Resources

Guide to smart growth

Community Rules: A New England Guide to Smart Growth Strategies, a guidebook for volunteer board members, planners, concerned citizens and others who want to achieve smart growth in their communities through better planning, zoning and permitting, is now available online (www.clf. org/newsletter). Written by the Conservation Law Foundation and the Vermont Forum on Sprawl, the guide illustrates how communities in New England and elsewhere have laid the groundwork for smart growth through sensible planning, zoning and other strategies.

Funding for species-at-risk projects

The Habitat Stewardship Program (HSP) for Species at Risk, sponsored by the Canadian government, provides funding to stewards for activities that protect or conserve habitats for species designated by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) as nationally “at risk” (endangered, threatened or of special concern). Funding for stewardship activities must focus on private lands, provincial crown lands, Aboriginal lands and in aquatic and marine areas across Canada. For information, access http://www. speciesatrisk.gc.ca/media/back2_e.cfm.

Species-at-risk newsletter

Recovery is a free newsletter providing information and views on the recovery of species at risk in Canada. Anyone wishing to be put on the mailing list should send his or her name, mailing address and language of choice to Recovery, Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada, Ottawa, Canada, K1A 0H3. The newsletter is online at www.speciesatrisk.gc.ca/publications.

Guide to river restoration

How can Maine’s rivers best provide a wide range of benefits to serve the needs of Maine people, fisheries and wildlife for generations to come? A new report by the Natural Resources Council of Maine, Toward a New Balance: A Citizen’s Guide to Dams, Hydropower, and River Restoration in Maine, explores this question, and the issue of selective dam removals. The publication includes maps of major rivers and dams in Maine; photographs of Maine rivers and the fish, wildlife and people that use them; case studies of three completed dam removals; and sections on hydroelectric power, fish passage, dam removal controversies, river celebrations and the environmental impacts of dams. Order your free copy online: at www.maineenvironment.org/rivers.

Costs of farming carnivorous fish

SeaWeb, an ocean conservation organization, has released the report entitled
“What Price Farmed Fish: A Review of the Environmental and Social Costs of
Farming Carnivorous Fish.” The report states that industrialized aquaculture
is long overdue for reform and that corporations and governments must learn
from and avoid the impacts associated with the current state of salmon
farming, including the discharge of untreated wastes into coastal waters. To view go to:
www.AquacultureClearinghouse.org.

Drought resource

Drought Toolkit: Resources for journalists and others concerned about drought and rivers is available from American Rivers (www.amrivers.org). The kit covers the nature of droughts, how they can affect rivers; frequently asked questions about drought and water shortages; the impact of sprawl on water supplies and how municipalities, homeowners and individuals can conserve water. For more information go to the American Rivers Web site or contact Eric Eckl (202) 347-7550 ext. 3023.

Forest conservation

The Nature Conservancy and the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service have launched a Web site for private forest landowners and managers whose primary management objective is forest conservation. The site,
at: http://www.privateforest.org, offers information and support for conservation-minded forest owners and managers. Visitors to the site can link to the Nature Conservancy’s database of forestry-related resources, share information and find information and links about forest management and resources. The site is maintained by The Nature Conservancy and funded in part by the Forest Service.

Shrinking working waterfronts

The summer issue of Maine Coastline, the Maine State Planning office’s newsletter, features a cover story on “Working Waterfronts,” based on a recent study that found 75 percent of access sites for commercial fishing are on private property. Economic and demographic pressures are forcing private access points into residential or recreational use, the study reports, and the recent economic downturn has not slowed the market for Maine coastal properties. An inside story examines ways Maine communities have enhanced their working waterfronts through revitalization and strong municipal management. The newsletter is available at www.mainecoastalprogram.org, click on “News.”

Atlantic salmon feature online

A recent issue of National Geographic features an in depth look at the plight of the Atlantic salmon and how fish farming is putting wild fish at risk. An excerpted, interactive version called, Everybody Loves Salmon: Here’s the Catch, at http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0307/ sights_n_sounds /media1.html includes a link to an excerpt of the article of the same name.