To receive this designation, a city must meet four standards established by the Arbor Day Foundation. The town must have a tree board or department, a public tree care ordinance, a community forest program with an annual budget of $2 per capita, as well as conduct an annual Arbor Day observance and proclamation ceremony.
|
Wellesley’s Sustainable Energy Committee (SEC) is seeking a new member who will be appointed by the Board of Selectmen (BOS) to complete a term that ends on June 30, 2020. Applicants should email a paragraph describing their interest and background to SEC Chair Laura Olton at
laura.olton@yahoo.com
or to Sustainable Energy Administrator Marybeth Martello, at
mmartello@wellesleyma.gov
before March 31.
Details about the open seat and the work of the SEC
can be found at this
link
.
|
|
Wellesley Wetlands Protection Committee Hearing:
Thursday March 28, 6:30 PM,
Kingsbury Room at the Wellesley Police Department
Upcoming NRC Meetings:
- Tuesday April 2nd: 6PM, Wellesley Middle School room 319
- Monday April 8th: 6PM, Wellesley Middle School, room 319
- Thursday April 25th: 7PM, location TBD
- Thursday May 9th: 7PM, location TBD
- Thursday May 23rd: 7PM, location TBD
Spring Cleanup around Longfellow Pond, Saturday April 13, 9:00 to 10:30 am
Come at 9:00 for Networking! Wakelin Room of the Wellesley Free Library
Featured Topic:
Electricity as a Pathway to Emissions Reduction
Special Guest Speaker:
David Farnsworth of the Regulatory Assistance Project
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
