Cyanobacteria blooms
According to a May 1 press release, the Executive Council and New Hampshire’s Department of Environmental Services announced two items that provide $1 million in funding to make lakes and water bodies across the Granite State cleaner and healthier by reducing blue-green algae (cyanobacteria blooms).
Cyanobacteria blooms have been documented in 113 water bodies statewide and account for 64 water quality impairments to recreational use, and in the 2023 monitoring season the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) recorded the highest number of bloom events on record, resulting in 69 advisories across 47 lakes, according to the press release. Four water bodies had advisories issued for more than 100 days and 10 had advisories longer than 50 days. The funding approved now will serve to help minimize such advisories, according to the same release.
In a statement, Gov. Chris Sununu said that “this funding will help improve water quality on our lakes to ensure we remain the crown jewel of New England!”
For more information visit governor.nh.gov.
$1 million for off-roading
According to a May 1 press release, the New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources announced $1 million in funding to improve the statewide trail system after damage caused by historic rain and flooding events in 2023, following the approval by members of the Executive Council.
In a statement, DNCR Commissioner Sarah Stewart said, “we are excited that this funding is being made available to our hard-working clubs and volunteers to assist in repairing the trails that were so severely impacted across the state by recent storms. Eighty percent of the statewide trail network is located on private lands, and these funds will be put to good use to repair those storm-damaged trails and to ensure that the trail network remains connected to communities while being safe for all trail users, including motorized and non-motorized recreation.” The $1 million in funding will be distributed through the Grant-In-Aid (GIA) program as 100 percent grants, no matching required, to assist snowmobile and OHRV (off-highway recreational vehicles) clubs with storm-related trail repair work, according to the same release.
Visit nhstateparks.org/find-parks-trails/find-trails-maps-clubs/grants/grant-in-aid or governor.nh.gov for more information.
This is bat country
A May 3 press release from New Hampshire Fish and Game announced that wildlife biologists need volunteers who have bats in their barns or other outbuildings to help conduct bat counts this summer as part of the New Hampshire Bat Counts project to monitor bat colonies in the Granite State. Volunteers are asked to conduct at least one count in June and one count in July.
Barns and other outbuildings often serve as summer homes for female bats and their young, but with the rise of white-nose syndrome, which has caused significant declines in bat populations throughout the Northeast, it is important to monitor these “maternity colonies,” which is why Fish and Game and UNH Cooperative Extension are looking for landowners or homeowners who have bats on their property to conduct “emergence counts” at roost sites, according to the same release.
There are two upcoming workshops to help volunteers learn about bat species found in New Hampshire, threats leading to population decline, how to help conserve bats and how to participate in NH Bat Counts, according to the release. NH Bat Counts training will occur on Wednesday, May 29, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Harris Center for Conservation Education in Hancock (extension.unh.edu/event/2024/05/nh-bat-counts-training) and Bats in New Hampshire will be held online via Zoom on Tuesday, June 11, from 4 to 5 p.m. (extension.unh.edu/event/2024/06/bats-new-hampshire).
Those interested in volunteering can visit the New Hampshire Bat Counts website wildlife.nh.gov/wildlife-and-habitat/nongame-and-endangered-species/bats-new-hampshire/nh-bat-counts, and questions about these events can be sent to Haley Andreozzi at [email protected] or 862-5327.
Spring cleaning
The City of Manchester Highway Department is holding a Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off Day on Saturday, May 11, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at its facility at 500 Dunbarton Road. City residents may dispose of up to 10 gallons of liquid and 20 pounds of solid household hazardous waste free of charge. Visit www.manchesternh.gov/Departments/Highway to find details on how to carry the waste and what items are and are not allowed.
3-month detour
The Interstate 93 northbound Exit 8 off-ramp to Wellington Road in Manchester will be closed starting Wednesday, May 8, according to an announcement from the NH Department of Transportation. Traffic will be detoured to Exit 9S, then south on I-93 to the Exit 8 southbound off-ramp, to access Wellington Road. The detour will last three months as crews work on bridge improvements in the area. See dot.nh.gov.
On Wednesday, May 15, the Poetry Society of New Hampshire will feature author and poet Holley M. Hill as its headliner for the monthly afternoon of verse at Gibson’s Bookstore (45 S. Main St. in Concord; gibsonsbookstore.com). An open mic follows her reading. The event runs from 4:30 to 6 p.m.
The Bike-Walk Alliance of New Hampshire on Saturday, May 11, will host Tour de NH: Rail Trails of the Queen City in Manchester with two local guides leading 20 miles of biking fun. Bicyclists meet up at Arms Park (10 Arms St.) at 10 a.m. and the event will go until about 1 or 2 p.m., according to the website. Registration is required, as are helmets. Visit bwanh.org.
The United Way of Greater Nashua and 30 other local nonprofits will be at the Nashua Public Library, 2 Court St. in Nashua, for the Greater Nashua Volunteer Fair on Wednesday, May 22, from 5 to 8 p.m., according to an email. The NH Center for Nonprofits will give a presentation every 15 minutes about serving on a nonprofit board. See unitedwaynashua.org for details.
