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| This week in conservation October 20-26, 2008 |
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| Calendar | |||||||||
| Zoning Exemptions Workshop | |||||||||
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| Garden Club Meeting | |||||||||
 Tues Oct 21, Garden Club Meeting 1 pm, Wakeman Center, Vineyard Haven. Organic gardening with Paul Split, teacher, lecturer and horticultural consultant. $5 non-member fee. 508-693-5334. |
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| Volunteers Needed for Seed Cleaning Project with the Island's Nature Conservancy | |||||||||
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| How to Winterize Your House | |||||||||
 Tues Oct 21, How to Winterize Your House, a workshop with energy consultant Chris Fried, is free at 7 p.m. at the Vineyard Haven library. For details, call 508-696-4211. |
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| “Today’s Energy Reality”- Coal | |||||||||
 Wed, Oct 22, “Today’s Energy Reality”- Coal As part of our October-November Sustainability Series. Vineyard Haven Library. 7-8 PM See details in the Announcement section. |
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| Sustainable Book Club Meeting | |||||||||
 Thurs Oct 23, Sustainable Book Club Meeting 6:30 pm, Oak Bluffs Library. Island-wide club discusses "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan. 508-693-9433. |
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| Local Food Potluck and informational meeting with Slow Food Martha’s Vineyard | |||||||||
 Thurs Oct 23, Local Food Potluck and informational meeting with Slow Food Martha’s Vineyard is at the West Tisbury Agricultural Hall from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Bring a dish to share using at least one local ingredient and a place setting. BYOB. For details, call 508-696-8597. |
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| There’s No Place Like Home – Bats | |||||||||
 Sat Oct 25, There’s No Place Like Home – Bats, Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary 1:00 – 2:30 pm In this hands-on program you’ll learn about bat habits, habitats and build a bat house to take home with you. Pre-Registration required 508.627.4850 Member $20 per house, Non-Member $30 per house. |
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| Annual Harvest Festival | |||||||||
 Sat Oct 25, Annual Harvest Festival 11 am-3 pm, Vineyard Gardens, West Tisbury. Annual festival: refreshments, crafts, activities, food, displays, demos, hands-on activities, tours. Free. 508-693-8511. |
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| Knitting Workshop | |||||||||
| Sun Oct 26, Knitting Workshop 1-5 pm, Island Alpaca Company, Oak Bluffs. Rolled brim alpaca hat. $40 plus supplies. 508-693-5554. | |||||||||
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| Save The Date | |||||||||
| Volunteers Needed for Seed Cleaning Project with the Island's Nature Conservancy |
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 All welcome to join The Nature Conservancy's Massachusetts Islands Program staff with separating and sorting seeds from our native plant nursery. Seeds harvested throughout the season and stored in the Hoft Farm Field Station need the final step of cleaning by being taken out of their pods or scrapped off their stems in order to be ready for eventual propagation. This is a great opportunity for people to learn about native plants and help preserve the unique natural character of Martha’s Vineyard.Six 2-hour sessions are scheduled for seed cleaning to take place at the Hoft Farm Field Station located off of Lambert's Cove Rd. Beverages and snacks will be provided. Session times are: Tuesday, Oct. 21 from 10:00 am to 12:00; Wednesday, Oct. 22 from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m; Friday, Oct. 24 from 1:00 to 3:00; Tuesday, Oct. 28 from 10:00 am to 12:00; Thursday, October 30 from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.; and Monday, Nov. 3 from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.. Volunteers are welcome by appointment during normal business hours. To sign up please contact Liz Loucks at the Conservancy’s Islands Office: eloucks@tnc.org or call 508-693-6287, ex. 15. |
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| Northeast Aquaculture Conference and Exposition 2008 |
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| NACE Program Early-Bird registration ends November 3 December 3-5, 2008 Eastland Park Hotel, Portland, Maine The NACE Executive Committee invites you to join us and other stakeholders at NACE 2008, the premier event to learn about the Northeast region’s aquatic farming industry. Participate in our informational sessions, technol¬ogy transfer workshops, field trips and visit our trade show with equipment vendors and suppliers from throughout the U.S. and Atlantic Canada. Your full registration includes all meals, admission to Informational Sessions, Technology Trans¬fer Workshops, and our Trade Show. Please join us for our Welcome Reception on Wednesday, and Banquet & Auction on Thursday. To register on-line, please visit www.northeastaquaculture.org. Don’t miss our early bird registration rates! Call 207-780-5951 and mention the NACE You can register for NACE 2008 on-line by visiting www.northeastaquaculture.org. Hotel reservations must be made separately by calling the Eastland Park Hotel (888-671-8008) and mentioning NACE 2008 by November 3, 2008 to receive the discounted room rate of $99 per night including parking. After November 3, the room rate increases to $109 per night. Visit the NACE website for updates to this program www.northeastaquaculture.org |
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| Announcement | |||||||||
| “Today’s Energy Reality” |
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| Be Prepared! | |||||||||
| Wild Side: Resilience |
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| Climate Change Update | |||||||||
| European Nations Seek to Revise Agreement on Emissions Cuts |
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| Report says Arctic's warmth at record high |
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| WASHINGTON - Autumn temperatures in the Arctic are at record levels, the Arctic Ocean is getting warmer and less salty as sea ice melts, and reindeer herds appear to be declining, researchers reported yesterday. "Obviously, the planet is interconnected, so what happens in the Arctic does matter" to the rest of the world, Jackie Richter-Menge of the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in Hanover, N.H., said in releasing the third annual Arctic Report Card. http://www.boston.com/news/nation/ washington/articles/2008/10/17/ report_says_arctics_warmth_at_record_high/ |
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| Wind Update | |||||||||
| Wind farm: Lawyers expect precedent-setting ruling |
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| Energy Update | |||||||||
| A rush to alternative fuels |
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| FIRE SAFETY |
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The state fire marshal's office has identified the use of alternative heating sources as a growing concern this winter. Here are some of their recommendations:
Sources: Chatham Fire Inspector Capt. Roy Eldredge and Falmouth Fire Deputy Chief Mark Sullivan |
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| Wildlife Update | |||||||||
| Fish Fossil Yields Anatomical Clues on How Animals of the Sea Made It to Land |
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| Water Update | |||||||||
| Oceans Act Unclear on Power of Review by the Commission |
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| Tap Water’s Popularity Forces Pepsi to Cut Jobs |
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| Wastewater Update | |||||||||
| Help for Island Towns coming from the MA Clean Water Act |
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Nat Mayo, from Senator O'Leary's office has just sent an update on the The Environmental Bond Bill, which passed in July, and is included in the MA Clean Water Act. It is sweeping wastewater and nutrient management legislation that directly impacts the Cape and Islands. |
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 Email Subscription InformationThe Almanac is provided as a public service by the Vineyard Conservation Society with the intent of providing quick and easy access to the Island's government process and environmental community. You are recieving this free email service because you have subscribed to the Vineyard Conservation Almanac. More information about island conservation issues, meetings and events can be viewed at http://almanac.vcsmv.org. If you do not wish to continue receiving these emails please click here to unsubscribe. Thank you for subscribing to the Almanac! |
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Have ideas for content for the Almanac? Please send them along to: |
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Do Your Part to Control Runoff and Erosion
BARCELONA: Few people call it eco-friendly when a company like Royal Dutch Shell, to pump natural gas and make petroleum products, disturbs coral reefs and damages the habitats of rare desert truffles and vulnerable birds. But the energy giant may have found a way to turn local environmental losses into a plus for biodiversity - and its business. 
Mon Oct 20, Zoning Exemptions Workshop is at the Martha's Vineyard Commission Olde Stone Building in Oak Bluffs at 7 p.m. with Bob Ritchie of the Department of Agricultural Resources. Cost is $30. For details and to register, call 508-693-3453, extension 13.
Vineyarders should be proud of the conservation successes achieved here over the last century: we've protected a lot of land and learned how to manage it properly, helping preserve not just biodiversity but clean water, scenic and recreational opportunities, fish, shellfish, and game populations, and pollinators that support agriculture. 
BRUSSELS — Fears of a sharp worldwide economic slowdown are threatening a hard-won European plan on climate change that European leaders hoped would set an example for the rest of the world. 
Since the concept of creating a wind farm in Nantucket Sound was born, it has faced a barrage of lawsuits and administrative appeals. 
HARWICH — Community Center director Carolyn Carey plans to wait until Christmas to turn on the furnace in her house. 
In a new study of a fossil fish that lived 375 million years ago, scientists are finding striking evidence of the intermediate steps by which some marine vertebrates evolved into animals that walked on land. 
The same state agency which has backed the controversial Cape Wind development could allow similar projects even closer to the Vineyard under the new Oceans Act, Cape and Islands Rep. Eric T. Turkington said this week. 
Tap water is making a comeback. That’s bad news for PepsiCo’s profits.