On February 24, from 9am to 4pm
 at the SUNY New Paltz, Student Union Building, the Hudson River Watershed Alliance will be hosting a full-day free workshop to learn about successful intermunicipal partnerships, as well as incentives and regulatory reasons for your watershed municipalities to collaborate.

Topics to be covered: Status of tributaries and watershed planning in the Hudson Basin ▪ Watershed based planning and zoning ▪ Considering local challenges within the watershed framework ▪ SEQRA, cumulative impacts & watershed planning ▪ Intermunicipal Agreements & Structures ▪ Sustainable funding mechanisms and strategies ▪ Presentations from existing Intermunicipal Watershed Councils

Who Should Attend?
Local watershed groups, county/local elected and appointed municipal officials, conservation advisory councils, regional leaders, environmental organizations, and interested citizens. Location:

Space is limited. Please RSVP by February 17th to Katy Dunlap, Director of Hudson River Watershed Alliance, at katy@hudsonwatershed.org . Directions and more information will be emailed to you, upon your reservation.

Organized and sponsored by the Hudson River Watershed Alliance, Hudson River Estuary Program of the NYS DEC, and the Center for Research Regional Education and Outreach at SUNY New Paltz. This project has been funded by the New York State Environmental Protection Fund through the Hudson River Estuary Program of the NYS DEC.

On July 23, the Hudson River Watershed Alliance and the Hudson River Estuary Program convened a forum for more than 25 local watershed groups to provide a venue for sharing their experiences and efforts to protect the water resources of the Hudson River. Focused on the tributaries, these efforts aim to raise awareness about how our individual actions on the land affect the water quality of the streams, ponds, wetlands and other water bodies that drain to the mainstem of the Hudson River.The efforts and activities are diverse! One group is focused on daylighting a river to improve aquatic habitat and water quality, while another group is focused on integrating the arts into their efforts to engage community members to eliminate excessive trash in the creek. Several groups are working on the development or implementation of watershed plans that assess the health of the stream and make recommendations for mitigating impacts on the stream. Quite honestly, the efforts are so creative and varied, I can’t begin to describe them all.

As I listened to the accounts of these local leader’s efforts, I was struck by each group’s passion for protecting streams and water quality, not just for the sake of nature but also to ensure a high quality of life for community members.

While many of these watershed leaders are working locally within the confines of the geographic boundaries of their subbasin, their efforts are having a regional positive impact. Together, they are working to protect and improve management of hundreds of stream miles and thousands of acres in the Hudson River watershed. Collectively, they are a powerful advocate for the Hudson River and its tributaries and will be major players in shaping the vision of the Hudson River valley for the next 100 years.

Click HERE to learn more about Local Watershed Group Successes in the Hudson River Watershed.