When Jane Stahl began her environmental career in the late 1970s, it was – not surprisingly – a male-dominated field. She did not let this deter her, and worked as an environmental policymaker, regulator and consultant during her career. Notably, she served as deputy commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection for…
During a lakeside event on June 3, the Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP) released an update to its management plan, “Opportunities for Action: An Evolving Plan for the Future of the Lake Champlain Basin.” U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy, representatives from New York, Vermont, and Québec, and EPA officials from Boston and New York City were in…
By Richard Friesner The Clean Water Act (CWA) has fundamentally altered how Americans, and the world, interact with one of our most basic parts of the environment. The definition of “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) provides the basis for the CWA and determines the extent of federal legal jurisdiction for all the other requirements…
By Susan J. Sullivan 1972. Some of you were children, others were environmental advocates and college students, and many not even born. Yet 1972 was the year one of the most important pieces of legislation was enacted by the United States Congress and signed into law by the president. The Clean Water Act (CWA), also…
The Hudson River’s popular and scenic Dockside Park in the village of Cold Spring, New York is the site of a new sustainable shorelines demonstration project. The $1.85 million resiliency project will help Dockside Park withstand severe storms and flooding due to climate change and sea-level rise. The design concepts for these improvements began in…
By Evan Karsberg Each year in Washington, D.C. there is a week-long conference dedicated to what is possibly our single most important resource: water. This year’s National Water Policy Fly-In, held in April, had a particularly powerful impact because we returned to an in-person gathering for the first time since 2019. Every speaker remarked on…
Fifty Years at the Boston Water & Sewer Commission John Sullivan, NEIWPCC commissioner and chief engineer of the Boston Water & Sewer Commission (BWSC), is featured in a new video to commemorate NEIWPCC’s 75th anniversary. Sullivan reflects on his 50-year career at the BWSC, speaking about the challenges of Boston’s water and sewer infrastructure and…
Returning as an in-person event after being held virtually due to the pandemic, the 32nd Annual Nonpoint Source (NPS) Conference was held April 27-28 in Woodstock, Vermont. Acting as a regional forum to share information on NPS pollution issues, research, and related projects, the event drew more than 100 environmental professionals from the private and nonprofit…
Resource managers in Southern New England have a new tool to assess biological conditions and water quality in slow-moving streams. The index of biotic integrity (IBI) uses biomonitoring – the use of organisms such as fish, benthic macroinvertebrates, or algae to measure environmental impacts. The index was developed by NEIWPCC and the Southeastern New England…
Durham, New Hampshire Wastewater Treatment Facility By Nelson Thibault In the late 1970s, I was hired by a New Hampshire consultant engineering firm, Hoyle, Tanner & Associates (HTA), as onsite construction manager for the $7 million expansion and upgrade of the Durham, New Hampshire Wastewater Treatment Facility. Due to the funding, technology, and the politics…