White Mountains Community College News
Students from the WMCC Littleton Academic Center Environmental Issues Class Organize Earth Day Events
What is it like "living off the grid"?Will biomass energy benefit North Country forests and economies?
Where does our trash go, and what happens when it gets there?
What does it look like when nature reclaims an abandoned town?
How will climate change affect the Northern Forest?
These questions and more will be explored through a weekend of Earth Day events at the Appalachian Mountain Club's Highland Center at Crawford Notch from April 17-19. Students from White Mountains Community College have organized a series of field trips and guest presentations to explore environmental issues in the North Country that will feature visits to the Bethlehem Landfill, an off-the-grid homestead in Groveton, the Northern Forest Heritage Park in Berlin, and several abandoned towns of the White Mountains. Evening presentations will focus on current issues such as climate change and AMC conservation initiatives. All events are free and open to the public. The schedule is as follows:
"The Bethlehem Landfill Controversy." Friday, April 17th, 12 p.m. - 4 p.m. Participants will tour the Bethlehem landfill to learn how waste is managed, and then meet with community members who have fought the landfill's proposed expansion. Led by WMCC student Sarah Fregeau, this trip will explore what happens when we throw things "away" - and what if "away" is in someone else's backyard.
"AMC Research and Conservation Initiatives" with Dr. David Publicover. Friday, April 17th, 8 p.m. You may be familiar with AMC's trail work and outdoor education programs, but did you know that the organization also conducts research on land conservation, wind power, dam relicensing, air quality, and alpine flora? AMC Staff Scientist Dr. David Publicover will explore these issues and discuss how participants can get involved in AMC's "Mountain Watch" citizen science program.
"Living off the Grid" and "The Future of Biomass." Saturday, April 18th, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. This day-long event will travel throughout the North Country to explore small- and large-scale alternative energy options. In the morning, WMCC student Jessica Willis will take participants "off the grid" to explore backyard wind and solar power. In the afternoon, the group will tour the Northern Forest Heritage Park in Berlin and visit the site of a proposed biomass project, where WMCC student Oriana Guindon will discuss how biomass energy could transform the region's forest ecology and economy.
"Climate Change and the Northern Forest" with Dr. Barry Rock. Saturday, April 18th, 8 p.cm. The scientific community has reached consensus that global climate change is happening, and will have dramatic ecological and human consequences in the twenty-first century. How will climate change affect forest and mountain environments in the Northeast? What impacts will it have on local economies that depend on tourism, recreation, and natural resources? Dr. Barry Rock from the University of New Hampshire will present his findings from over a decade of research on these issues. Rock coordinated a New England regional survey of climate change impacts, and is the lead author and editor of the 2001 report Preparing for a Changing Climate: New England Regional Overview of the Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change.
"Abandoned Towns of the White Mountains" with David Govatski. Sunday, April 19th, 9 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. In recent years, journalists and filmmakers have explored a post-apocalyptic vision of "the world without us," asking the question: When humans disappear, ho long does it take for nature to reclaim the landscape? It turns out that question can be answered right in our own backyard. White Mountain historian David Govatski will lead an intriguing journey through time to explore the artifacts that remain of nineteenth-century logging communities that have now returned to forest. You won't believe your eyes!
For more information on these programs, please contact WMCC instructor Liz Mills at 603-631-1198 or e-mail emills@ccsnh.edu. All events meet at the AMC Highland Center at Crawford Notch, Route 302, Bretton Woods, New Hampshire. Please contact Ms. Mills to reserve a seat in the van for off-site field trips. Evening presentations on Friday and Saturday do not require reservations. For directions to the Highland Center, please call (603) 278-4453 or visit www.outdoors.org.
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