|| The River Current || July 6, 2006 || Issue XXXI || 

The bi-monthly e-newsletter of the Charles River Watershed Association
...bringing our backyard river to your door...

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In this issue:

1)       Summer flagging program

2)       Environmental Gubernatorial Forum July 12^th

3)       Rita Barron Fellowship position available

4)       Green Budget Update

5)       Brown Bag lunch on July 11^th

6)       ACTION ALERT: MA Oceans Act

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1) CRWA’s summer water quality flagging program has begun

Beginning Fourth of July weekend, CRWA kicked off its ninth summer of notifying the public about the river’s water quality through flying color-coded flags at nine boathouses from Newton to Boston. Blue flags indicate safe boating, while red flags warn of elevated bacteria levels that may pose a health risk with river use. For more information on the flagging program, including a map of participating boathouses and recent water quality data, visit our website at http://www.crwa.org/water_quality/daily/General/programhome.html

If you would like be added to our email list to receive daily emails with information about water quality and flag colors, please send an email to crwaflaggingprogram-subscribe@lists.charlesriver.org

2) Attend the Environmental Gubernatorial Forum next week

Come find out where the candidates for governor of Massachusetts stand on important environmental issues.  Join us Wednesday, July 12, at 7pm at MIT’s Kresge Auditorium. The forum will be preceded by an Environmental Fair starting at 6pm – look for CRWA’s booth! Gabrieli, Mihos, Patrick, and Reilly have all confirmed, and Healey has been invited. 

This event is free and open to the public. For more information and directions, see our website at http://www.crwa.org/events/communitymeetings.html

3) Rita Barron Fellowship position available for September

The Rita Barron Fellowship is named in honor of the Charles River Watershed Association’s (CRWA) second Executive Director, who worked for fifteen years as a pioneering leader in river and watershed protection.  The Fellowship provides an opportunity for a qualified candidate to work in an exciting and dynamic organization under the direction of some of the country’s leading watershed scientists, working on a variety of ongoing projects including the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Project and the Restoring the Urban Water Environment Program.  Tasks may include research, writing reports, preparing publications and media materials, field work, data management and analysis, working with volunteers and constituents, making public presentations, and updating and maintaining the website. Visit our website at http://www.crwa.org/jobs.html for the full description.

4) Green Budget Update

The recently released Conference Committee budget report for FY2007 shows an increase of more than $27 million (15%) for environmental programs as compared to the 2006 budget! Many key programs now have better funding support, and we are encouraged as this is the second year in a row that the environmental budget has increased! Unfortunately, a new line item for Department of Conservation and Recreation resource management planning was not included in the report though it had been included by the Senate.

Agency comparisons:

·         Executive Office of Environmental Affairs: Increased $1.9 million (8.7%)

·         Department of Environmental Protection: Increased $5.5 million (10.4%)

·         Department of Fish and Game: Increased $1.2 million (7.3%)

·         Department of Conservation and Recreation: Increased $12.1 million (15.8%)

5) Brown Bag Lunch on Tuesday, July 11^th at 12:30pm at CRWA’s office

Join Anna Eleria, Project Manager and Engineer, and other CRWA staff to learn more about our work with target fish populations and restoring the American Shad. Please RSVP to Rebecca Scibek via email or at 781-788-0007 x200.

6) ACTION ALERT! Tell your senator to support the Massachusetts Oceans Act

After months of negotiations, the Massachusetts Oceans Act is finally on the Senate Calendar, and could be voted on at any time. This bill will put Massachusetts at the forefront of ocean management and protection among coastal states. However, if the legislation is not passed before the end of July, when the senate adjourns, we will have to start all over again negotiating the bill in January. Please call or write your state senator today and urge him/her to support the MA Oceans Act when it is brought up for a vote!

For more information on the MA Oceans Act, and details on what to tell your senator, visit Mass Audobon’s advocacy alert on the web at http://www.massaudubon.org/advocacy/roundup_archive.php?id=60