Arlington Land Stewards

Upcoming Events of Note

Saturday, April 24, 10am to 2pm - Meadowbrook Park Work Party
We've scheduled this year's cleanup of Meadowbrook Park for Saturday, April 24, 10am to 2pm. Come one and all. Bring mud boots, sun hat and gloves. Garbage bags, too.
Enter the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery at Sachem Ave off Mystic St (Rte 3). Go left and then right over the Mill Brook bridge and turn left onto Brook Ave. There is an opening in the fence to the wetland. It's always interesting to see what's washed down through Arlington each year. Cori Beckwith, Administrator, Arlington Conservation Commission, 781-316-3012.

Arlington Land Stewards Meeting on March 29 Report

Over thirty people gathered together to talk about and plan land stewardship activities in Arlington.

The biggest news item was the creation of the Arlington Conservation Stewardship Fund through the Arlington Land Trust which will provide some financial support for our activities. More information is in this PDF file, and donation forms are in this PDF file.

Another item of interest is that the artist Suzanne McLeod will be having an outdoor art project in the Mt. Gilboa conservation lands during May. More specifics can be found at her website: http://home.comcast.net/~61madison/wsb/html/view.cgi-home.html-.html

To keep in touch with Arlington Land Stewardship Activities please join our Yahoo email list. To join, send an email to: ArlingtonLandStewards-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Conservation Lands

Arlington has approximately 30 acres of Conservation Land. Most of this land is in small parcels scattered throughout the town. Who takes care of this land? The resources of Town government are limited and the responsibility is spread throughout many departments. Many of these parcels are not visible from roadways and are never subject to police patrol. Under these conditions, a sustained involvement on the part of concerned Town residents is essential for proper care of the land.

For this reason, the Arlington Conservation Commission (ACC) is sponsoring the Arlington Conservation Land Stewards (ACLS) group to provide support and guidance for citizen volunteers who will take an active role in the protection of public land. By working with this group, the effectiveness of individual actions will be multiplied several fold and the long-term continuity of stewardship efforts will be assured.

What is Land Stewardship?

The primary thrust of the stewardship program is protection: soil from erosion, plants and animals from destruction, ponds and streams from pollution, and the beauty of the land from litter and vandalism. Stewards may contribute to this protection by reporting issues and problems to the appropriate Town officials and, when safe and appropriate, speaking directly to known offenders.

A second important objective of the program is education of the public concerning the value of the land and their responsibilities toward it. Unfortunately abuses of public land often occur through ignorance or thoughtlessness. This is especially true with regard to young people. Yet, typically, many offenders become enthusiastic and responsible users of conservation land when provided with proper guidance. However land stewards should not consider themselves as enforcers, but rather as educators.

Finally, land stewards may undertake actions in order to correct a situation. Such action may involve erosion control projects, clean-up campaigns, posting of regulations, and similar efforts.

Resource Links

Becoming a Conservation Land Steward

For more information about the land stewards program: E-mail the administrator, Cory Beckwith, at CBeckwith@town.arlington.ma.us Or call the office at 781-316-3012.

Land Stewards Email List

We maintain a low volume email list for the Arlington Land Stewards at Yahoo.

Visit our discussion group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ArlingtonLandStewards/

To join, send an email to ArlingtonLandStewards-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Page updated: 03/31/2004