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The Pioneer Valley Watershed is one of the ecological entities that connect the towns in Franklin County. The Connecticut River itself is a U.S. Fish and Wildlife refuge, a designated national river, and at its mouth, an Estuary of International Significance. Using this important watershed as a unifying theme, students and their teachers will begin a detailed exploration of the watershed and its rich ecological and natural history, touching on many aspects of physical and biological science contained in the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework. The data they collect will add to the available information about this major watershed.
The Atlantic Salmon Egg Rearing Program
(ASERP) is a cooperative environmental education program designed to promote
an
understanding of fisheries restoration and management and hands on watershed
stewardship through experiential learning. ASERP is coordinated by the Trout
Unlimited, The MA Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, and the US Fish and
Wildlife Service.. Students and teachers will incubate and hatch Atlantic
salmon
egg, and manage production of their salmon fry using predic
tive
development indices. Students, their parents, teachers and community members
will release their salmon, part of the millions released in the four-state
program. The release of salmon in community streams opens opportunities for
assessment of a variety of environmental parameters including habitat,
collection of data pertaining to water quality, biodiversity, land use,
contamination and pollution.
The ASERP empowers student and community
ownership for the salmon they have produced and for the habitat that they
need.
It often generates unexpected results: students write letters to the editor
of
their local paper; they serve as junior clerk of the works for con
struction
projects in town that may impact stream sedimentation; they organize stream
clean-ups; students are interviewed by the news media; students post
information
on their school websites; and, students identify problems with town water
treatment protocols. Mostly, students engender value for their local rivers
and
for the fish and bugs and other plants and wildlife within and around those
waters.
PowerPoint Presentations by Brian AdamsAtlantic Salmon Egg Rearing Program (ASERP) USGS Water Resources of the US WPX Weather from UNISYS Premier site for weather maps and forecasts Connecticut River Watershed Council Water Science for Schools Activities, data etc (USGS) NASA's Global Hydrology and Climate Center Weather satellite images; infrared, water vapor National Water Information System USGS Water Data for Massachusetts USGS Massachusetts-Rhode Island Water Science Center Local stream flow data