The Connecticut River begins just south of the border between the United States and Quebec, Canada, running 410 miles before emptying out into Long Island Sound. Along the way, there are nearly 400 communities in its 7.2 million acre watershed. The Connecticut River Watershed is the drainage basin of the Connecticut River which happens to be New England’s longest river cutting through Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont.
On July 27, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D) introduced a bill in the Senate, S.2660, the Connecticut River Watershed Partnership Act for the purpose of protecting and restoring the river and its tributaries. This proposed legislation would officially recognize a partnership between federal, state and local governments along with tribal organizations, nonprofits and institutions of higher education, with a goal of advancing conservation, education, recreation and restoration efforts in the Watershed area. It would also create a voluntary grant program to make these activities easier. Additionally, the passage of the bill would be a great benefit for fish and wildlife areas along with protecting sources for drinking water and improve flood resiliency. Other benefits would be that of economic and environmental for such industries as boating, farming, fisheries, hunting, recreation and tourism. Other Senate co-sponsors include Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Ct), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Ed Markey (D-Ma), Chris Murphy (D-Ct), Elizabeth Warren (D-Ma) and Peter Welch (D-Vt).
If we all recall last month’s devastating flooding in many areas around New England, Sen. Shaheen’s office stated in response to the proposed bill, “. . . this event points to the need to put the watershed in a better position to withstand severe weather events.”
A similar bill, HR 5216, was recently introduced on August 15 in the House of Representatives by Jim McGovern (D-Ma.) and co-sponsored by New Hampshire’s Annie Kuster (D). HR 5216 is to “direct restoration and protection efforts of the 5-State Connecticut River Watershed region, and for other purposes.”
This proposed legislation is also supported by private organizations throughout New England such as the Friends of The Nature Conservancy, Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge, Kestrel Land Trust, the Connecticut River Conservancy and the Appalachian Mountain Club among many others.
Sen. Shaheen had urged the Biden administration to repeal an order and policy changes made in the final hours of the Trump administration that would have hurt conservation efforts in New Hampshire. She also ensured fullfunding and permanent authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which helped to protect more than 2.5 million acres of land and supported tens of thousands of state and local outdoor recreation projects throughout the nation.
Kudos to these elected officials who recognize the dangers of extreme weather and climate change, not just here in New Hampshire, but nationally and globally!