Project Title: Promoting Natural Resources Stewardship and Managing Growth Wisely in Essex County
Watersheds: Parker, Ipswich, Essex, North Coastal
Municipalities: Merrimac, Amesbury, Salisbury, Newburyport, West Newbury, Georgetown, Boxford, North Andover, Andover, Middleton, Topsfield, Danvers, Peabody, Lynnfield, Salem, Marblehead, Beverly, Wenham, Hamilton, Manchester, Gloucester, Essex, Ipswich, and Rowley
This project advances the PIE-Rivers Land Use Implementation Plan by promoting natural resources stewardship across 24 Essex County communities that are members of the Greenscapes North Shore Coalition. In partnership with Mass Audubon and the Greenscapes Coalition, Ipswich River Watershed Association will provide bylaw review training and community outreach for municipalities to incorporate nature-based solutions that promote Low-Impact Development (LID) and protect Open Space throughout Essex County.
The project is being funded by Essex County Community Foundation’s new Essex County Land and Environment Initiative (ECLEI), a countywide effort to improve the quality of life for residents by promoting stewardship of our natural resources.
The project builds off a previous grant ECCF provided to conduct a comprehensive strategic planning effort for the PIE-Rivers Partnership. A primary outcome of this effort was to increase river and community resiliency through the creation of four regional Implementation Plans: Land Use, Water Quality, Water Conservation, and River & Stream Continuity. This project, funded by ECCF’s new Land and Environment Initiative, implements actions called for in three of these four plans. In particular, the Land Use Implementation Plan has been instrumental in identifying needs across Essex County, including the need for bylaw review addressed in the current project proposal.
Check back soon for more information. You can also read the initial Press Release here.