Yellow iris (Iris pseudacorus), with its striking yellow flowers, is a beautiful plant, but also a threat to our priority natural communities and native plants. In recent years, it has gained a foothold in many Lake Champlain wetlands and floodplain forests (priority natural communities, as documented by Vermont Fish & Wildlife Natural Heritage Program).
In spring 2020, LCA adapted our FY20-21 Water Quality Stewardship Program tasks in the LaPlatte watershed region (funded by our local towns), since water quality sampling was put on hold due to COVID. We were able to create new virtual educational materials available on our website https://www.lewiscreek.org/water-quality-videos and gave several Zoom webinars (most of these are also available on our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2ZlGtaFmB55EvlZTvK3lQQ). These included longer presentations for public education, and shorter versions for boards/committees/landowners.
We moved our scorecard map that shows water quality conditions in the watershed to an online interactive format, with the help of Pam Brangan from CCRPC. This map includes additional layers that will be useful to planners and Conservation Commissions as they work to understand water quality conditions in the watershed. The three products associated with this are as follows:
· Story map (a good place to start, with links to the other products) - https://ccrpc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=91bf486743b2485bbc03c43712592e89
· Interactive map - https://map.ccrpcvt.org/LCA-SouthChittendenRiverWatch/
· Dashboard - https://ccrpc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/1b44205266d44408a9c1d079b4fc5059
Kate Kelly will be hosting a brief training on these new products on June 24 (Thursday) at 7 PM. If you’d like to attend, or have any feedback on these scorecard map products, please e-mail Kate (lewiscreekorg@gmail.com) for the Zoom link.
Our recent work on yellow iris was quoted in the recent column “The Outside Story”, printed in Northern Woodlands and other places. Check it out at https://northernwoodlands.org/outside_story/article/two-irises
Aquatic invasive plant species have been present in the Lewis Creek watershed for decades and outcompete native plants by forming dense mats of vegetation. To combat the spread of aquatic invasive species, LCA applied for and was awarded a grant from the Lake Champlain Basin Program, to continue its Boat Launch Steward Program at Bristol Pond and to establish a Boat Launch Steward Program at Monkton Pond.
Lewis Creek Association (LCA) and the Town of Hinesburg have partnered to plan for improvements in water quality in the area that drains Lyman Meadows, Hart & Mead, Lantman’s, Russell Farm, and the United Church. This project investigated potential fixes in this sub-watershed, which flows into the LaPlatte River behind the Cheeseplant.
Check out our August newsletter here, to learn more about water quality, aquatic invasive species, and cyanobacteria!
https://mailchi.mp/2dfa0809f005/new-water-quality-videos-and-cyanobacteria
If you missed our monthly newsletter sent in early July, check it out here! We touch on upcoming clean water videos to air on PBS, 2019 water quality results from our South Chittenden River Watch volunteer sampling, and a watershed note from Kate Kelly.
Lewis Creek Association, through a grant awarded by Lake Champlain Basin Program, is hosting a boat launch steward stationed at Bristol Pond this summer. In addition, surveys of aquatic invasive species are occurring in the Lewis Creek watershed, including Bristol and Monkton Ponds, and Lewis Creek itself.
In case you missed our June newsletter, you can check it out and learn more about invasive species here!
Check out our recent updates here. Amphibians are on the move (new articles and resources linked!) and LCA’s 30 year history is a great read. Our Ahead of the Storm program is featured in some new videos about clean water work, and these would be interesting to explore and learn more about while you are home. Stay healthy!
Our winter newsletter is out! Check it out here, and please subscribe under “Take Action” if you’d like to be added to our e-mail list. Thanks!
Lewis Creek Association (LCA) has been working with Milone & MacBroom, Inc. to identify important refugia locations to conserve or restore the brook trout fisheries of Lewis Creek and its tributaries. Refugia are pools of cooler water temperatures within streams, which enable brook trout and other cold water species to survive periods of higher temperatures during the summer. Refugia can be preserved by leaving logs and other structures in streams, by allowing floodplains and backwaters to exist, and by maintaining riparian shading. These refugia will become especially important with increasing temperatures due to climate change.
This website is made possible by the Lake Champlain Basin Program in partnership with NEIWPCC.
