Charles River Watershed Association: Are we there yet?????

Friday, July 8, 2011

Are we there yet?????

Yesterday Kyra and I canoed the Charles upstream of CRCK (Charles River Canoe and Kayak) in Newton to survey docks. For this project, which several of us interns are involved in, we first went to Mass DEP in downtown Boston to look up historical and current dock permits in the computer database and in archives. For the fieldwork portion of the project, we're taking GPS points of each dock in order to match the docks with the permits; in order to see which docks have what permits or to find docks with missing permits.

We left at around 9:30 AM and were trying to make it as far upstream as possible in one day. As we were surveying our very first dock, right near CRCK, some other canoers said to us, "Taking a break already??" We ended up taking a LOT of breaks. The highlight of the day was when we finally found the dam, which meant we didn't have to paddle any further. We also found a place to stop and get air conditioning and a bathroom. I think both of us have tan/burn lines as evidence of our CRWA mettle :)

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Welcome to the Charles River Watershed Association's Intern Blog

CRWA's mission is to use science, advocacy and the law to protect, preserve and enhance the Charles River and its watershed.

One of the country's oldest watershed organizations, Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA) was formed in 1965 in response to public concern about the declining condition of the Charles. Since its earliest days of advocacy, CRWA has figured prominently in major clean-up and watershed protection efforts, working with government officials and citizen groups from 35 Massachusetts watershed towns from Hopkinton to Boston. Initiatives over the last four decades have dramatically improved the quality of water in the watershed and fundamentally changed approaches to water resource management.

While CRWA’s mission focuses on the Charles River, the implications and applicability of our science-based work go far beyond the watershed’s boundaries. Much of CRWA’s work is cutting edge and therein lies our unique strength and effectiveness: we use our scientific knowledge of the Charles to develop innovative, workable solutions to watershed problems. This knowledge allows CRWA not only to advocate persuasively for outcomes, but also to partner with government agencies and other environmental groups to protect the natural environment and to promote sustainable ecosystem policies and practices.