Eleven cliff areas in Vermont have been closed so peregrine falcons can nest in peace, the Vermont Department of Fish & Wildlife announced this week. The cliff areas include scenic overlooks that are common destinations for hikers, and the Fish & Wildlife Department recommends that hikers check the list of closed areas before they hit the trail. Peregrine falcons were considered an endangered species for years after the pesticide DDT led to the decline of peregrine falcons and other birds of prey by weakening their eggs.

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Wildlife biologist Noah Perlut found a needle in a hayfield Tuesday morning. Three hours later he was still celebrating, his voice jumpy with excitement. He and Vermont ornithologist Rosalind Renfrew had recovered a 3-year-old male bobolink carrying a tiny recording device packed with information new to science. When the contents are downloaded and analyzed, for the first time the scientists will be able to trace the precise route the yellow-headed songbird flew between Vermont and his unidentified wintering grounds in South America.

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20100526/NEWS02/100525024/1004/LIVING03/Scientists-in-Hinesburg-find-bobolink-tracking-device

After more than 150 years of natural regrowth, forest cover is declining across all six New England states, threatening the region’s landscape and chipping away at a natural buffer against global warming, according to a study released Tuesday by Harvard University’s laboratory for ecological research. Less than 20 percent of New England’s 33 million acres of trees, waters and wetlands are permanently protected from development.

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Most of the bar and chain oil that is used to lubricate a chainsaw finds its way into the environment. Every year thousands of gallons of the oil drip from the chainsaws and soak into the earth, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Not only do the petroleum-based oils affect the environment, they can also endanger the health of the people who use chainsaws on a regular basis. Starting June 1, Central Vermont Public Service will become the first utility in the country to require its tree-trimming contractors to stop using traditional fossil-fuel chainsaw bar and chain oil, said CVPS spokesman Steve Costello.

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A wood-burning power plant in Burlington is celebrating its 25th birthday with an announcement that an anti-pollution device it installed in 2008 is paying off. Burlington's municipal electric department says it installed a $10 million nitrogen oxide reduction system in the McNeil Generating Station in 2008 to cut emissions that pollute the atmosphere. Installing the device allows the plant to sell renewable energy credits to utilities in Connecticut which are required by law in that state to support the development of renewable energy.

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An unusual public-private coalition is on a search for landowners willing to turn their marginal, boggy farm fields back into wetlands. Time is running out, at least for this year. By March 1, the Vermont office of the federal Natural Resources Conservation Service must commit up to $2.5 million to wetlands restoration, or lose access to the money. In 2009, the local office was able to use only $1.5 million of the $6 million available to it.

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Vermont lawmakers and the administration of Gov. Jim Douglas are considering creation of a buyback program to help the owners of the polluting furnaces to replace them with cleaner, more efficient units.The New York Department of Environmental Conservation says one outdoor wood boiler creates as much air pollution as 1,000 oil furnaces. The emissions can trigger asthma attacks and, over a longer period, may contribute to heart and lung diseases.

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After eight years in the making, the Nature Conservancy finalized a deal Thursday that adds another 312 acres of forested land to a long list of protected forests in the state. The $850,000 acquisition in Manchester from the Southern Vermont Arts Center is a rich northern hardwood forest located behind the SVAC.

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Jason and Nina Bacons’ land is a local treasure, known best and valued most by the nearby residents of Bristol, Monkton, New Haven and Starksboro. Tt is these local people who finished raising $40,000 in late December to complete purchase of an easement that will protect the Bacon property from development and provide public access forever. In doing so, they have joined the growing ranks of grassroots conservationists — groups of neighbors or townspeople who band together to help protect a farm or a forest or a trail network important to the fabric of their community.

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The Association of Vermont Recyclers and the Northeast Resource Recovery Association announce joint operations effective immediately, with the overwhelming support of both Governing Boards. NRRA will provide financial and administrative support for AVR programming in Vermont, and expand AVR’s public school recycling program offerings to NRRA communities throughout the Northeast.

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WCAX News reports that "the new federal agriculture census says more farms are cropping up around Vermont." According to the census, "there are nearly 7,000 [farms in the state], up 6 percent from the last census in 2002. While the number of dairy farms dropped to 1,200, organic farms are becoming more popular,while other farmers are becoming more diverse in the products they offer." In addition, "the number of vegetable farms increased 20 percent" and "the average age of a farmer rose from 53 to 56."

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Vermont.gov reports that "the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department is advising people who live near caves and mines to expect unusual levels of bat activity as a result of the White Nose Syndrome that is afflicting hibernating bats. Department officials say reports of sick bats have been coming in most recently from residents in Norwich, Thetford, and Strafford, Vermont near the Elizabeth Mine, a site at which tens of thousands of bats hibernate each winter." Currently, the department is collaborating with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and several other state fish and wildlife agencies to "monitor the spread of White Nose Syndrome and to determine the cause of the affliction."

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Vermont Public Radio reports that the Vermont State Park system has set up a Facebook account where "park users can share their favorite parks and their favorite locations and things to do in the parks." Vermont Forest and Parks Commissioner Jason Gibbs hopes the State Park's Facebook friends will help "spread the word about the many opportunities that exist within Vermont's state parks and recruit new visitors."

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Vermont Public Radio reports that Governor Douglas has proposed to close Vermont's environmental laboratory. The proposed cut is in response to the state's $201 million budget shortfall. The laboratory does regular and emergency testing of water, soil and air for toxic materials, and its the closure would save the state $700,000 a year. If the laboratory is closed, "some of the work would end and [some] would be sent to private labs." On Tuesday, six employees urged a legislative committee to keep the lab open, saying Vermont's environmental protection would suffer." The employees also questioned whether the plan would save money or not.

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Vermont Public Radio reports that "the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife is changing the way it manages its fish hatcheries to fight the spread of a deadly fish disease" called viral hemorrhagic septicemia, or VHS. While VHS "has not been found in Vermont," officials believe that "Lake Champlain is at high risk" of infection. As a result, "Vermont will no longer stock fish raised at the fish hatchery in Grand Isle because it gets its water from Lake Champlain. Fish raised there will only be stocked in the lake." Notably, VHS can cause massive die-offs of more than 30 fish species." It was "first detected in Lake Ontario in 2005 and spread throughout the Great Lakes."

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