A friend’s son recently died of COVID-19 in his 50s. Reading his obituary, there was guidance at the end of the condolences page to plant a tree as a remembrance of his life. It was a poignant reminder of mortality and an appropriate ritual of commemoration.

"Trees have been sacred since pre-Christian times"

If you walk around an old New England graveyard, you will often see the images of trees, often willows, carved into the gravestones. Trees have been sacred since pre-Christian times in Europe with old examples in almost every country of “special” old trees that are still venerated objects of remembrance.

In Boston, on the edge of Chinatown, there is a plaque honoring the “Liberty Tree” where colonists staged their first act of defiance against the Crown in 1765. The original tree was cut down by a Loyalist, Nathaniel Coffin Jr., in 1775. It was just a tree — but it was also a symbol of the awakening American desire for freedom.

Today, trees are still often a symbol of an emerging spirit. A spirit relevant on a planetary scale. A spirit of climate rescue. Many countries are engaged in planting millions of trees and racing to do other projects to stop and slowly reverse global warming and its catastrophic consequences. In 2018, China sent 60,000 soldiers into its countryside just to plant trees.

Newburyport, an environmental leader in many ways, has planted dozens of trees lately. Fortunately, there are great opportunities to expand our cities trees in keeping with our designation as Tree City USA by Arbor Day Foundation.

"Now we should think bigger."

That’s why ACES Youth Corps interns recently created a Tree Walk at the Indian Hill Reservoir to promote and educate visitors about the importance of trees. Mentored by ACES Ally Maple Crest farmer and teacher John Elwell and West Newbury Tree Commissioner Fred Chanania, Newburyport High School students Nicolas Forestell and Jackson Darling researched and developed a wonderful interpretive “Tree Walk” at the reservoir in West Newbury.

And now, ACES is joining with the Friends of Newburyport Trees (FONT), the Newburyport Tree Commission, the Newburyport Parks Department and others hoping to bring similar interpretive learning signage and pathways to public parks, streets, and open spaces in Newburyport. This artistic and scientifically vetted tree walk method will hopefully motivate more planting of trees, and add to the city’s ecotourism attractiveness. Trees are an important way to sequester carbon and help and modulate change. We need as many of them as we can plant in the city and surrounding communities.

As these organizations and others are now forming “Tree Teams,” so to speak, to refine and promulgate the idea, we have high hopes for more trees replacing those lost through disease or storm damage. Watch this space for more information as the plans roll out and we pick up shovels together.

Because we often see trees as decorative, not part of clean air and water infrastructure, we may see them as nice to have but we also need to see them as must have parts of the public domain. They provide the oxygen we breathe.

In the 1970s, a handful of business and civic leaders rose to action and saved the city from its then ruinous decay. We need a new cadre of entrepreneurs and public officials to rise and face our climate emergency and yes — plant trees, lots more trees.

Ron Martino lives in Newburyport, is an ACES adviser/mentor, and publishes “GreenTalk Daily” on Twitter @ronmartino4.

To share any comments or questions, please send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

Considering the significance of the axiom, “Think Globally, Work Locally, Act Personally,” the following are personal actions that we can take to contribute to the well-being of our environment and our future generations. They are from the book, “1,001 Ways to Save the Earth” by Joanna Yarrow.

Buy local and seasonal. Resist the supermarket all-year-round mentality and get back in tune with local, seasonal produce. You’ll reduce the amount of air freight emissions associated with your meal, and support local farmers.

Security measure monitoring. If you leave a light on when you go away, set it on a timer and use an energy efficient bulb.

Natural shine. Make your glass and windows cleaner by mixing a little white wine vinegar in water in a refillable plastic spray bottle. You’ll save money and avoid isopropyl alcohol which harms aquatic life and can adversely affect the human nervous system.

Organic gold mine. More than a third of the waste put into garbage cans or a garbage disposal is compostable organic matter. Separating out materials such as vegetable and fruit peel and cardboard packaging gives you natural fuel for a compost pile, which will generate nutrient rich matter to condition your soil and nourish your plants.

Hidden menace. The flame retardant PBDE is often used to treat furniture, carpets and clothes. Chemically known as polybrominated diphenyl ethers, PBDEs is a persistent synthetic compound that accumulates in our bodies and has been linked to hormone dysfunction. Make retailers aware of your desire to avoid this compound by asking for PBDE-free products

Does it work on bee stings? Manuka honey has great antiseptic qualities. Try using it to clean and soothe minor cuts, burns, and grazes without the need for harsh chemical creams.

"there is more to recycled products than just toilet paper"

Give a recycled gift. Give a friend something beautiful or unusual made from recycled materials, such as a piece of jewelry or clothing, to remind them that there is more to recycled products than just toilet paper.

Caring confetti. Rosebuds, petals, blossoms or biodegradable confetti made from recycled tissue paper bring magic to a just-married moment, then dissolve quickly.

Mug’s game. Keep a mug at work for all the hot or cold drinks you need to fuel your day. You’re a busy person and you deserve better than a plastic container.

Windows across the world. Next time you have a short meeting in a far-flung location, ask yourself whether you really need to be there in person. Zoom video conferencing could save you a lot of time and money and avoids environmentally damaging travel.

To share any personal stewardship actions that you believe will be helpful for positively impacting the planet’s climate or our environment’s health, send them to Susan MacPhee, an ACES advisor, at acesnewburyport@gmail.com.

This updated column was coordinated by ACES youth corps member, Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, please send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES and its Youth Leadership Initiative, visit website https://www.aces-alliance.org.

Why we started the Pollinator PowerWorks

Last winter, U.S. beekeepers lost 45% of their bee population. In the past decade, we have been losing 16% of all pollinators per year. This is due to habitat loss caused by factors such as pesticides, mining, and development. A world without pollinators certainly couldn’t sustain seven billion people, which is why we need to act now to save our food supply and the health of our ecosystem. When people are passionate about something, that’s when we really see change.

The best way to reverse what is happening is to start small 

If we can plant even just a few more gardens, then we will be saving a significant number of pollinators. So many families and residents in Newburyport and surrounding communities would benefit from joining others and planting their own pollinator gardens. They are beautiful to look at, exciting to learn about, and mesmerizing to watch, as they attract a variety of species. 

The Pollinator PowerWorks, a multi-generational group of stewards, aim to create a network of pollinator gardens throughout the Greater Newburyport area which can be connected to surrounding communities and become part of the Greater Massachusetts Network: https://www.nofamass.org/mass-pollinator-network/

You can make a difference

Plant your own garden, help others plant, or help convert a hayfield into a pollinator meadow.

 In 2022, ACES Pollinator PowerWorks would like to garner much needed attention for bees and butterflies by reaching out to the greater Newburyport community to offer help designing, planting, and powering up pollinator gardens for 10 to 15 enthusiastic individuals this spring.

We will supply the toolkit, plants, and boots on the ground to help get your garden started. We are creating a garden plan for small, medium, and large gardens to accommodate different sized plots and levels of ambition. Come join our little team and bring more butterflies and bees to your yard this summer.

If you want to help, plant a new garden, or if you already have a pollinator garden and want to add to our efforts, the best way to get started is filling out our short form:
https://forms.gle/t8muxR4X52nbX8XF6

Or contact pollinatorpowerworks@gmail.com

Pollinator PowerWorks Project plans to help design gardens.

Download small pollinator garden plan.

Download medium pollinator garden plan.

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Download large pollinator garden plan.

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Download wet pollinator garden plan.

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Download shady pollinator garden plan

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Today, ACES is proud to add our voices to those of the Massachusetts Municipal Association and environmentalists across the commonwealth in support of the revised “Better Bottle Bill” working its way through the Massachusetts Legislature.

It is one of the most consequential acts of environmentalism that can be achieved in the short term at the state level and within existing operationally ready structures.

ACES was formed as a way to amplify the great work of our climate and environmentally focused allies. Since our beginning a few years ago, we’ve come to be composed of over 40 organizations that are aligned with the purpose of the alliance. Today is a good time to lift our voices.

Referred to as the “Better Bottle Bill,” filed by Rep. Marjorie Decker and Sen. Cindy Creem, it will increase the bottle deposit from its current five cents to 10 cents and add more types of beverage containers to the program and put a deposit on water bottles, vitamin drinks, nips and bottles for other drinks that weren’t contemplated when the initial law was adopted in the early 1980s.

Why ACES is in support?

Because we are centered in Greater Newburyport on Boston’s North Shore, we are acutely aware of the unconscionable amounts of plastic and other pollution flowing down our rivers and on to our beaches. Those of us who walk our dogs or jog regularly see how much wind-blown plastics often edge our roadsides and storm drains.

That’s why ACES team members are highly motivated to speak up in strong support of the Massachusetts Legislature’s work to produce an expanded bottle bill.

This bill would result in lower costs for the residents of the city to counter the fact that waste disposal costs have skyrocketed as landfills around New England close and have stopped accepting more trash. This bill will reduce the use of fossil fuels in the production of plastic containers and help the environment. This bill will reduce trash and litter.

The next time you are out for a walk take note of how many crumpled bottles, including “nips” are strewn along our streets and caught up in fence edges. This bill reduces waste by expanding the type of containers covered by the bill and raises the fee by less than inflation since the ‘80s would justify. The existing Massachusetts law saves cities and towns on the order of $20 million in recycling costs each year, and updating the Bottle Bill promises to save municipalities even more.

Like many environmentally focused individuals and organizations across the commonwealth, we strongly urge our senators and representatives, to pass this bill.

Lobbyists are spending money to fight this idea. Legislators and opinion makers are being heavily lobbied by big beverage, liquor and plastics’ interests. They are expressing concern for their own short term financial interests in Massachusetts. But they are also being strategic nationally. They see that when we pass this bill in Massachusetts it will ripple out across the country to other states. Speaking up and urging this action now can really make an impact while helping Massachusetts lead the way on improving the environment.

ACES team members urge you to take action today

To support the passage of this important bill, ACES team members urge you to take action today. Call your city and town officials and speak up for it. Call your state representative and senator. Post your ideas on Facebook. Take and post pictures on Tic Tok or Instagram of random bottles clogging storm drains or flattened by the roadside.

Acting right now will have true impact for conserving our earth now. While 80% of containers covered by the 1980s era Bottle Bill are ultimately recycled less than 25% of beverage containers without a deposit fee are recycled. We can do better. Massachusetts must do better.

The youth of the world, like many Newburyport, Amesbury, Triton, Pentucket and River Valley Charter School students along with Greta Thunberg, have been standing witness to the need for change that is both dramatic and effective.

ACES leaders and youth believe this change will be both expansive and effective in curbing plastics pollution and increasing recycling while amplifying the great work of all ACES allies.

Please join us in speaking up to assure the passage of this bill.

The leaders and youth corps members of ACES.

To share any comments or questions, please send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

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Last Thursday, I experienced something I had never seen at Newburyport High School — it was one of those moments where I walked into an event slightly unsure and left feeling euphorically inspired. When our principal, Mr. Wulf, said we had over a 100 kids sign up for this event, I was pleasantly surprised. That is inspiring in itself, that 1 in every 8 students at Newburyport High care enough about the environment to participate during their last free study block before February break. On Thursday, Feb. 17, NHS hosted an Environmental Stewardship Open House developed by leaders of ACES and NHS.

This “environmental symposium” allowed students to voluntarily sign up to participate in this event where leaders in our town, including Mayor Sean Reardon and Superintendent Sean Gallagher, shared inspiring insights on the importance of environmental awareness and action. Students then got a chance to speak to representatives of nearly 20 different groups who were offering internships as well as project-based learning opportunities. The Environmental Club had a table as well. There were some students who came up to us saying they did not even know we had an environmental club and quickly became eager to ask what we do and how they can join. One conversation I had included a peer saying to me that we are used to a lot of false promises; this is the sad reality, but today was different. There they were, anyone you could possibly want to contact or reach out to, all standing in the same room. Offering opportunities for anything ranging from planting pollinator gardens to working on sustainable fashion in Newburyport, it was all there in one place. Students have a wide variety of interests so this aligned perfectly with the fact that we are fortunate enough to be living in a city where there are many people involved in eco-friendly efforts.

Such a collaborative approach helps to turn these so-called false promises about climate action into tangible change. There is really something for anyone who wants to be involved, and with the wide variety of initiatives and projects as seen on Thursday, it is possible to connect with opportunities that represent any passion. Not only this, but students now know that if they feel strongly about something and want to see it improved, there are other students who will support them as well as people outside of the school and in our community who will help amplify their voice. Talking with some of my peers who are also passionate about protecting our community from the inevitable effects of climate change and environmental degradation was really empowering. These conversations would not have happened if this Open House had not occurred.

Hearing key facts and figures about the effects of climate change can get really overwhelming, as Newburyport School Committee Vice-chairperson, Sarah Hall, pointed out. Students of Newburyport especially feel this pressure because we are a coastal town that is going to see the effects of sea level rise in upcoming years. Thursday’s symposium may have even eased some of this climate anxiety that many face. As a result, I believe the whole student body feels like our role in the community is valued and the stake we hold in our future is greater than ever before.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, visit www.aces-alliance.org.

NEWBURYPORT — In a coastal city like Newburyport, city officials recognize that youth engagement is critical in addressing concerns of climate change and sea level rise.

With this in mind, organizers from the Alliance of Climate and Environmental Stewards, known as ACES, worked with Newburyport Public Schools’ officials to organize the Environmental Stewardship Open House on Thursday afternoon.

More than 100 Newburyport High School students took advantage of the event, which provided them the chance to network with various local environmental groups and organizations and learn about internship and volunteer opportunities.

“If we’re going to make our city greener, it’s going to have to be a combined effort,”

Mayor Sean Reardon told students and teachers Thursday. “We can’t do this alone.”

A report released this week by researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warned that the U.S. could see up to a foot of sea level rise by 2050, Reardon noted.

“Much of my job as mayor is to plan for the future,” he said.

The city is looking at reducing both its waste and energy use, addressing effects of climate change and furthering climate resiliency efforts, Reardon said.

“By 2030, we’re aiming to reduce our energy use by 45% and our waste by 30%,” he said. “By 2050, we hope to reduce our current energy use by 85%, which is incredibly ambitious.”

Additionally, the city seeks to reduce its waste by 90% by 2050, Reardon said.

“We need you, the next generation, to start looking at these problems on an every day basis and how we can accomplish this together,” the mayor said.

Principal Andrew Wulf commended ACES for playing “a big role in engaging youth because the reality is you have a big part in what our planet and how our planet is going to function in years to come.”

He told students that the more they are inspired to take action, “the better off all of us are going to be.”

Connecting students with real world opportunities

Superintendent Sean Gallagher said this open house was just one example of how school officials are trying to connect students with real world opportunities, which will help them not only find a career path, but gain experiences in the field.

Aaron Ribaudo-Smith, the school’s college and career counselor, discussed some of the ways that students can earn academic credits for participating in a certain number of community service hours or by completing an internship.

The purpose of this open house was to show students some of the different environmental career paths available. Some examples of those paths include urban planning, environmental law, green energy technology and conservation science.

Sarah Hall, vice chair of the School Committee and an environmental educator for Mass Audubon, talked to students about how to “think globally, act personally and work locally.”

Being aware of how climate change will affect the world is the first step, but it’s the little steps that people take on their own, affecting their local community, that really matters, she explained.

Hall noted that there are plenty of opportunities to join local initiatives. Some examples include planting pollinator gardens for bees and butterflies to safely pollinate and getting involved in efforts to clean up the Merrimack River.

Olivia Barbera, a Newburyport High School student and officer with the school’s environmental club, encouraged people to consider joining and collaborating with their fellow peers on environmental efforts.

Adella Daigle, president of the environmental club, said recent efforts include working on an educational bulletin board, finishing up a sustainable cookbook and planning an outdoor garden.

Representatives also spoke from the Interact Club about other community service opportunities.

Mia Rodrigues, president of Interact Club, said the goal of the club is “to help the Greater Newburyport area and to get youth involved in our community.”

Riya and Priya Kaur said the Interact Club collaborates with the Rotary Club on service initiatives throughout the city. One example of their work is keeping up with the landscaping around the rotary near Moseley Woods.

After hearing from these speakers in the auditorium, students visited the cafeteria where more than a dozen organizations set up tables for students to network and learn about local internship and community service opportunities.

Brenda Hoover, an ACES advisor and mentor, provided information about sustainable fashion and what it means to shop ethically.

Other members of ACES offered information on waste reduction, public awareness and education and the importance of protecting natural resources.

Ellie Volckhausen of Pollinator PowerWorks Networks talked to students about the benefits of planting pollinator gardens, which provide safe harbors for bees and butterflies in the community.

Representatives from Storm Surge discussed their science-based research and educational opportunities with students.

Some of the other groups included the Newburyport Tree Coalition, Maple Crest Farms, the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, the Greater Newburyport Chamber of Commerce and the C-10 Research and Education Foundation.

Newburyport Tree Coalition

tboretti@gmail.com

Maple Crest Farms

johnelwell@verizon.net

Mass Audubon's Joppa Flats

lhutchings@massaudubon.org

Greater Newburyport Chamber of Commerce

eduggan@newburyportchamber.org

Newburyport Waste Stream Task Force

jnickodemus@comcast.net

Small Solutions Big Ideas

sandra@smallsolutionsbigideas.org

Storm Surge

stormsurge9@gmail.com

Climate Cafe

shari.melto@gmail.com

Gulf of Maine Institute Organization

iterry4@mac.com

Northeastern University

t.starr@northeastern.edu

Our past communications have focused mainly on our adult members and users and the advantages to learning and incorporating “Repair and Reuse” skills at Tinkerhaus as we contribute to reducing waste. Looking forward in 2022, we are giving focus to our youth and children’s programming and some of the big goals we have for them.

Through our shared space, equipment and materials, we have been hosting “Maker Experiences” for over three years.

"Creating something real"

During this time, we’ve noticed patterns and recurring moments that stand out. As much as children enjoy creating something decorative with paint or clay, there is a particular kind of satisfaction that comes from creating something “real.”

Whether that real thing is constructed from wood, metal or PVC or it’s cobbled together from a paper cup, a drinking straw and a rubber band, anything that embodies mechanical movement, levers, use of gravity or the harnessing of energy brings a particular feeling of delight.

As soon as one of them “gets it” and has some success with the concept, you can feel powerful determination take over the space until everyone has figured out how to properly attach parts and adjust tension. So, one of our goals for this spring is to introduce more intentional opportunities to make “real” things.

Since our maker sessions tend to be 90 minutes or longer, there is plenty of time for discussion while working. This has allowed us to gain insight into the deep interest our maker kids have in the local environment.

In between conversations about the Mandalorian and their favorite Marvel characters, they talk about the sewer discharges in the Merrimack River and beach erosion on Plum Island pretty regularly. They ask questions about waste stream and chemical pollutants.

This leads us to envisioning a pilot program where kids would make “real” things related to studying issues around the ocean and coastal ecology. There would be real research conducted to include input from experts.

Testing and Improving

There would be design trials and innovation sessions. There would be days used to bring our “real” things to the places we might use them, test them, improve them.

A small trawler net to collect water samples after storms, a SeaPerch robotic ocean floor rover, a simple water filtration system and a model of how river bed plants and marsh grass clean water are all projects in the envisioned program that would be part of this endeavor.

We believe it will be ideal to start with a simple exploration of the issues during April vacation. This would be the background for an ocean rally on Earth Day and allow for more in-depth projects available during the summer.

We have long envisioned multi-generational projects as a benefit of our all-ages membership. Needless to say, COVID-19’s impact has been significant and most of our existence as an organization has seen barely any multi-age, intergenerational exchanges. We are planning on this to change with the greater availability of vaccination and testing. We have also become more flexible about using outdoor spaces to do work that would have been confined to a classroom in the past.

We are looking forward to engaging with the greater community to gain the support that will allow us to offer these opportunities.

To be successful and to realize this vision, we will outreach for funding for materials, volunteers to help with the making and visits from people who work in both the “maker” sector and the research sector. Please share any thoughts you may have about this opportunity for positive experiential learning opportunities for all generations with me at mary@tinkerhaus.org.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

When he said “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee,” heavyweight world champion Muhammad Ali was talking about his boxing style in 1964. Pollinator PowerWorks sees 2022 as a year to garner much needed attention for butterflies and bees by planting and powering up local pollinator gardens this spring.

We are Katie Adams, Nicholas Forestell and Ellie Volckhausen and we’d like to invite you to join us in an exciting initiative sprouting up in Newburyport.

The Pollinator PowerWorks, a multi-generational group of stewards, aim to create a network of pollinator gardens throughout the Greater Newburyport area which can be connected to surrounding communities and become part of the Greater Massachusetts Network: https://www.nofamass.org/mass-pollinator-network/

By Katie Adams, Newburyport High School senior, project co-lead:

My perspective on the mission of the Pollinator PowerWorks: Last winter, U.S. beekeepers lost 45% of their bee population. In the past decade, we have been losing 16% of all pollinators per year. This is due to habitat loss caused by factors such as pesticides, mining, and development. A world without pollinators certainly couldn’t sustain seven billion people, which is why we need to act now to save our food supply and the health of our ecosystem. When people are passionate about something, that’s when we really see change.

The best way to reverse what is happening is to start small. If we can plant even just a few more gardens, then we will be saving a significant number of pollinators. So many families and residents in Newburyport would benefit from joining others and planting their own pollinator gardens. They are beautiful to look at, exciting to learn about, and mesmerizing to watch, as they attract a variety of species.

By Nicolas Forestell, Newburyport High School student, project co-lead:

My fun learning experience planting pollinator gardens: Over the past two summers, I’ve put multiple pollinator beds in my garden. I’ve enjoyed planting them because of the aesthetic and ecological benefits they provide. With pollinators in steep decline, converting lawn to native pollinator plantings helps provide them with the food and nesting sites they need. I’ve enjoyed the color they provide throughout the summer and watching them grow. But, most of all, I’ve enjoyed watching the incredibly large numbers and species of pollinators that have visited my garden. My most successful planting has been by far my three broad-leaved mountain mints ( Pycnanthemum muticum) which attracted up to 50 pollinators at a time and over 30 different species of pollinators! But it wasn’t the only plant to attract a variety of pollinators: summersweet, asters, goldenrods, butterfly milkweed, and others attracted many species of bees, wasps, and butterflies.

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By Ellie Volckhausen, advisor/mentor with full-time jobs managing a multimedia marketing and graphics arts team and being a mom:

How would you like us to help you build your own pollinator garden in your yard? In 2022, ACES Pollinator PowerWorks would like to garner much needed attention for bees and butterflies by reaching out to the greater Newburyport community to offer help designing, planting, and powering up pollinator gardens for 10 to 15 enthusiastic individuals this spring.

We will supply the toolkit, plants, and boots on the ground to help get your garden started. We are creating a garden plan for small, medium, and large gardens to accommodate different sized plots and levels of ambition. Last spring, my kids and I planted swamp milkweed and a couple other pollinators in a tiny space on our downtown Newburyport property with great results. We have about 25 square feet of full sun along our driveway and we spotted three sizable monarch caterpillars! It’s amazing what you can do with a small patch of land. Come join our little team and bring more butterflies and bees to your yard this summer.

If you want to help, plant a new garden, or if you already have a pollinator garden and want to add to our efforts, contact pollinatorpowerworks@gmail.com

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To connect with us and share comments or questions, please send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com or directly to me at kbripper@icloud.com To learn more about ACES, visit https://www.aces-alliance.org.

The Merrimack River is not only one of the region’s greatest assets, it is a barometer of the region’s environmental health. It provides a glimpse of what is happening from the White Mountains of New Hampshire to the foothills of central Massachusetts.

"Climate change is becoming more evident"

Though the river is far cleaner than it was a half century ago, the greatest environmental challenge of our time – climate change – is becoming more evident.

Toxic algae blooms are becoming common in the ponds, lakes and streams that feed into the Merrimack. They’re caused by warmer water and more nutrients, such as lawn fertilizer. These algae blooms are dangerous to humans and animals alike.

Weather patterns are changing – more droughts, punctuated by intense rainstorms. Plumes of polluted runoff enter the river after these intense storms.

Trees and undeveloped lands are our best natural allies in the battle against pollution and erosion, but they, too, are facing stress from both climate change and development.

Merrimack named one of the nation’s most endangered rivers

The U.S. Forest Service has named the Merrimack one of the nation’s most endangered rivers due to development pressures, primarily in the river’s vast New Hampshire headwaters.

New pollutants are entering the river, such as PFAS. As posted on the Environmental Protection Agency’s website, epa.gov, PFAS “are widely used, long lasting chemicals, components of which break down very slowly over time.”

Along the banks of the Merrimack in New Hampshire, hundreds of homes have PFAS levels that are so high residents can’t drink out of their own wells.

The cause is an industrial plant close to the Merrimack that has pumped PFAS residue into the air and water. In Massachusetts, the highest levels of PFAS have been found in the Shawsheen River, which feeds into the Merrimack in Lawrence.

And the Merrimack still faces a pollution problem that’s two centuries old — raw sewage.

When we get intense rainstorms, Haverhill, Lawrence, Lowell, Nashua and Manchester don’t have the capacity to handle the flow that comes into their treatment plants.

"750 million gallons of untreated sewage into the river"

In 2021, they released about 750 million gallons of untreated sewage into the river. This sewage can contain unsafe bacteria levels.

These are a few of the issues that the Merrimack faces.

The 'golden moment'

The good news is a lot of work is underway to mitigate these issues. In New Hampshire, a coalition of groups, including the Merrimack River Watershed Council, is working to conserve large swaths of land to preserve the tree buffer that protects the Merrimack, and planting new trees to replace the fallen. We are also pushing for a new initiative to study and solve the toxic algae blooms that poison New Hampshire’s lakes and waterways.

Right now, as we begin 2022, there is a golden moment to solve the Merrimack’s sewage problem.

Billions of dollars have been funneled to Massachusetts and New Hampshire for infrastructure and COVID-19 relief funding.

A portion of this money could be used to help Merrimack River cities fix their sewer systems.

Issues such as PFAS are harder to come to grips with. While it can be removed from drinking water, thus far there’s no solution for cleaning PFAS from rivers.

Many of the solutions to these problems will happen if the public gets involved.

Keep up with the news, visit websites such as the EPA’s Merrimack River site, and join environmental groups such as ACES, Storm Surge, the Merrimack River Watershed Council, and Essex County Greenbelt to name just a few of the locals.

"There is strength in numbers."

Find out what your local, state and federal elected officials are doing about these issues, and encourage them to stay on top of it. Get your friends, family and neighbors involved. There is strength in numbers.

John Macone is an Amesbury resident and the education and policy specialist at the Merrimack River Watershed Council. He can be reached at jmacone@merrimack.org.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com or directly to Bradshaw at kbripper@icloud.com To learn more about ACES, visit https://www.aces-alliance.org.

"To say that my childhood was spent outdoors is an understatement."

Rambling through Maudslay barefoot, tidepooling on Plum Island, and playing out on the street until the streetlights came on — this was my childhood.

The timelessness of childhood was fostered and captured in the moments when I could just wander and explore, and play was simply facilitated by the curiosities and surprises found in the outdoors. But, it would be untrue to say that my outdoor experiences were only guided by my two wandering feet and a curious spirit.

Like many, I looked to trusted teachers to lead the way. I became enamored with Boat Camp and the mysteries I found on the F/V Erica Lee and Merrimack River. Summer after summer went by and I always returned to Merrohawke; first as a participant, then as teen staff, and now as leadership staff.

As a young 20-something, when I wasn’t on the F/V Erica Lee, I was scuba diving and caring for reef fish at the New Orleans Aquarium or crawling around tidepools in northeast Maine looking for periwinkle snails and green crabs for my academic research.

"But why does this matter?"

My time spent outdoors as a child created an unconditional love of the outdoors. A love that is so strong I simply had to become an outdoor educator and share the many gifts of the outdoors with others.

At Merrohawke Nature School, I am able to help young children establish a respectful and deep connection with nature, be it on land or at sea.

Not only am I able to spend countless hours exploring Boxford State Forest and fishing on the F/V Erica Lee, I am also able to engage in our community to strengthen nature connection in our youths.

In the summer of 2021 alone, Merrohawke provided outdoor education for more than 500 students. If even just one of them becomes captivated by nature, then our future will be better for it.

The benefits of being outside

By creating place-based nature programs, Merrohawke helps foster a connection between our students and the environments that surround them. This connection, along with time spent outdoors, allows youths to become confident advocates for themselves and the natural world.

Time spent outdoors has also been linked to improved physical health as well as professional or academic success through enhanced skills in leadership, self-awareness, critical thinking and creativity.

The impact of a pandemic

Childhood has certainly changed in many ways. Screen time, video games, highly competitive sports and a global pandemic has shifted the way in which children experience, or don’t experience, the outdoors.

Pre-pandemic, children would only spend, on average, four to seven minutes a day engaged in unstructured outdoor play and as many as nine hours in front of an electronic screen. The timelessness of childhood has become burdened with the demands of our new world.

We are in our third COVID-19 school year, and with that continues more time spent in isolation and in front of screens. Now, more than ever, it is crucial that the children of our community step away from screens and intentionally, and thoughtfully, step into the outdoors.

A daily wander in the woods for a child may only be a wander in the woods — but it also has the potential to be the start of a meaningful and resilient relationship with nature that will serve the child, and our community, for a lifetime.

Olivia Cap is the development and community engagement manager, teacher, at Merrohawke Nature School and may be reached at olivia@merrohawke.org.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

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In the face of mounting global challenges, it can be very easy to lose hope. Just as we emerged from the trials of our collective first year battling COVID-19, we were once again thrust into another evolving challenge, this time with deviant strains, increased uncertainty about the paths we should take, and divisive disagreements about the roles we should play. Our challenges, whether they be with COVID or protecting our beloved Ipswich River, endure. And in the intense heat of challenge, our little seeds of hope may rot long before they sprout. Unless, of course, we prioritize community awareness and involvement to support them.

Hired as their 2021 Kerry Mackin Summer Educator, I spent my summer working with the Ipswich River Watershed Association to educate youth within the Ipswich River watershed on the importance of the river as well as the ways we can protect it. I loved creating lesson plans, scheduling a curriculum, and connecting with these kids who so clearly want to be stewards of our environment.

The challenges aren't going anywhere any time soon

But if there’s one thing I’ve come to realize, it’s that the challenges we face in protecting our river and our water are incredibly strong: intense droughts, excessive water use, water pollution, and habitat destruction aren’t going anywhere any time soon. 

"These kids possess a vitality stronger than any challenge we face."

But I also refuse to believe in a future in which our seeds of hope no longer exist. And after reaching over 500 kids from Lynn, Marblehead, Salem, Beverley, Danvers, North Andover, Andover, North Reading, Lynnfield, Peabody, and Lawrence, my hope for the future is more alive than ever. They are eager to learn and eager to help, and it is precisely that kind of energy that supports our little seeds of hope in the face of our greatest challenges. They deserve both our support and our attention. 

Our Ipswich River is in sore need of help.

As my time at IRWA came to a close, I found myself thoroughly tempted to focus on the challenges all of us will face in the future. Our Ipswich River, now one of the most endangered rivers in the country, is in sore need of help. But nestled in the ground, sometimes beyond our notice, are our seeds of hope. They are planted not only in the next generation of river protectors — who I’ve been so privileged to teach — but in all members of the communities that benefit from the river. We nourish them through community awareness and involvement, critical thought about the impact of our actions on today’s youth, and deep concern for the wellbeing of future generations. I firmly believe that, with help from us all, these seeds we have planted will flower into a future better than we ever could have imagined.

I can only hope that I’ve managed to inspire my students as much as they’ve inspired me. Thank you to them and thank you to IRWA for giving me this opportunity.

Here’s to a brighter future!

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

"It’s not too late."

Indeed, it never will be. Whatever you heard over the past year – as extreme weather brought a global heat wave and unprecedented wildfires burned through 1.6 million California acres and newspaper headlines declared, “Climate Change Is Here” – global warming is not binary. It is not a matter of “yes” or “no,” or the idea of “too late” or “not too late.”

Instead, it is the matter of, as we hold true to ourselves at ACES, “Think Globally, Work Locally, Act Personally.”

Going into the new year, continuing to develop and apply this mentality is going to be crucial for our planet. Because it is never too late. It is never too late to inspire change and support younger generations. We all must understand that the level we impact our planet and environment is up to us, and it always will be.

As a previous ACES intern at Newburyport High School and a current freshman studying economics at the College of William and Mary, I have learned how our economy interacts with the environment.

When human greed and emotion take over, they tend to go back and forth, tearing each other apart. Yet, when the proper balance is achieved, they continuously reinforce one another, each supporting the other in a unique way.

As an ACES Youth Corps intern from 2019-21, I had a number of rewarding experiences contributing to important environmental stewardship programs.

This made it easy to make the decision to continue working with the organization over my winter break. Dedicating time to marketing, financing and operations projects, I am working on an economic and statistical analysis of data from a survey of Merrimack River users.

In addition, I am also evaluating grant opportunities to support stewardship programs. As someone who is passionate about these subjects, not only do these activities provide exposure to what I want to study in college, but most importantly, it provides funding and support to ACES initiatives and our Youth Corps program.

Supporting the youth will be more important than ever

For the year 2022, contributing to the development of youth leaders and their work in support of our future generations will be more important than ever.

The Youth Corps provides opportunities for students to grow in many ways while working on stewardship programs. We contribute to BOD policy decisions that impact our local environment, initiate and lead projects, serve with advisers on project teams, and write op-ed columns. When asked about what they are looking forward to enhancing in 2022, three active Youth Corps members noted the following:

Andres Lang-Wu

Emmanuel College alumnus Andres Liang-Wu has been reviewing CRM (customer relationship management) systems to help the organization determine which can be used to build better and nurture relationships with constituents and manage data for the future. He has also been reviewing analytics of website activities to enhance public communication efforts about environmental stewardship programs.

Caleb Bradshaw

As the website content coordinator, Caleb Bradshaw has been advancing his writing and creative skills by helping to coordinate the continuing “Guest Opinion Series” in The Daily News of Newburyport.

He sees opportunities for many residents to contribute to the health of our area via helping with ACES programs and projects and the activities of our Allies.

He indicates it would be truly appreciated to have others engage in more initiatives, Caleb explains, such as the Spring Cleanup Campaign and the new Pollinator PowerWorks Network program in 2022. It is easy to check out opportunities on our website and send an email for a conversation. Contributing an hour a week can make a difference.

Helena Strauch

Lastly, Helena Strauch, a new ACES intern from Rowley, explains that being with ACES has given her several opportunities to expand her communication capabilities while exploring her interest in environmental stewardship.

She is interacting with Allies and community officials to contribute to a research-report project on achieving zero waste, as well as developing content for the monthly newsletter.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To connect with us and share comments or questions, please send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com or directly to me at kbripper@icloud.com To learn more about ACES, visit https://www.aces-alliance.org.

"The year 2021 will go down as a turning point in history."

The changes it has brought to civilization will be considered as significant as those of the industrial revolution and scientific discoveries of the previous century.

It’s been the year governments, corporations and scientific organizations joined together at COP26 (the climate change conference in Glasgow) to take strong action to effect progress against our climate crisis.

It has been the year in which population growth stalled worldwide and COVID-19 killed millions. It’s also the year that climate crumbled like an iceberg as sea levels increased and greenhouse gases continued to grow.

It’s been like Charles Dickens wrote in a Tale of Two Cities:

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity.”

In Massachusetts, state and local governments have worked hard, but with mixed results to cope with climate change and the pandemic. On the good news side, officials are taking steps to clean up our rivers, approve clean energy development with approval of offshore wind power and grants for solar power, home energy saving programs and better transit.

On the downside

The bureaucracy has been slow to respond to the need for more clean energy while relying on utility friendly processes that expand our reliance on natural gas by approving new pipelines for fracked gas.

Here, in the Green and Blue City of Newburyport, the record is mixed.

On the good side

We made progress on implementing our resiliency plan and the recent election will seat four city councilors with the scientific and engineering expertise and experience to understand and not deny the statistical likelihood of major storm surge and sea level rise. These will cause flooding on large portions of the city putting our water supply at risk in the coming years after a hurricane-like storm. Our new mayor, administration and City Council will need to be proactive to face that troubling possibility. These technical skills with a committed city government to foster collaborative approaches to city leadership challenges can produce great advances.

On the civic volunteer side, Women In Action Huddle, the Merrimack, Parker and Ipswich River nonprofit guardians along with Storm Surge and Greenbelt have informed and mobilized public education and action.

We need to give a shout-out to the district’s school staff and administrators, and the city and local organizations and businesses for giving young people opportunities to share their talents and passions, raise their voices, and get engaged as active citizens.

"We need local action"

But most citizens have done little yet in the face of the impending climate crisis. We need to acknowledge that the scientific evidence and the worldwide climate related experiences can no longer be ignored. We need local action that can make a positive impact on the climate and health of the environment.

The gift of this moment is that almost every responsible person in the world is challenged by some form of bewilderment about what to do about the world of climate change that confronts us daily. There can be a feeling of isolation, disconnection, depression, anxiety and extreme concern.

The collective experience of the recent coronavirus pandemic and the realities of the impact of climate change will reshape all of us and may well point our lives in new directions.

The launch of an organization that speaks to stewardship, being in service to organizations addressing the climate/environmental challenges, and facilitating collaboration aligns well with this moment.

It is fortunate that the Greater Newburyport community has individual steward leaders, a spirited number of environmental steward organizations, and a general appreciation for the importance of our natural environment combined with the awareness of the threats of climate change.

The opportunity exists to address these needs and opportunities through a commitment to collaboration. ACES, as an in-service entity, is focused on supporting collaboration and ensuring that all shareholders and residents understand this effort is for the well-being of future generations. Continuing to provide environmental stewardship and experiential learning opportunities among ACES Youth Corps members is vital for the future.

The rest of Dickens’ quote from a “Tale of Two Cities” continues: “It was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope.”

We should all put 2021 behind us and engage and mobilize to help future generations enjoy our beautiful city and world at large.

"Let’s make 2022 our spring of hope"

Art Currier and Ron Martino are co-founders of Storm Surge and ACES along with others. This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. For more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

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Because Newburyport has a long history, its attics and cellars still likely hold valuable items from the past. One might get a sampling of those treasures by walking along High St when people have put out “free” signs on old chairs and boxes of books, or tacked up "yard sale” posters on power poles. Or you can head over to Oldies off Water St and tour their informal ever changing tableau of styles.

Whether you are interested in history, home decor, or just saving money while buying local, greater Newburyport is your kind of place.

"In case you haven’t noticed, we are kind of an epicenter of antique, vintage, consignment, and thrift shops."

I’ve no statistics to quote for you but just as an example we have a few in Market Square and more at the Tannery, the Leeward Light and more on Bridge Road Salisbury. Additionally there is Mill77 on Graf Rd, the Todd Farm in Rowley and of course Amesbury has a flourish of them lately too.

In a way they form an underrated economic cluster of second hand businesses that is one more reason people like visiting the area.

Eco-tourism underpins a lot of our economy with whale and bird watchers, boaters, and beach goers coming and then spending time and money in our restaurants and shops. To those aspects of nature tourism, add historic or vintage goods shopping.

Save 15 pounds of green house gasses or more

Environmentally aware visitors know that buying locally sourced second hand items is good for the climate and that if you buy your next item of clothing from a thrift or consignment shop you’ll save over 15 pounds of green house gasses from going into the air.

This is a kind of average number calculated and quoted in various studies that sums up the avoided carbon footprint from growing the fibers or spinning them from fossil fuel, transporting the materials, making cloth and then the clothes and moving them through international supply lines to buyers at retail.

When you buy something previously owned from a cool, maybe quirky shop, you buy something that will prevent a new item from being made and its also providing locals jobs and often charitable contributions.

New generations embracing vintage clothing

Of course everyone loves a bargain at the same time. And now Gen Z is taking that approach too. A recently published statistic say that the highest propensity to seek vintage clothing is among that rising generation with 43 % of them positively inclined to seek out vintage clothing first.

If we want our area to attract a bit of a younger demographic, raising awareness up and down the Merrimack Valley of this array of places to shop will help.

Watching Travels with Rick Steves on TV, he often focuses on the great flea markets of Paris or London as excellent people watching and momento buying opportunities. Maybe a Chronical-type TV feature story could be encouraged for the Chamber of Commerce. It would support our eco-tourism profile and might bring more jobs and prosperity to the City.

Buying ‘used’ has been looked down on at times over the years as something for needy or less style conscious people. Nothing could be father from the truth.

Duchess Meghan Markel Windsor has been shopping vintage for years. The actor Emma Watson, Hermione from the Harry Potter movies, has apps for how to and where to go vintage shopping around London.

"It's now officially cool to buy ‘previously owned’"

And it offers three benefits in one: you’ll look good, save money and help the planet by preventing less carbon dioxide and methane gases going into the atmosphere.

As Autumn approaches many people are rotating their seasonal clothing. It would be a good time to cull your closet and donate or consign items you may no longer want. Then start looking in and around greater Newburyport for something secondhand and fashionably climate-friendly.

Maybe you are helping your new graduate move into a dorm room or their first apartment. Why not offer to shop with them in the area for some complimentary bit of used furniture to get them stated?

The environmental news isn’t always good lately, but you personally really can do something about it. You can buy local and buy secondhand, help the local economy and prevent more greenhouse gasses too.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

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Each day, I come to treasured land at Maple Crest Farm in West Newbury to guide young children through a four-hour day in which we focus on nature connection, the cultivation of kindness, free unstructured play, organic learning, and developing a deep reverence for Mother Earth.

"We have forgotten our place on this Earth"

Why? Because the ecosystem is crumbling around us and these children will inherit it shortly. Because children everywhere are spending more time on screens than playing as children should. Because recess is being replaced by standards and expectations that are not developmentally appropriate and because, as a species, we have forgotten our place on this Earth.

We at Heartwood Nature School aim to fix this. With three incredible teachers beside me — Christine Amor, Daniela Currie-Gutierrez, and Hana Philcrantz — we are helping children to find their place on this planet and learning together what it means to truly take care of it.

No matter the weather, we play, we explore, and we adventure. The children delight in the changing of the seasons, the splatter of mud, hearing the crunch of leaves under foot, and learning how to care for the tiniest of creatures we find in the forest.

We allow the children to see, touch, hear, smell, and even taste the delights of the woods, and in this way, they become familiar with nature — understanding how much it gives us and how it needs to be protected.

"Learning comes naturally and organically"

In their play, the kindergarten children create a store out of a fallen cedar tree, using acorns and hickory nuts for currency. They sell “tacos” made out of leaves and detritus from the forest floor. Out of this, we create a math curriculum that is relevant, developmentally appropriate, and most importantly, really interesting to them at the moment.

Over six weeks, the children solidify their understanding of numbers 1-10 and learn basic addition and subtraction skills, all while playing!

Our preschool children are no different. They bask in the sounds sticks make upon different trees, observing the bark, and grasping the idea that each tree is different. While learning about different trees, they focus on the sounds and music that nature makes, and the sounds they can create with nature items. Have you noticed that most children can identify major logos such as Nike, Target, and McDonald’s? I wonder how many children can discern a Birch from a Sugar Maple, a Shagbark Hickory from a White Pine? How have we lost this ability?

Children connecting with themselves

Even more than connecting back to nature, children at Heartwood connect to themselves. We focus intently on cultivating social emotional skills that give children the agency to solve problems, speak up for themselves, and become part of a world that treats everyone the way they deserve to be treated. We listen to children, understanding what their bodies need — time for unstructured play, grownups willing to entertain questions and curiosity outside of the bounds of “curriculum” and “standards,” and the ability to engage in adventures that include getting wet, climbing tall trees, jumping off of rocks, laying in mud, and rolling in snow.

This is how we get back to the wild Earth. This is how we get back to our roots.

Our culture places such reverence on growth, productivity, and material possessions, often at the expense of the trees, the water, the air, and our fellow creatures. At Heartwood, we focus on the heart of things, the foundation of our very existence — love, connection, and our reciprocal relationship with the planet that sustains us.

Martha Burke is the owner of Heartwood Nature School at Maple Crest Farm in West Newbury. For more visit www.heartwoodnatureschool.com.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

"Every person, young and old, can make a difference"

Think you can’t make a difference on climate change? Think again! Every person, young and old, can make a difference on climate change, not just on personal energy use, but also on legislation. We need both the personal and political to reduce emissions to acceptable levels.

Youths Making a Difference

My focus is on state-level carbon pricing legislation. Most recently, I was on the bill-writing group for the Green Future Act (H.3292), a carbon pricing bill currently in the Massachusetts House. At every step in the lobbying process, youths have been involved. Youths make a difference! Here are some of my experiences:

At one of our Zoom meetings for Citizens Climate Lobby, I asked if anyone was interested in doing research.

Vanessa (age 17 or 18) sent a note in the chat saying she would like to do it. She was fantastic! I sent her questions about many topics, including carbon pricing in British Columbia, gas tax in Massachusetts in 2013, gas tax in New Hampshire, and background on the chair of the key committee in the House.

She was thorough and provided sources with the information. In lobbying, knowledge is power. Vanessa made us more powerful.

Several high school students organized and ran a lobby meeting with our state representative, Jerry Parisella, about carbon pricing. I was on the Zoom call, but Julia did the organizing and two other students participated.

We met with state Sen. Joan Lovely about carbon pricing with three young people on the call. Sen. Lovely said she wanted to read the bill and would consider co-sponsoring it.

There were about 7,000 people at a youth rally in Boston two years ago. I was signing young people up to a petition in favor of a carbon pricing bill. Over and over, students asked, “Is it OK for me to sign? I’m only 14 (or 12 or 15).” Of course, they should sign!

"It is important to be bold"

Everyone knows, including political leaders, that climate change will have the greatest impact on young people. One thing I’ve learned as a climate activist is that it is important to be bold. People I thought might be hostile ended up asking more about climate change, and some of them joined climate change groups.

These are just some of the interactions I’ve experienced with young people in the last two years. Representatives have repeatedly said they want to hear from young people. One representative, who was the chair of the key committee for climate legislation, said in a meeting with high school students that he wanted to meet them again.

"Climate legislation is necessary to save civilization"

So, continue to cut emissions in your personal life, in your family, in your school and in your community. But we also need every person, young and old, to be involved at the state or national level because climate legislation is necessary to save civilization from the ravages of climate change!

If nothing else, you could call your state representative and senator and ask them to support the Green Future Act. Email me for more information: kevin@mr-o.net

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

Stewardship is one of the most important concepts we can define. According to Merriam-Webster, stewardship is “the conducting, supervising, or managing of something; especially the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care.”

At Mass Audubon’s Joppa Flats in Newburyport, nine summer interns brought this definition to life every day through public interpretation, animal care and conservation efforts.

"Joppa is here to teach!"

Intern Jake Greco said, “I have learned that Joppa Flats has the power to give people of all ages new knowledge. There is always more to learn, and Joppa is here to teach!” Jake is one of five animal husbandry interns who manage the daily care, feeding and maintenance for a wide variety of insects, pond life and marine life on-site.

Some days, our interns were feeding fruit flies to tiny American toadlets and the next day, they were counting newly hatched horseshoe crabs!

This is not a behind-the-scenes, sitting-on-a-lab-stool kind of job.

Interns are always interacting with participants during programs, answering questions about our butterfly gardens, or offering advice to visiting birders on where the “hot spots” on Plum Island are.

We also train our interns to share information about local conservation efforts, climate action and smart environmental practices for families to try at home like partial mowing, or installing a rain barrel or raising native milkweed for monarch butterflies.

"It’s inspiring, humbling and important work”

Intern Rowan Mulder said, “My time here at Joppa Flats has helped kindle my passion for conservation and ecology not just by learning about the [effects] that climate change has on the environment, but also by fostering encounters with some of the creatures that are being put at risk because of our actions. Pepper weed removal, talking about the disappearing habitat of the salt marsh sparrow and the challenges of coastal erosion and sea level rise on Plum Island are just some of the conservation themes that we bring to our programs. It’s inspiring, humbling and important work.”

There are also interns who focused more on public interpretation and education. These four interns initiated some new public programs this summer about birding and our local biodiversity that we can offer at no charge.

The objective was to offer live animal programs to families not just in the Newburyport area, but also to gateway cities and towns nearby.

In six weeks, we welcomed families from 22 cities to enjoy an outdoor program with live animals and a chance to learn about stewardship firsthand through the interpretation that our interns provide. The best part is the interns ran these programs with support from education volunteers and Joppa Flats teen naturalists on a weekly basis.

“It’s so amazing to watch kids of all ages interact with our creatures and learn about native wildlife,” said animal husbandry intern Gillian Audier. Some interns, like Gillian, also challenged themselves by participating in programs where they got to share their knowledge with youth and families at the pond, the tide pools, and in the riverside yard at Joppa Flats.

By sharing experiences, our interns had the chance to bring our Meet Beach Creatures programs to some youth groups from Lawrence Public Schools as part of the Lawrence summer program.

Many of these young participants were seeing tide pool creatures or holding a live crab for the first time. A favorite comment of mine came from a 9-year-old who said, “At first, I was really afraid to touch this stuff. Now, I am kind of in love with them!”

Another child asked if we could come back again and a third with a huge grin on her face said, “I’m 12! When are you gonna hire me?”

It is encounters like these where our youths can find joy, wonder, confidence and concern about the environment that really shows that what our interns are doing matters.

This is just one example of how our interns are connecting to hundreds of kids and their parents and where the positive effects of fostering environmental stewardship happens on a daily basis.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

"I'm feeling somewhat optimistic about COP26"

Despite the fact that thousands of young people led by Greta Thunberg and others protesting what they see as inadequate response by the conference, I’m feeling somewhat optimistic about COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland.

I’m most encouraged by corporate and financial firm pledges. I know a lot of it is greenwashing — companies talking green but working brown. But the number of pledges is big; lots of it will stick and others will follow.

COP26 has also brought new commitments on phasing out coal, restricting public oil and gas finance, fighting deforestation and much more. At least 450 global businesses promised to reduce their carbon footprints.

The Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, a network of banks and other investors, has pledged more than $130 trillion of capital and is “committed to transforming the economy for net zero.” Businesses will be rewarded or punished financially based on how good they are as climate citizens.

On Tuesday, global leaders announced that more than 100 countries had signed a pledge to reduce their methane emissions 30% by 2030.

Locally, there are lots of natural gas leaks in Newburyport, Salem, Haverhill and Amesbury. They are not as bad as what caused the explosions in Lawrence, but we pay for all that lost gas and we should demand the utilities clean it up.

A drop in demand for oil and gas will reshape the geopolitical landscape, and countries and companies that are slow to reduce fossil fuel use are likely to suffer. Early movers toward renewable sources will profit. Because it will reduce our dependence of Middle East oil, it will reduce our need to engage there militarily.

"How can we work locally and act personally?"

With all this “thinking globally” at COP26, what about completing the axiom? How can we work locally and act personally to confront the climate emergency?

Newburyport has been working for years building resiliency to climate change. We are designated a Massachusetts ”Green Community” as are local neighbor towns. Donna Holaday and city councils have done a lot of good things for the environment, from recycling to solar power, to coastal armoring. But our wider community can do more.

Buses are a great climate solution vs. auto use and the Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority could raise its aspirations for increased ridership and innovative route flexibility. MassPort needs to open bus routes from here to Logan Airport. Maybe, a Logan Express/downtown express depot from Newburyport’s bus lot on Interstate 95 can be started.

Newburyport loves its trees and trees sequester CO2. But why not partner with businesses to plant more?

There could be hundreds more in the Lord Timothy Dexter Business Park. Maybe our Tree Commission and the Friends of Newburyport Trees can call for volunteers and find grants to boost the number of tree plantings on Arbor Day, April 29.

Maybe, the student leaders of the Tree Walk program at Maple Crest Farm in West Newbury can extend the model to Newburyport’s parks and streets.

Climate change has affected the global food system. It won’t recover overnight even with good COP26 news. We need to grow more food locally, designate more community garden space, and encourage year-round vertical farming under solar grow lights in old factories along the Merrimack. Consider more Essex County oyster farming.

With a new mayor who has educational chops, and several new School Committee and City Council members who are environmentalists, maybe we can find a way to transition to electric school buses. The solar farm to be built on our old landfill could produce the energy for them.

"Let’s make more locally"

Global supply chains for manufactured goods have proven fragile. Let’s make more locally. Shoes, clothing and furniture have deep roots in our region.

Seek out ways to make more here and not “over there.” Start with reuse, repair and repurposing, and create new small-business incubators for more businesses like Mill 77 and Design of Mine.

The world is big and Greater Newburyport and New England are much smaller. But with a strong wind in our sails from COP26 and U.S. infrastructure funding, everyone can help make climate care a reality.

We can't just talk. We all need to do our parts.

We all should feel energized by the big inflection point in human history that COP26 will come to represent. But we can’t just talk environmentalism. We all need to do each of our parts if it’s to be made real.

Pick something you love, whether it’s gardening with bees and butterflies in mind or making preserves like your granny did. Go thrifting for your next item of clothing. It’s a good way to help the environment. Refinish some used furniture for resale. Join the Tinkerhaus on Graf Road and learn how to make things.

And let’s all be grateful for COP26. It’s an event that will still be written in the history books when your grandkids have grandkids.

Ron Martino lives in Newburyport. He is an adviser and mentor to www.aces-alliance.org and publishes “GreenTalk Daily” on Twitter @ronmartino4.

Send comments or questions to acesnewburyport@gmail.com.

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NEWBURYPORT — An ecobrick collection bin recently placed outside the gate of the Colby Farm Lane Recycling Center encourages people to create alternative building materials using soft plastics that would otherwise end up in landfills or burned in a trash incinerator.

Nathan Gray, the organizer behind this collection bin, is the founder of House Factory Foundation, a nonprofit seeking to change the housing market with environmentally efficient and affordable housing made from reclaimed materials.

To make an ecobrick, reuse a 16- to-20-ounce plastic bottle, approximately seven to nine inches tall, and stuff it with clean, dry soft plastics. Make sure the bottle is also clean and dry before stuffing it.

Soft plastics include single-use shopping bags, plastic film, straws, cellophane, candy wrappers, chip bags and other packaging.

To fit these plastics into the bottle, clean up any food residue and then cut them up into smaller pieces and stuff them into the bottle. Use a stick around the sides and in the middle to stuff the bottle as tightly as possible.

The ecobrick should be compacted tight like a brick and weigh at least five ounces before it can be donated. Loose plastics are not accepted at these bins; only completed ecobricks.

Once the ecobrick has been filled, screw the cap back on and drop it off at the ecobrick collection bin at 23 Colby Farm Lane.

Other collection bins are located at Unpacked Living, 156 Cabot St., Beverly; Lynn Department of Public Works, 250 Commercial St., Lynn; Marblehead Transfer Station, 5 Woodfin Terrace, Marblehead; MacRae’s Sustainable Goods, 108 Washington St., Marblehead; Salem High School, 77 Wilson St., Salem; and Gray Homestead and Education Center, 345 Dryhill Road, Barrington, New Hampshire.

According to facts written on the collection bin, “Eight million tons of plastic waste enters the ocean from coastal nations each year,” “Plastic litter takes at least 400 years to break down,” and “91% of plastic is not recycled and ends up in landfills or incinerators.”

Though Gray has found ways to work with the single-use plastic problem, he advocates for people to reduce their plastic use in general.

For Halloween, he recommends families make their own costumes or buy secondhand; compost their pumpkins and plant seeds in their gardens; and seek both decorations and trick-or-treat options that are plastic-free.

To learn more about how ecobricks are used or to watch a video on how to make them, visit https://homefactory.us.

Staff reporter Heather Alterisio can be reached via email at halterisio@newburyportnews.com or by phone at 978-961-3149. Follow her on Twitter @HeathAlt.

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Actively involving students in an environmental project is rewarding on many levels.

The Indian Hill Reservoir Tree Walk in West Newbury, which was created by Newburyport High School students Jackson Darling and Nicolas Forestell, interns for Maple Crest Farms, is an example.

With my guidance, the two students identified and named 16 trees around the Indian Hill Reservoir roadway. While the Indian Hill Reservoir is in West Newbury, it is owned and managed by Newburyport.

Interns identified each of the trees and developed plaques

Nicolas and Jackson researched and identified each of the trees and then developed educational plaques for each of the tree species, which included the English and Latin names of the trees, a picture of the leaf or needle, and an informative writeup of the tree’s history, its impact on the environment, and its use in our lives.

For example, the write-up on a shagbark hickory (Carya ovata) included that “the wood is famous for its tough, yet flexible qualities and is used to make carriage wheels, tool handles, and sporting equipment. The savory and sweet nuts are also best tasting of any Hickory and were used extensively by Native Americans.”

The write-up for a black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) says it was used to build the first homes at Jamestown and the American ships at the Battle of Plattsburg Bay during the War of 1812. It is said the durable wood helped the ships hold up against the British cannons – helping the Americans win the battle.

In yet another tree description, the quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) write-up states that it is the most wide-ranging tree in North America. It reproduces by cloning and one clone in Utah is over 80,000 years old, covering 100 acres.

These are just a few of the research and write-ups that Jackson and Nicolas created. Even the name of the project, the Indian Hill Reservoir Tree Walk, was suggested by Nicolas.

"Their work is most impressive and environmentally relevant"

Their work is most impressive and environmentally relevant. In all my years in education observing student work, these two students are at the top of the list! They even used the NHS school colors, crimson and old gold, for the borders of the signs.

We were fortunate also to have Coastal SpeedPro Imaging, a sign company in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, generously volunteer to produce the signs for no charge. The signs are printed on one-eighth-inch-thick aluminum composite material that has a PVC plastic material core.

"reinforces a critical message about the importance of trees"

The stewardship work by Jackson and Nicolas reinforces a critical message about the importance of trees in our world. In fact, trees are sometimes called the lungs of the Earth because they absorb pollutants through their leaves.

Trees contribute to our environment by providing the oxygen we need to live, improving air quality, climate amelioration, conserving water, preserving soil and supporting wildlife. Without trees, we would not be here.

If you have not walked the Indian Hill Reservoir Tree Walk yet, we encourage you to do so and enjoy the knowledge gained from the signage. There is parking for it right next to the Reservoir roadway on Moulton Street.

It is ACES’ desire to have this project be a model for others, which will educate more citizens and visitors about the importance of trees. Our youths are ready for the next project.

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

John Elwell is owner of Maple Crest Farm in West Newbury. He can be contacted at johnelwell@verizon.net.

NEWBURYPORT — Calling all users of the Merrimack River: The Alliance of Climate and Environmental Stewards needs help gathering different perspectives from those who frequent the watershed for recreational and commercial purposes.

Rick Jacques, founder of EbbTide Rowing in Haverhill and a member of ACES, has been one of the key people working to distribute the survey.

The alliance has received about 270 responses since launching the survey in late June. About a third of those responses have come from Newburyport residents, but the group wants to reach as many river users between New Hampshire and Massachusetts as possible.

This is not limited to boaters, swimmers, kayakers and marina residents.

It also means bird-watchers, landowners and the more than 500,000 people in Lowell, Methuen, Andover, Tewksbury and Lawrence who get their drinking water from the river.

The survey looks to gain insight on how people use the river, what they see through their unique perspectives, and what they understand about combined sewage overflows.

As Jacques explains, it’s pretty common to see brown rings around the sides of boats, “especially on a tidal river like ours where the levels are going up and down and up and down, picking up natural debris or particles from vegetation, animal life and all the things that are normal to see in a river.”

Though the river has visible signs of pollution, it’s actually the bacteria that a person cannot see that is of real concern, he said.

“What makes the river dirty, you actually can’t see it,” Jacques said.

“How many people really even know it’s dirty?” he said, explaining the goals of the survey. “How many people know that it rained like crazy last night and how many hundreds of millions of gallons of sewage flowed from Manchester, (New Hampshire) into the river? How many from Lawrence, Lowell and Haverhill?”

Though there are plenty of other pollutants such as microplastics, chemicals and storm runoff that are of concern, Jacques believes CSOs provide a starting point for addressing the health of the Merrimack.

CSOs occur when there is a power outage or too much rain for a community’s sewage system to handle, discharging untreated sewage into the water.

Though there is increasing awareness of this problem, there are still many who do not realize that it might be best to stay out of the river after a heavy rainstorm.

With this survey, ACES hopes to gain an understanding of what people are actually seeing and experiencing when they use the river, whether it is someone who paddles in the Merrimack every day or someone who just happens to live nearby and may have questions about their drinking water.

In 2019, ACES conducted a pilot survey of adult masters-level rowers using the Merrimack between Newburyport and Manchester.

This provided the alliance with useful information about what rowers know about the Merrimack, but this new survey hopes to garner a much wider reach.

Anyone who can help ACES reach a broader audience is encouraged to reach out. The alliance is looking for ways to connect with as many Merrimack users as possible.

In 2016, the American Rivers Association listed the Merrimack as one of the country’s 10 most endangered rivers. The U.S. Forest Service has ranked the watershed as the most threatened due to forestlands development, the fourth-most threatened due to water quality issues, and the seventh due to loss of habitat for at-risk species.

To learn more or to participate in this 10- to 15-minute survey, visit www.aces-alliance.org/post/merrimack-river-users-survey.

Staff reporter Heather Alterisio can be reached via email at halterisio@newburyportnews.com or by phone at 978-961-3149. Follow her on Twitter @HeathAlt.

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No one knows what this decade will bring. But to quote a Climate Cafe Alum, we are “bravely taking the driver’s seat in our own future.”   Young people are making their voices heard about the state of the environment, they are building bridges across generational and political divides and they are shaping the future through dialogue.

For over five years, a dedicated group of area high school and college students have also been doing their part by hosting Climate Cafes. Each month they invite community members to join in “conversations that matter” about how we can shape the future of the Great Marsh.  At these student-led Cafes we talk about the challenges of protecting our watersheds and saltmarshes, preparing for extreme weather and sea level rise, and our responsibilities as ethical, well-informed citizen-leaders. 

Unlike typical conversations that often degenerate into serial monologues, Climate Cafes follow a more structured format that ensures time for everyone to share their personal perspective, time to listen respectfully to different points of view, and time to “think together” in new ways.  

This year our Cafes will explore issues related to water and weather.  Each student Host, trained in the “art of hosting,” will guide a small group of adults and/or peers through a series of increasingly challenging questions which explore these issues through different lenses. 

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To surface personal perspectives, the first round of conversations will invite guests to share a personal experience or an initial opinion about the topic at hand: Tell us about a personal experience you had during a severe storm or a severe drought.  What steps have you taken to reduce your water footprint? In your opinion, what are the consequences of community development on water security?

The second round of conversations will move on to how well we understand our local ecosystem and the ways in which everything is interconnected: Where does your drinking water come from? How will higher tides impact the way we live?  What will be our greatest need for water in the future? 

And if time allows, we will tackle some deeper questions: To whom does water belong?  Do rivers have rights?   What would a fair water management policy look like?  Why should I care about future generations?

But the value of Cafe conversations is much greater than just exploring important issues or learning dialogue skills. It is also about building relationships with others, shifting our mindsets and expanding our own worldviews.

Cafes also give students a public platform on which to share their perspectives. Students say “it’s great to finally be taken seriously by adults,” and adults say these passionate young people “give them hope for the future.”  It’s a good place to begin.

Thanks to the ongoing support of many Great Marsh organizations, especially the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge and the Ipswich River Watershed Association, Climate Cafes are making steady progress toward nurturing a culture of dialogue in our communities. Working with local environmental leaders also gives students a better understanding of the challenges we face and a chance to practice the social and communication skills they will need to navigate the future. 

We encourage you to participate in upcoming Climate Cafes.  Every Cafe is an exciting, unrehearsed adventure! It will give you an opportunity to get to know these amazing students, to help them develop a love for this special place and a concern for others with whom they share it.

Our most recent Cafe was a conversation among a few Cafe Aums, area educators and community members to explore new ways to engage youth in civic life.  It was our first “in person” Cafe in a long time and it was wonderful to get together, especially since we may have to be virtual again this fall. 

Stay tuned for our next Cafe and check out our website, Climate-Cafe.org to learn more about who we are and what we're up to! 

For Information about hosting a Climate Cafe in your community or classroom, please contact: Shari Melto, s.melto@nautilusleader.com 

This column was coordinated by ACES Youth Corps member Caleb Bradshaw. To share any comments or questions, send an email to acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to www.aces-alliance.org.

In a time where the current and future generations are being called to properly address changing climate, environmental education has become more crucial than ever. Several community members have taken it upon themselves to spread environmental education using a variety of media. The artwork displayed at the PEG Upsurge exhibition, the Remembrance of Climate Futures plaques, and the Indian Hill Reservoir Tree Walk are all forms of creative communication about environmental challenges. They foster environmental stewardship through a creative lens. These presentations are meant to inspire reflection, interpretation, and action.

A Gallery of Esteemed Eco-Art

Paula Estey uses her gallery in downtown Newburyport to promote and demonstrate artists' passion for environmental activism. Her gallery has evolved with her values as an activist since its opening in 2014. Paula is currently holding an exhibition titled Upsurge: The Environmental Show. a “multi-media exhibition by New England artists about Nature’s impermanence” until Aug. 5. The artists’ work promotes environmental activism through their assemblages and even the elements used in their creations. Each artist has a unique approach to spreading awareness and education.

Artwork of the Wrack Line

Rebecca McGee Tuck, an artist and collector of “lost objects”, spends most of her days gathering what washes up on the wrack line at Humarock beach. Most of her collections are used in her art, what cannot be used is recycled or disposed of. This typically consists of marine industry products such as bait bags, lobster traps, clothes, and balloons of which she weaves together. Rebecca says, “Working with all the stuff can be overwhelming at times because there is exponentially more.” Rebecca intends for her work to spread hope and educate people about the small actions they can take to help the environment.

The Mammoth Impact of Microscopic Waste

Michelle Lougee is a sculptor who strives to spread awareness about how much plastic we use becomes waste. Taking notice of how much individuals contribute to this waste may inspire them to reconsider their choices as consumers. Her work in the PEG exhibition portrays microscopic marine phytoplankton at enlarged scale, crocheted with plastic material such as newspaper bags, that are spun into small fibers. Michelle hopes for viewers to realize how small plastic particles can harm these organisms and make people more aware of the consequences for what we release into oceans.

Resplendent Collages from Roadside Trash

Anne Cummings is a steward of nature who embraces ethical intent down to the materials she uses in her work. Her collages are completely composed of recycled waste, or “recycled media,” and plant-based materials. Hoping to send an environmental statement through her work. Her Climate Change Series displayed at the PEG represents “a visual manifestation of the changes in the climate.” Anne seeks for viewers to acknowledge their own path of discovery and meaning while viewing the collages. She sees her work as an eco-artist as “an act of hope and giving.”

A Message from the Future

Thomas Starr, a professor of art and design at Northeastern University, is promoting environmental awareness through another creative lens. His Remembrance of Climate Futures plaques will make their way around 10 Essex County communities. His most recent installments are on the revetment that recently completed the waterfront section on the Clipper City Rail Trail in Newburyport in June. These are not the traditional plaques one would expect to come across because they are descriptions from the future climatic state with a QR scan code feature that leads viewers to a site with more comprehensive information about how we must adapt for the future. The plaques encourage viewers to acknowledge the reality of the climate future of that area, which will inspire people to take action.

Educational Signs That Come with Roots

The Indian Hill Reservoir Tree Walk in West Newbury was created by Newburyport High School students Nicolas Forestell and Jackson Darling, interns for ACES. John Elwell, a retired teacher and principal who now spends his days at the family’s Maple Crest Farm where the Tree Walk is located, supervised the internship project. The plaques honor nature and educate the viewer about 16 different tree species. Nicholas and Jackson hope to replicate this educational program in other locations such as parks, trails, and woodlands in the area to continue spreading awareness.

Ellie Kerns is a student at Amherst College with a prospective Environmental Studies and Economics major and a member of the ACES Youth Corps. As an intern she is working on the Remembrance of Climate Futures Project and contributing to the educational efforts of the organization.

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Sitting recently with my friend Art from the ACES Alliance (www.aces-alliance.org) in The Coffee Factory, we spoke of how good the ideas of reuse and repurpose were for the environment.

As we chatted, it clearly came into focus. Newburyport is an epicenter of that complex of culture and business that really encourages these two important components for any environmental strategies for the future.

As we enumerated places like the Leeward Light, Oldies and Mill 77, we continued to add up all the places that contribute to this ethic of reuse.

We listed off places and habits such as Todd Farm Flea Market, the Green Plum on State, the city’s own robust recycling efforts, and the way people just leave their good stuff streetside and how quickly there are eager pickers.

The more we talked, the more we agreed that a good map of such places and with the help of the Chamber of Commerce, might be able to promote both Newburyport businesses while promoting ecotourism, something that is good for the planet.

We parted, agreeing to revisit the topic at a later date.

Two weeks later, in the same coffee shop, two fortysomething women are looking for a place to sit, and since I’m about to leave, I offer them the table. Then, I said, "Do you mind if I ask a question about something a few of us were working on?”

They said, "Of course not" and I proceeded to describe the idea of making a map of vintage, antiques, thrift stores and consignment shops.

With a burst of laughter, they almost simultaneously said, “You need an app, not a map.” Then, they waved their smartphones and said that when they go anywhere with friends or family, they always ask their phones for suggestions.

The more we spoke, the more they loved the idea and made one more suggestion: To add local farm stands to the app, since those things went together in their minds as a weekend outing cluster of things they like to do.

An app, not a map, was needed.

Three weeks later, walking with my wife around downtown, we headed to The Tannery to use the ATM and my wife swings into Gentry’s, the women's fashion consignment shop, to look around.

At that point, I ask the young saleswoman, who turns out to be an owner of the shop, about the app vs. map idea. She says, of course, you need an app and it needs to accommodate every store’s social media handles whether on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, etc.

As if on cue, just as she says TikTok, three high school-age women walk into the shop with serious searching and shopping intent. The shopkeeper says, "These young kids are all into 'thrifting' as a way to be fashionable yet climate friendly. I see a lot of them in here."

It seems they care about the fabric used, too. Natural ones like linen, cotton and silk are preferred — not petroleum-based synthetics.

In the face of the dramatic and urgent climate crisis, it's not just the governmental top of the food chain that we need doing the right thing. We need all levels of our American civilization to help with the environment. And if looking good and helping a business prosper are a part of that, cool!

If that takes a new app to help catalyze and support good habits of thrift and style, great.

Maybe, as a younger generation rises at the Newburyport Chamber of Commerce & Industry, they can bring more people into town with a “vintage, antique, consignment, thrifting" app-map or map-app or M(App)?

Ron Martino lives in Newburyport and publishes "GreenTalkDaily" on Twitter @ronmartino4.

LAWRENCE — The Merrimack River Watershed Council has released a new video and web page explaining why sewage is frequently discharged into the Merrimack, and what is being done to help solve the problem.

The eight-minute “explainer” video, narrated by council environmental science fellow Jose Tapia, looks at the causes of the Merrimack’s sewage discharges — known as combined sewer overflows or CSOs for short, according to a press release.

The video includes interviews with regional leaders who are trying to address the problem, as well as tips on what concerned residents can do to help. It can be viewed by subscribing to the council’s YouTube account, or by going to the following link: youtube.com/watch?v=hS6ACfygDU4&t= 152s.

The video was produced by Elevated Thought, a Lawrence-based art and social justice nonprofit, and is the first to specifically address CSOs in the Merrimack River.

The video is paired with the release of a new educational webpage (https://merrimack.org/cso) that further highlights important data points and describes pathways to solving the problem.

CSOs have become a frequent news headline in the Merrimack Valley, and have fueled much discussion and debate on social media platforms.

“We field many questions from the public about sewage overflows, said John Macone, the council’s policy and outreach specialist, in the release.

“There is a lot of concern and outrage over this problem, but there are also a lot of misunderstandings about the facts of CSOs,” he added. “This video is intended to give people an accurate overview of the CSO problem in the Merrimack.”

CSOs often occur during moderate to heavy rainstorms. They happen in five of the Merrimack Valley’s cities — Haverhill, Lawrence, Lowell, Nashua and Manchester — where street drains are connected to sewer lines.

During rainstorms, too much water enters sewer lines, so excess quantities are discharged into the river to prevent damage to sewer plants and sewage overflows into homes and businesses.

“CSOs are a relic of 19th and early 20th century sewer systems that were built in the Merrimack Valley’s industrial cities,” Macone said. “Those old sewer systems were designed to dump all sewage into the river, and they are very expensive and complicated to replace.”

On average, about 500 million gallons of CSO wastewater is discharged into the Merrimack in a typical year. That’s a significant drop from 20 years ago, when an average of 780 million gallons were discharged in an average year, according to the council.

The reduction is due to drought conditions in recent years, and also work being done in cities to replace their sewer lines and upgrade infrastructure – work that is required by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

The cost of these upgrades can be in excess of $100 million, and progress can be slow because they are funded almost entirely by sewer fees collected from city residents and businesses. But lawmakers in Massachusetts are considering a plan that could provide up to $400 million in American Recovery Plan Act funding for water and sewer projects.

This year has already proven to be an unusually active year for CSOs. This month — one of the rainiest Julys on record — more than 160 million gallons of CSO waste have been discharged into the Merrimack, according to data from the region’s sewer treatment plants.

Scientists have predicted that climate change will result in heavier rainfalls in the Northeast, which would increase the likelihood and frequency of CSOs.

For more information, visit merrimack.org.

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Chance for significant progress on river pollution

(A continuation of the story above)

The peak of the summer season is upon us, and along the Merrimack River, there’s a sudden burst of activity — thousands of boats of every kind, and tens of thousands of people swimming, wading and fishing all along the river.

From Lowell’s popular riverfront parks to the sandy shores of Plum Island and Salisbury Beach, the river is being enjoyed as one of our region’s premier outdoor resources.

But this year has been different, and according to climatologists, it’s a climate change canary in a coal mine.

After a long period of drought, July pounded us with rain — one of the wettest Julys on record. Frequent downpours sent roughly 200 million gallons of untreated sewage and wastewater spilling into the Merrimack in July alone.

As climate change wreaks havoc on the Earth’s jet stream, we are seeing a glimpse of our future. We can expect to see New England go through long periods of heat and drought, punctuated by intense periods of rain. This is not the weather that we in New England are used to.

On the Merrimack, where five cities struggle to handle rainwater that infiltrates their sewer systems, July has been notable for an unfortunate statistic. Over the past month, the river has been too contaminated with bacteria for people to safely swim or wade.

Why, in the 21st century, are sewers overflowing due to rain? It’s called a CSO, short for combined sewer overflow, the technical term for the discharge of untreated sewage and stormwater into a river.

This happens in over 800 cities across America, mostly in older industrial centers where street drains and sewer lines are interconnected. During downpours, sewer plants can't handle all the water coming into them, so they discharge some of it into a river. It’s a relic of our nation’s industrial past, and one that is hugely expensive to fix.

But right now, there is hope to make a major change in our CSO woes. Gov. Charlie Baker has proposed spending up to $400 million of the state’s $5.3 billion American Rescue Plan Act funds on water and sewer infrastructure, including CSOs. The Massachusetts Legislature is drafting its own proposal. This is a visionary moment to reduce one of climate change’s major impacts on our rivers and our health.

The Merrimack has a long history as an industrial river, where some of the nation’s first manufacturing centers were born — and dumped their waste. Today’s Merrimack is far cleaner than a half century ago.

The bustle of the riverfront mills has been replaced by an explosion in river-facing activity — recreation, development and water-based businesses. Not to mention that 600,000 people get their drinking water from the Merrimack, and that hundreds of species of flora and fauna count on a healthy river as their home.

We urge Massachusetts legislators to support spending at least $400 million on CSO and water-related infrastructure projects.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make significant progress on a messy problem that has been plaguing our rivers for nearly 200 years.

Matthew Thorne is executive director of the Merrimack River Watershed Council.

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If you want to share your input on the Merrimack Rivers health please take this survey below

link...

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NEWBURYPORT —

The latest in a series of public art plaques documenting the history of climate change from the point of view of a future date in the 21st century have been installed along the recently opened section of the Clipper City Rail Trail behind the wastewater treatment plant on Water Street.

The series, “Remembrance of Climate Futures,” is a collaboration involving 10 Essex County communities and four landholder partners – The Trustees of Reservations, Salem State University, Mass Audubon and Salem Maritime National Historic Site.

The messages reflect that climate change knows no boundaries — a fact that will be made evident as people encounter this network of plaques throughout the county, according to a press release.

In addition to increasing awareness of local adaptation efforts, public art offers an opportunity for residents and visitors to imagine their role in mitigating climate change.

Please send any comments or questions via email to Caleb Bradshaw, a Youth Corps member, and our website content coordinator, at acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, please view our WEBSITE –  https://www.aces-alliance.org

Complete the new ACES survey

NEWBURYPORT — The Alliance of Climate and Environmental Stewards is asking Merrimack River users to complete its new survey to gather perspectives and opinions from those who frequent the watershed for recreational and commercial purposes.

Efforts to improve the health and quality of the river have increased over the years with multiple municipalities, state and federal officials, and numerous local organizations and agencies getting involved.

The survey, which was launched two weeks ago and will run through the summer, looks to gain insight on how people use the river, what they see through their unique experiences, and what they understand about combined sewage overflows.

All are invited to participate

Boaters, anglers, swimmers, kayakers, bird-watchers, landowners, marina residents and other river users are all invited to participate.

In 2019, ACES conducted a pilot survey of adult masters-level rowers using the Merrimack between Newburyport and Manchester, New Hampshire.

Lon Hachmeister, a member of the ACES board of directors, said the first survey went "very well" and provided the alliance with useful information about what people know about the river. With this new survey, ACES hopes to reach a much broader audience.

For groups such as ACES to understand the state of the river, they need insight from those taking advantage of its multitude of uses.

"Experts are the people that use the river"

"Experts are the people that use the river every day," Hachmeister said, noting that he is interested in learning more about what people see and their concerns.

He added that ACES might conduct this survey every couple of years to see how opinions change.

ACES Youth Corps, the organization's high school- and college-aged interns, will work on all aspects of the project. This includes raising awareness of the survey at local events, analyzing the data, writing reports and presenting the findings later this year.

The Merrimack River drains into a watershed of 5,000 square miles that sustains more than 2.5 million people, supplies drinking water to 600,000 Merrimack Valley residents, and provides recreational opportunities to more than 200 New Hampshire and Massachusetts communities.

The health of the Merrimack

In 2016, the American Rivers Association listed the Merrimack as one of the country's 10 most endangered rivers. The U.S. Forest Service has ranked the watershed as the most threatened due to forestlands development, the fourth-most threatened due to water quality issues, and the seventh due to loss of habitat for at-risk species.

To learn more or to participate in the survey, visit www.aces-alliance.org/post/merrimack-river-users-survey.

- By Heather Alterisio

Food waste has gained a lot of attention in recent years — documentaries, new nonprofits and lots of money have poured into raising awareness and trying to mitigate food waste.

What worries us about food waste? As a lifelong member of the “Clean Plate Club,” the thought of wasting anything sends me on a spiral. Sending billions of pounds of food to the landfill has significant environmental consequences.

And, finally, the juxtaposition of 30% of our food going to the trash while 1 in 10 Americans doesn’t have enough to eat just doesn’t make sense.

How can we fix this issue and what have we learned during the COVID-19 pandemic? Our food system is complex, but if you are serious about increasing food security and reducing food waste, these are some actions you can take to help balance the supply and demand.

First, let’s ensure people have the means to purchase the quality and quantity of food they need for a healthy lifestyle. What can you do?

Call Rep. Seth Moulton and Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey; let them know you support increasing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to keep pace with the cost of food (Massachusetts has almost the highest cost per meal in the nation).

Contact state officials: Reps. James Kelcourse and Lenny Mirra, state Sen. Diana DiZoglio, Sen. Bruce Tarr and Gov. Charlie Baker to ask them to push through the common application to make it easier to apply for SNAP. Every $1 in SNAP benefits actually creates $1.50 in the local economy. Win! Win!

Second, we are lucky to live in a region with an abundance of local agriculture. With so much food going to waste, we don’t need to grow more.

We must create a food system that provides equitable, quality, sustainable access to food whether you can afford to buy it or not. What can you do?

1. Let your elected officials know they need to prioritize support to small, local farms and create incentives and accountability for food producers to keep food local and affordable.

2. Find out if the farm you shop at accepts SNAP EBT cards. If they do, thank them. If they don’t, ask why and tell them it’s really important to you as a loyal customer. They may give you some feedback to relay to your elected officials.

3. Invest in a local food safety net that can meet the scale of need.

In 2019, more than 6,000 of our neighbors were food insecure. Today, food insecurity is a real problem for more than 10,000 men, women, seniors and children living in our neighborhoods.

While food donations and community gardens may temporarily alleviate someone’s hunger, to create food security we need year-round, sustainable infrastructure to ensure the wholesome, nutritious food gets to everyone — even after a pandemic.

Lyndsey Haight is executive director of Our Neighbors’ Table in Amesbury, www.ourneighborstable.org.

This column was developed to share knowledge to positively impact our environment. Send comments or questions via email to Caleb Bradshaw, a Youth Corps member who coordinates these columns, at acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES: https://www.aces-alliance.org.

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Reflecting and Honoring all those who gave their lives

Memorial Day was an important day to reflect upon and honor all those who gave their lives in service to the United States and additionally all of our family members and friends who are no longer with us. It might also be a day to reflect on all the loss of individual species that have become extinct and no longer contribute to Earth’s ecosystems.

Understanding our Relationship with the Planet

For context, our environment supplies what all living things need to survive: shelter, water and food. This environment includes such physical factors as air, temperature and soil as well as other living things — organisms, which interact with other organisms.

These symbiotic relationships benefit us all. Organisms that do not make their own food survive by eating other organisms as illustrated by the fact that the vegetation that humans and other species consume as food allows us to live.

Looking to the future, we know the lives and well-being of future generations depend on the actions we need to take now to address the planet’s climate and the environment’s health for the next 30 years.

We understand that the health of our natural world has a direct impact on the health of humans, yet we often ignore that interdependence and what it means for our survival. Today, we congratulate and honor all the individuals and organizations that are stewards of our environment for the future. They take organized and personal action to contribute to the well-being of all humans and all species in some manner.

"thanking the following ACES ally organizations"

To ensure healthy lives in Greater Newburyport and beyond, please join us in thanking the following ACES ally organizations for their contributions as stewards and guardians:

Healthy water – Ipswich River Watershed Association, Merrimack River Watershed Council and the Parker River Clean Water Association.

Healthy shelter and soil – Essex County Greenbelt Association, Friends of Maudslay State Park and The Trustees of Reservations.

Healthy food – High Road Farm, Maple Crest Farm, Nourishing the North Shore, Our Neighbors' Table, The HERB FARMacy

Healthy air – C-10 Research and Educational Foundation, Citizens Climate Lobby, Coastal Trails Coalition, Friends of Newburyport Trees, Livable Streets, MassBike.

Healthy minds – Climate Café, Friends of the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, the Gulf of Maine Institute, Joppa Flats Education Center, Merrohawke Nature School, Newburyport Public Schools, River Valley Charter School, Small Solutions — Big Ideas, Storm Surge, The Repair Café, Tinkerhaus, Transition Newburyport and Women in Action Huddle.

Acknowledge the Contributions of the ACES Youth Corps

We also want to acknowledge the contributions of the ACES Youth Corps. As integral members of ACES programs, projects and operational teams, they are working diligently to make a difference in everyone’s lives and working to create a healthier environment.

We especially want to recognize active Youth Corps members Alex Fincher, Andres Liang, Caleb Bradshaw, Charlotte Gretz, Ellie Kerns, Emily Miga, Jackson Darling, Lucas Daignault, Nicholas Foristell, Nolan Smith, Samson Leblanc and Sophia Franco.

Send comments or questions by email to Caleb Bradshaw, who coordinates these columns, at acesnewburyport@gmail.com. To learn more about ACES, go to https://www.aces-alliance.org.

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“Last sighting in Essex of the American Bittern, at this spot — August 29, 2061”

“Bridge connecting Conomo Point to mainland first opened to traffic — March 1, 2074”

“Storm surge flooding closes Main Street — January 4, 2018”

This is the future (and recent past) of the Town of Essex according to a pilot installation of Remembrance of Climate Futures. The project is a multi-site series of public art plaques documenting the history of climate change throughout the 21st C. Combining elements of site-specific art with wayfinding and the conceptual language of time travel, it brings the enormous scale of climate change down to the intimate scale of the individual. Based on scientific projections, pedestrian-oriented ‘historical’ plaques of the future portray climate events from the perspective of the 22nd C. to imbue climate change effects with palpable certainty.

The project is now expanding in Essex County.

Based on the success of the pilot, the project is now expanding in Essex County. With ACES serving as the fiscal sponsor, project funding was secured from the Essex County Community Foundation to make a broad-based presentation possible. By spring 2022 it will reach its intended scale of multiple sites in each of 10 Essex County coastal municipalities and 4 institutional landholders, totaling 90-100 unique installations.

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