Guest Column: North Adams Is Leading on Climate ResponseBy Dicken Crane & Henry Art, Guest Column
04:01PM / Monday, October 07, 2024 | |
 After several years of careful planning and invitations for public involvement to create a plan that will increase the resiliency of the woodlands in the Notch Reservoir watershed, restore its ecological function and intentionally manage the area using science-based, sustainable practices, a few citizens groups are now voicing opposition to the proposed forest management. Along with the city's leaders and the conservation organizations providing technical assistance to plan this restoration work, these groups share a sincere concern for the well-being of the forests. However, one of their key objections to the proposed work is that Mother Nature can best manage the >> Read More |
North Adams Residents Seek Answers on Forest Management PlanBy Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
06:46AM / Saturday, September 14, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Officials say the forest management plan for the Notch Reservoir watershed will improve the forest's resiliency. But residents continue to be concerned about erosion, water quality and logging, and the effects on wildlife and the popular Bellows Pipe Trail. The plan includes selective and salvage harvests because of infestations of the emerald ash borer, patch cuts on the red pine plantations, and enrichment plantings of resilient species. The project aims to reinvest income into the forest and watershed, with a focus on best management practices in collaboration with Mass Audubon and the state and federal forestry >> Read More |
North Adams Sets Meeting on Notch Forestry PlanBy Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
05:29AM / Tuesday, September 10, 2024 | |
 NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The city has set a public information session about controversial plans to log parts of the Notch Reservoir watershed. The forum will take place onat City Hall. It will include representatives from Mass Audubon, New England Forestry Foundation, and the Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts, of which North Adams is a member. The city is set to implement a 2022 forest management plan around the reservoir to preserve its watershed, root out invasive species, promote sustainable growth and bring in some revenue. The 10-year plan apparently began as a way to improve culverts and stream crossings and it identifies key forest health >> Read More |
Tamarack Hollow Breaks Ground on Long-Anticipated Nature CenterBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
07:12AM / Saturday, August 31, 2024 | |
WINDSOR, Mass. — Aimee Gelinas and Daniel Cohen have led hikes and other programming at Tamarack Hollow Nature and Cultural Center for more than a decade. Now an upcoming educational center will create new opportunities to connect people with the natural world and the folklore traditions that honor it. Last week, the nonprofit held a ceremonial groundbreaking for a 900-square-foot wooden structure with a full foundation and a composting toilet. The excavation process began this week, and completion is expected in 2026. "This is such a big day for Dan and I," Gelinas said. "We have been working hard for this for 10 >> Read More |
North Adams ConCom Balks at Using Herbicides Near ReservoirBy Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
05:04AM / Tuesday, August 06, 2024 | |
 NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Nearly a dozen residents attended Monday's Conservation Commission meeting to express opposition to a forest management plan that will include logging and the use of herbicides near Notch Reservoir. "The forest that's in there now is a healthy habitat. I walk through there every day, and the trees marked to be cut down are healthy native trees," said Julie Richard. "Yes, some of them are sick and some of them die, but they're like people, they die. That doesn't mean it's not a healthy forest. ... "Who is profiting from this?" The Conservation Commission indicated agreement with most of >> Read More |
NAPS, Greenagers Launch Program at Many Forks Farm| 10:18AM / Wednesday, July 31, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND GREENAGERS, INC. LAUNCHES PROGRAM AT MANY FORKS FARM, FOSTERING YOUTH LEADERSHIP AND NAPS, Greenagers Launch Program at Many Forks Farm CLARKSBURG, Mass. This summer, Greenagers, Inc. has teamed up with Many Forks Farm and the North Adams Public Schools 21st Century Program to introduce a new program aimed at engaging students with nature while fostering leadership and environmental stewardship. At Many Forks Farm, 22 North Adams students, in grades 5 and 6, have participated in a variety of hands-on activities. Under the guidance of Sue Wells and her team, with support from Many Forks Farm's farmer Molly Comstock, participants >> Read More |
North Adams in Line for Grants to Preserve, Sustain ForestlandBy Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
07:23AM / Sunday, July 28, 2024 | |
Gary Gouldrup of New England Forestry Consultants points out areas for harvesting during a presentation to the Conservation Commission on Tuesday. the public walk through the woods has been rescheduled to Wednesday, Aug. 7, at 6 p.m. because of rain. NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The city is looking at a forest management plan around Notch Reservoir to preserve its watershed, root out invasive species, promote sustainable growth and bring in some revenue. The initiative is part of Mass Audubon's Forest Climate Resilience Program in conjunction with the Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts, of which the city is a member. Two demonstration >> Read More |
BNRC Ensures Many Forks Farm Will Continue Under New FarmerBy Kim McMann, iBerkshires correspondent
05:32AM / Monday, April 08, 2024 | |
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — Molly Comstock and Sharon Wyrrick have traveled in the same circle for years, both farming at opposite ends of Berkshire County. Around the time Wyrrick was looking for a successor after more than a decade at her farm in Clarksburg, Comstock's lease in Alford was suddenly not renewed. The future of Many Forks Farm and Colfax Farm hung in limbo. It took some time but, ultimately, with the help of the Berkshire Natural Resource Council, Wyrrick and Comstock were able to work out a plan for Many Forks Farm to continue under Comstock's ownership. Their stories are not unique; across the nation older >> Read More |
MCLA Kicks off 2024 Green Living Seminar| 04:22PM / Sunday, February 04, 2024 | |
 NORTH ADAMS, Mass.—MCLA's annual Green Living Seminar Series returned in January and continues through April presenting a series of lectures on the theme of "Greening in New England." Presentations occur every Thursday at 5 p.m. in the Feigenbaum Center for Science and Innovation (FCSI) Room 121. The series kicked off on Jan. 25 with the presentation "Advancing Sustainability in Urban Residential Neighborhoods of Massachusetts" led by Urban Foresters Samantha Eanes and Sarah Greenleaf from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) Urban and Community Forestry Greening the Gateway Cities Program. The program is >> Read More |
North Berkshire Waste District Interested In Hydrogen Facility Project By Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
02:50PM / Monday, January 22, 2024 | |
ADAMS, Mass.— Members of the Northern Berkshire Solid Waste Management District (NBSWMD) were intrigued by a plan by Local Power to work towards community-wide decarbonization through a waste hydrogen facility in Western Massachusetts. In a presentation on Jan. 11, Local Power President Paul Fenn told the district members that Local Power helps local governments set up community-wide decarbonization with a focus on localization "as a core strategy in an industry defined by centralized energy and capital sources." He said the community choice aggregation firm helped usher in community choice power supply programs to many towns and cities in Berkshire
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