Category: News

Drug take-back

The DEA is promoting a national drug take-back day on Saturday, April 27, with collection sites listed as open to take prescription drugs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. According to dea.gov/takebackday, local drop-off spots include area police departments and Elliot at River’s Edge in Manchester. “DEA and its partners will collect tablets, capsules, patches and other solid forms of prescription drugs. For more than a decade, this event has helped Americans easily rid their homes of unneeded medications—those that are old, unwanted, or expired—that too often become a gateway to addiction. … Collection sites will not accept syringes, sharps and illicit drugs. Liquid products, such as cough syrup, should remain sealed in their original container. The cap must be tightly sealed to prevent leakage.,” according to a press release from Granite United Way, which will participate at its three public health networks (see graniteuw.org).

Moose sounds

According to an April 16 press release, researchers at the University of New Hampshire have used publicly available online videos to develop a method to assess wild moose sounds in nature and to identify distinct differences by age and sex, as a first step in creating an acoustic network that could help track, monitor and protect moose populations.

In a statement, Laura Kloepper, an assistant professor of biological sciences at UNH, said that “by tracking moose, scientists can predict how forest habitat affects moose distribution. Specifically, how habitat disturbances, like those caused by some timber management, affect where moose prefer to live and how those preferences change with the seasons or the time of day. Since moose have a wide roaming range and low population densities, monitoring them is an ever-present challenge that could be aided by non-invasive technologies like a moose acoustic sensor.”

Their study published in the journal JASA [Journal of the Acoustical Society of America] Express Letters outlined their use of online videos crowdsourced from hunters and recreationalists to identify differences in moose calls and characterize them by age and sex, according to the same release. Researchers collected 673 calls — 199 from cows (females), 255 from bulls (males) and 219 from calves — and although individual variations existed, there were clear differences between groups, according to the same release.

The researchers plan to include networks of calibrated acoustic recorders across a landscape to develop an automated detector and determine moose population density to inform forest management, according to the same release.

Their efforts are supported by the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station through joint funding from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture as well as the State of New Hampshire and conducted in partnership with NH Fish and Game Department, according to the same release, which also named co-authors of the study including Alex Zager, Sonja Ahlberg, Olivia Boyan, Jocelyn Brierly, Valerie Eddington and Remington Moll.

Visit unh.edu/unhtoday/2024/04/developing-bioacoustic-methods-characterize-new-hampshire-moose-populations for details and links to the JASA Express Letters article.

Relief money

An April 22 press release stated that President Joe Biden granted Gov. Sununu’s request for a major disaster declaration in response to severe storms and flooding in January that resulted in significant costs to local communities. Rockingham and Grafton counties are included in the declaration. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), working with state and local emergency management officials, had completed a Preliminary Damage Assessment and found that the statewide cost for response to this event totaled more than $3 million. This declaration allows communities in the two counties to seek federal funding assistance, according to the release.

The declaration also makes federal support available through the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and the Public Assistance Program, with the purpose of the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program being to reduce the loss of life and property due to natural disasters and to enable the implementation of mitigation measures during the immediate recovery from a disaster, according to the same release.

The same press release mentioned that the Department of Transportation has been granted $20 million in federal funding for seawall reconstruction and the funds will be used to reduce flooding, structural damage and post-storm cleanup time along Route 1A. Visit governor.nh.gov.

Fire in Plymouth

On Saturday, April 20, a fire broke out on Main Street in Plymouth that forced the evacuation of Flying Monkey Movie House and Performance Center. The investigation into the fire is ongoing; Downtown Pizza received most of the damage and is currently closed, according to a report on WMUR.com.

Vincent Vella, CEO of The Common Man Family, said in post on the venue’s Facebook page: “The Monkey has sustained only minor smoke damage. We are unbelievably lucky and happy to report that our beloved venue has survived such a devastating event. Unfortunately, some of the Monkey’s neighbors have suffered tragic losses, and Main Street in Plymouth will look different for some time. We will support them in their efforts to recover.”

The venue’s marquee reads “Everything is fine. We are OK. See You Friday. 4-26 Sugar Mountain,” according to a photo posted April 22.

The Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Manchester Ladies Philoptochos Society will hold an Eastern Orthodox Easter Bake Sale on Saturday, April 27, from 11:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. in the church hall. Spinach peta, Greek cookies, assorted Greek pastries, pastry platters, and Easter bread will be available for sale.

See EVs and talk to their owners at the Merrimack Electric Vehicle Fair on Saturday, April 27, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Tractor Supply Parking lot in Merrimack (515 D.W. Highway). Visit driveelectricearthmonth.org to RSVP and see a list of vehicles expected to be there.

Friends of Leach Library in Londonderry (276 Mammoth Road) are holding a book sale on Tuesday, April 30, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m, according to their website, although hours are subject to volunteer availability and they ask that you call the library to check if the book sale room will be open prior to your visit. Visit londonderrynh.org/leach-library or call 432-1132.

Parks and ponds

The Manchester Urban Ponds Restoration program kicks off the 25th year of cleanups with a cleanup of Nutts Pond and Precourt Park on Saturday, April 20, from 9 to 11 a.m., rain or shine. Volunteers can meet at the kiosk at Driving Park Road (off South Willow Street). The spring schedule then includes Stevens Pond/Stevens Park on Saturday, April 27; Black Brook/Blodget Park on May 4, and McQuesten Brook/Wolfe Park on May 11, with all cleanups to run from 9 to 11 a.m. “Trash bags, latex gloves, and a handful of trash pickers will be available. Please wear rubber boots if you have them,” said the group’s newsletter. See manchesternh.gov/urbanponds for details and for summaries of past cleanups, or call 624-6527.

Smokey Bear says

An April 10 press release from the New Hampshire Department of Natural & Cultural Resources announced that the New Hampshire Forest Protection Bureau has designated April 14 through April 20 “Wildfire Awareness Week,” citing rising temperatures, low relative humidity and gusty winds combined with over-wintered dry grasses and leaves, all of which contribute to elevate wildfire risk statewide. The bureau is joining U.S. and Canadian partners in the Northeast Forest Fire Protection Commission in a coordinated effort to educate the public about how people can lessen the occurrences of wildfire across the region, according to the same release.

Forest Ranger Nathan Blanchard said in a statement that “it’s important to recognize that, unlike other regions of the United States, wildfire season in New Hampshire can begin early in the spring.” Blanchard noted that “yard cleanup, spring cookouts and even things like the improper disposal of wood stove ash can create embers, sparks or other forms of heat that can easily ignite dry materials around them, causing a wildfire that can quickly run and turn into a big problem.”

In the last two decades the state has experienced an average of 285 wildfires per year impacting 221 acres annually on average, the release said. Wildfires pose a threat to forest-based recreational activities and forest product industries, which contribute around $4.6 billion dollars every year according to the New Hampshire Forest Action Plan from 2020, according to the same release.

Fire permits need to be obtained for any outdoor fires and can be acquired from your local fire department or nhfirepermit.com.

The Forest Protection Bureau has also announced it is planning to implement a prescribed burn at Blue Job State Forest in Farmington this year, depending on weather conditions, any time from April through October, according to an earlier press release, where approximately 20 acres will be burned by trained resource managers and wildfire personnel in order to improve blueberry habitat, improve conditions for birds and other wildlife that rely on blueberries for food and shelter, and reduce forest fuels like shrubs and grasses that could contribute to a wildfire.

For more information about the Division of Forests and Lands and the work of its Forest Protection Bureau, visit nhdfl.dncr.nh.gov or call 271-2214.

Relapse prevention

The New Hampshire Department of Corrections announced in an April 8 press release the launch of a new Relapse Prevention Program at the New Hampshire State Prison for Men in Concord designed for individuals returning to incarceration as the result of a parole violation.

The Relapse Prevention Program joins several other therapeutic communities within the department’s facilities, including its Wellness Units, the Residential Treatment Unit, the Pathways Program, and the Focus Program where New Hampshire Department of Corrections licensed mental health professionals use industry standard assessment tools to make recommendations for treatment including but not limited to the American Society of Addiction Medicine’s ASAM criteria, to determine placement, continued service, and transfer of patients with addiction and co-occurring conditions, according to the press release.

Repeat substance misuse is the second-highest contributor to parole violation, although the percentage of those who violate their parole is only 2 percent of the overall parole caseload, according to the release.

Commissioner Helen Hanks said in a statement that “the introduction of the Relapse Prevention Program underscores the department’s continued commitment to expanding our range of treatment offerings, recognizing that a one size fits all model is not the right approach.” Visit corrections.nh.gov for more information.

Helping the kids

The Queen City Rotary Club is accepting applications for grants for youth-centered nonprofit organizations — an “Impact Grant” for organizations that serve underprivileged youth in the greater Manchester area and “Youth Serves Grant” for organizations that have a youth-related focus, according to a press release. Grant applications are due by Friday, April 26. See queencityrotary.org.

On Monday, April 22, Concord Public Library (45 Green St.) is hosting a DIY button-making drop-in for all ages where participants can craft an Earth Day lapel button from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Materials and instruction will be provided, according to the library website. Visit concordnh.gov.

On Saturday, April 20, and Sunday April 21, Charmingfare Farm in Candia (774 High St.) will host their first “Barnyard Babies & Beyond” family-friendly adventure between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., according to their website. Tickets are $29, free for children 23 months and younger. Visit visitthefarm.com.

Catch bands Jamdemic and The Mighty Colors on Saturday, April 20, from 6 to 9 p.m, at an Earth Day Benefit Concert at the welcome center of the Andres Institute of Art in Brookline. The concert benefits the institute and the Beaver Brook Association in Hollis. Tickets cost $25; see andresinstitute.org,