Westport
in Brief!
EverythingWestport.com
Sunday, November 06, 2011
Quick
Article Index . . .
Westport 5th Graders Explore the Dunes with WRWA.
New Focus for Westport River
Watershed Alliance.
Dedee Shattuck Gallery presents
artisans Lazes, Quinn-Munson and Remick.
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Westport
5th Graders Explore the Dunes with WRWA. EverythingWestport.com Wednesday, November 02, 2011 Submitted photo/WRWA Walking through the dunes at Cherry and As part of this field study the 5th grade students
learned about American beach grass which is an incredibly important part of
the dune habitat. Beach
grass is able to stand up to the dry, salty and windy condition of the dunes
and even thrives in hot un-shaded areas.
The grass responds to being buried by sending up a new rhizome
(underground stem). From the rhizome, a new plant begins to grow. As it
grows, the roots of the beach grass expand and trap sand; this is how the
dunes are formed. While the grass can survive in extreme weather conditions, the
students learned how it can be destroyed by walking directly on it. Once the
American beach grass starts to die off, the stability of the dune is
threatened creating blowouts (open areas of sand that are prone to erosion). The students planted 1,000 beach
grass stems in one of these eroded areas.
Over the winter the plants will slowly take root and begin to
stabilize the sandy area and restore part of the dunes that has been damaged.
This field study is a part of the Watershed Education
Program. Each year from Pre
K to High School students learn about different aspects of their watershed. The Westport River Watershed
Alliance provides the program as a compliment to the science curriculum each
grade is covering for the year. It provides a hands-on way for students to
not only learn science, but also about the habitats that are in their own
backyards. The Watershed
Education Program is supported through grants from: Helen Ellis Foundation,
Elizabeth Atwood Lawrence Trust and the Van Sloun
Foundation. WRWA’s
mission is to restore, protect, celebrate, and sustain the natural resources
of the New Focus for Westport River Watershed Alliance. EverythingWestport.com Wednesday, November 02, 2011 The
Westport River Watershed Alliance will be focusing more of its time and
resources on protecting and restoring the Westport River watershed. With a
unanimous budget vote from the board of directors, the organization is
concentrating on being the watchdog of the Westport River watershed. Executive
Director, Matt Patrick, said, “Not many people are aware of our everyday
activities on behalf of the river and its watershed, but it is quite
substantial.” Patrick went on to say that while reading through the history
of the organization he was impressed with all the work they have done and all
the work currently in progress. “We don’t even get paid for most of this work
and it would never happen without us.” When
asked for some examples, Patrick responded, “There’s the River Road project
on the upper West Branch of the River where shellfish beds have been closed
for years because of high coliform bacteria counts.
We spent about $10,000 in staff time to produce the testing and write a grant
for the Town of Westport. The town won the grant for $20,000 to design a
system to catch the road runoff before it goes into the river. The Westport
River Watershed Alliance did not get anything from the grant.” Patrick
went on to say that while education programs will continue, they will be
scaled back in proportion to the financial support that is available. The new
executive director made a point of saying, “Extensive polling of our members
showed that they want us to do more to protect the watershed. We are going to
focus our resources more intently on what people want us to do.” Patrick
gave more examples, “The town needed help with an application for a mandatory
state Municipal Separate Storm System permit that had lapsed while the town
was between town managers, so they called us and we were happy to do it.
Another Town project, where Sam Tripp Brook runs under Drift Road, was
initially rejected by the Conservation Commission and rightfully so. The new
interim Town Administrator, Jack Healey, called our staff scientists to get
their advice. These are just some of the daily occurrences that keep our
office busy.” WRWA’s
mission is to restore, protect, celebrate, and sustain the natural resources
of the Westport River and its watershed which encompasses six towns:
Dartmouth, Fall River, Freetown, and Westport in Massachusetts, and Little
Compton and Tiverton in Rhode Island. WRWA accomplishes its goal of
protecting the watershed through education, advocacy, and community outreach.
For further information on WRWA, please contact the office staff at
508.636.3016 or visit www.westportwatershed.org. Dedee Shattuck Gallery
presents artisans Lazes, Quinn-Munson and Remick. EverythingWestport.com Sunday,
November 06, 2011
Click here to view the hi-resolution photo album. Need Adobe Flash to view album? Click here!
Inset: Dedee Shattuck (right) talks with
guests at last night's opening reception. Deborah Quinn-Munson When
looking at Deborah Quinn-Munson’s paintings, a viewer can almost feel a misty
sea breeze brushing through marsh grass, or the slow undulations of ocean
swells. Quinn-Munson captures the beauty and serenity of shorelines and
seascapes with a painterly style that vibrates between photorealistic and
impressionistic.
Above, left: Deborah Quinn-Munson with her father
Edward W. Quinn.
Stephen Remick Steve
Remick’s paintings explore the beauty and magic of
landscape. Thick blankets of snow and glimmering dappled light quiet his
compositions—imbuing them with an almost mystical energy that captures our
memories of exploring snowy woodlands as children.
Above, left: Stephen Remick
(right) talks about one of his oil panels with an unidentified friend.
Richard Lazes Tactile
and dynamic, Richard lazes’ bent wood sculptures invite the viewer to circle,
observe, puzzle, and touch. Lazes uses steam to coax rich and gorgeous wood
into springing curls and languid swoops. By pulling forms from delicate and
minute sources, such as calligraphic pen marks, or the push of wind through
blades of grass, and bringing them up to human scale, Lazes accesses the
energy inherent in these easily overlooked sources of beauty.
Above, left; Rick Lazes.
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