ROCKINGHAM, Vt. – In May 2016, the Windham County Natural Resources Conservation District worked with the Rockingham Conservation Commission and local volunteers, including Americorps members, to plant several hundred native trees along the Saxtons River in Rockingham. The site was a FEMA buyout, a 3.4-acre parcel that had three mobile homes on it before it was flooded during Hurricane Irene in 2011. FEMA wanted to prevent rebuilding on a flood-prone site, so they bought the land from the owners and gave it to the town, with the stipulation that nothing be built there. Some of the volunteers had lost their houses during Irene. The planting was done to improve wildlife habitat, help stabilize the soil in future flooding of the site, and help discourage the growth of invasive Japanese knotweed.
This field trip, led by RCC members who were part of the 2016 effort, will revisit the site to see how the trees and knotweed have changed since the planting, and explain the dynamics of riparian restoration. The site has poison ivy, a brook, and some dense brush with thorns, so participants should wear long sleeves and pants and tall rubber boots if possible, and tick repellent. Please park along Barbers Park Road, which is just east of the field-trip site; please do not park along Route 121 (Saxtons River Road), because it has no shoulder.
If you have questions, contact Rockingham Conservation Commission member Peter Bergstrom at 802-444-1860 or rockinghamvtenergy@gmail.com.