www.wellsreserve.org/news/2004-02-09_ribbons.htm

RIBBONS OF GREEN WORKSHOP HIGHLIGHTS COASTAL WETLAND RESTORATION

WELLS, MAINE --- Ribbons of Green is an open workshop to be held March 3 at the Wells Reserve, 342 Laudholm Farm Road in Wells. Two similar sessions will present strategies for community-based restoration of coastal wetlands. The snow date is March 10.

Ribbons of Green is meant for anyone concerned about the health of coastal habitats now and in the future. It will especially benefit municipal managers and planners, public works directors, conservation commissioners, land trust members, and natural resource professionals in Southern Maine and Seacoast New Hampshire.

The day session runs from 10 am to 3 pm. The fee is $8, which includes lunch. The evening session runs from 5:30 to 8:30 pm and is free. A wetland restoration clinic is offered free to attendees of the day session only.

Registration is required. Call (207) 646-1555 and ask for Dawn Morse at ext 117 or Chris Feurt at ext 111.

Both sessions will provide participants with the knowledge and skills necessary to develop wetland restoration projects in their communities. Experts knowledgeable about wetland restoration will explain how to identify and prioritize potential restoration sites and how to design projects to improve the health of degraded wetlands.

The optional wetland restoration clinic runs from 3 to 5 pm. The clinic allows day-session participants to meet one on one with salt marsh restoration professionals to discuss their project ideas, work on grant proposals, or ask specific questions about restoration projects.

Residents of York and southern Cumberland counties registering for the day session before February 17 may nominate their communities for an on-site assessment of coastal wetlands to be conducted by the University of New England on February 18.

The workshop presenters are all actively engaged in salt marsh restoration projects along the Gulf of Maine.

Dr. Pamela Morgan, University of New England, will address the value and functions of healthy salt marshes, provide a brief historical perspective on people and marshes, describe how coastal wetlands become degraded, and explore the consequences of wetland loss and destruction.

Dr. Susan Adamowich, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, will explain how to develop a project to restore a salt marsh, from finding the marshes using GIS, ground surveys, and other resources, to evaluating and documenting the extent and sources of degradation.

Dr. Ray Konisky, Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve, will describe methods for restoring and conserving salt marshes. He will define restoration and briefly describe some restoration methods, show how to determine the best approach for a community, and reveal how to obtain technical assistance.

Lois Winter, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Gulf of Maine Program, will highlight partnerships for restoration using Scarborough Marsh as a case study.

Jon Kachmar, Gulf of Maine Council for the Marine Environment, will describe who pays for restoration and why and will detail the funding cycle.

Ribbons of Green is presented by the Coastal Training and Information Program of the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve. The Wells Reserve, with facilities at Laudholm Farm, is committed to investigating coastal environments and increasing understanding of their ecology.

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