2017 Year in Review

The BRAT's goals remain clear: to help people of all ages and walks of life connect with the Black River and, through these connections, to improve, maintain, and protect the health and integrity of the river ecologically as well as economically.

Rive...

Recently, the BRAT teamed up with the CT River Joint Commissions (Mt Ascutney River Group) to bring forth the 3rd Annual Septic Smart Workshop.  Free to all, this 2-hour event featured tons of great information by a variety of eloquent professionals to teach all the im...

A gorgeous day for capturing dragonflies and their smaller cousins, damselflies!

What lives in the Black River?  Earlier this spring, we aimed to find out!  Using the Leaf Pack Network as our guide, a 5th grade class from Union Street School placed several mesh bags full of various leaves and a rock or two (for weight) onto the bed of the Black Riv...

There are lots of positive changes bubbling just below the surface in Springfield, Vermont!  Many of these changes involve trees -- trees to enhance property values, trees in the public right-of-way and the downtown area to improve quality of life as well as scenic app...

I'm excited to announce that, thanks to funding from the State of Vermont's Watershed Grants Program, we are able to add 3 new sites to our monthly water quality monitoring program! Starting in May, the Black River Action Team will collect river water from the Winery R...

To most people, the bright, perky robin is the first sign of spring in New England. Not to a bug geek. A tiny, black, cigar-shaped body appeared on my van window this afternoon as I left the bottle redemption place here in Springfield, Vermont. A slow smile spread over...

Thanks to a Conservation Mapping Grant, I have been awarded a desktop license for ArcGIS and ArcGIS Pro from ESRI, world leaders in geographic information systems.  I have many plans for various applications of an interactive, online map of the entire watershed; imagi...

It's been an interesting journey so far, learning all I can about life below the bed of the Black River.  I've reached out to researchers and biologists, benthologists and specialists of all kinds, from all over the world.  The more questions I ask, the more enthusiast...

Inventor and pioneer Thomas Edison is credited with creating the light bulb.  He did so after countless failed attempts.  When asked if he felt discouraged, he replied, "I've not failed, I've just found 10,000 ways it won't work."  While I hope not to have to go throug...