Volume 4, Issue 3 performance measure snapshot Quarter 1-4: For activities occurring Sept 1, 2015 - July 31, 2016

Leaflet Summer 2016 Newsletter

The

Core Project Components

Performance Measure Goal Reported Progress

RIVERS & TRAILS

Miles Treated or Created 150 123 82%

Miles Improved 100 117 117%

PUBLIC LANDS

Acres Treated 50 90 180%

Acres Improved 40 87 218%

VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT

Volunteers Recruited 1,500 2,497 166%

Hours Served 7,000 16,519 236%

CONSERVATION EDUCATION

Individuals Educated 14,000 19,880 142%

Individuals Receiving Disaster Mitigation Services

30 94 313% DISASTER SERVICES Individuals Trained in

Disaster Preparedness 100 224 224%

CAPACITY BUILDING

# of Capacity Building Activities Completed

20 23 115%

Inside this issue:

2015-2016 Accomplishments

1

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Training

1

2015-2016 Trainings and Service Day Summaries

2-4

Project Conserve Contact and Mission

6

2016 Host Site and Member Recruitment Schedule

6

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)

3/11/16-3/14/16

Members of the Project Conserve Disaster Response Team participated in CERT training in mid March after winter weather disrupted plans for a late January training. The rescheduled training took place at the West Buncombe Fire Department in Asheville.

AmeriCorps members from Project Conserve and Project POWER (AmeriCorps program of Children First/ Communities in Schools) were trained to assist others in their community in the event of a disaster when professional responders are not immediately available to help. They are also encouraged to take a more direct role in community emergency preparedness projects to support a more educated and prepared community at large.

The training was lead by Samantha Royster, NC CERT Program Manager for NC Environmental Management..

Outdoor Skills Peer Training

3/14/2016

By Dana Bradley

We were lucky enough to have the training at Guion Farm in the beautiful Dupont State Forest. This training, put together by Jack Henderson, Spencer Scheidt, Richard Barnhart, and myself, was filled with fun activities. The training covered 3 topics: Leave No Trace, orienteering, and sustainable trails.

The Leave No Trace (LNT) portion of the training was led by Ruby Compton, Summer Camp Program Director at Green River Preserve. She was full of energy and incorporated lots of activities that were hands-on, informative, and full of humor.

2015 – 2016 Trainings and Service Days

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This made her training fun and helped everyone to remember the 7 Principles of LNT and the 7 D's.

The next topic covered was orienteering. Jack described to everyone how to read topographic maps and how to interpret all the symbols on the map. Next, Spencer taught the group how to use a compass. He discussed how to orient a map and use the map and compass together to determine the direction you need to travel. After practicing, everyone was eager to try out their new orienteering skills. Everyone was divided up into 4 groups. Each group was given the task of locating a point on the map. This required groups to go off-trail on a wooded tract of land that had been recently prescribed burned to reach a summit. After reaching this point, each group then had to use their maps and compasses to decide which direction to head in order to reach the next point marked on the map. The groups navigated from point to point, and then followed flagging to connect back with the trail at the bottom. The groups were rewarded with a spectacular view of Wintergreen Falls after walking a short distance to the end of the trail.

To wrap up the day, Clint Calhoun, Environmental Officer for the Town of Lake Lure, led the group back to the starting point on the trail and along the way, they were able to ask him questions about sustainable trails. Clint was also very knowledgeable about edibles but there were very little to be seen since the area had been burned just a week before the training.

The Outdoor Skills peer training is always one of my favorites and I am glad that it turned out so well this year. I really enjoyed being a part of this training and hope everyone else enjoyed it, as well. Special thanks to all the AmeriCorps Project Conserve members for being willing to go off-trail and get a little dirty!

National Volunteer Week Service Day 4/15/16

By Katie Hargrove

Project Conserve members, alongside community volunteers, spent April 15th celebrating National Volunteer Week revitalizing the Holmes Educational State Forest (HESF). This service day was organized by myself, Ericka Berg, Anna Alsobrook and Kate Nelson. Volunteers were split into four teams to accomplish projects. Projects included repairing the educational fire control exhibit which features an helicopter display, improving a hiking trail, improving the grounds by trimming trees and restoring culverts, and enhancing the Holmes pollinator garden.

Volunteers and AmeriCorps members enjoyed their lunches at the large picnic shelter. A fire was made from the twigs and limbs that were trimmed earlier that morning. During lunch Amy Kinsella, Holmes Education Ranger, talked about the picnic shelter and how it and the campground can be reserved by the public free of charge. After we wrapped up the service projects, Amy lead a wildflower walk along the Talking Tree Trail. There we saw and learned about a plethora of wildflowers including trilliums, windflower, star chickweed and bloodroot.

HESF is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains near DuPont State Forest. The forest features scenic views, rock outcroppings and rugged terrain. A wide mix of vegetation can be seen in the property with plants such as mountain hardwoods, rhododendron, flame azaleas and a variety of wildflowers. HESF is meant to be used as an outdoor classroom. The purpose of the forest is to teach children and adults about the complex, interdependent ecosystems which make up the forest and which can be managed for many uses. Groups can come to visit the Forest and take a class designed to meet various science and social studies curriculum guidelines. Self-guided tours are also possible at Holmes. There are many well marked trails that feature exhibits and displays depicting the ecology of the managed forest.

2015 – 2016 Trainings and Service Days

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America’s PrepareAthon May 7, 2016

By Amanda McManaway

This service project was organized by myself, Chelsea Rath, Julia Wochos, and Amy Schmitte in collaboration with the Asheville-Mountain Area Chapter of the American Red Cross and the Asheville Fire Department. It makes sense that our participation in America’s PrepareAthon began with preparation. The ultimate goal for the day was to educate 100 homeowners on fire safety and check or install smoke detectors in each home.

On Tuesday, May 3rd, a dozen AmeriCorps Project Conserve members gathered in the Red Cross office to collect maps and pre-canvassing materials. Then, we all set out with door hangers and information for

AmeriCorps Day May 20, 2016

By Leah Handwerger

It was a cloudy Friday morning as I walked along the grassy hill to meet with my group-mates, Haley Smith and Sarah Coury. We had spent months planning our service day, where we invited members of Project Conserve and Project POWER both stationed in WNC to help maintain Malvern Hills Park in West Asheville. Back in 2008, RiverLink had received a grant to fund a stream restoration project along Buttermilk Creek, the small tributary that flows through the park and into the nearby Hominy Creek. The restoration project realigned the stream channel and stabilized its steep and eroding streambanks. The grant also funded the construction of multiple stormwater BMPs (Best Management Practices) to help treat stormwater runoff before it enters the creek.

We had invited guest speaker, called by locals “Brotherhug”, to speak to our group about the history of the developing greenway system in downtown Asheville. He is an incredibly motivated individual, who started the small nonprofit, Friends of the Hominy Creek Greenway, which encourages greenway development along the Hominy Creek, one of the most contaminated tributaries to the French Broad River.

We had four teams working throughout the park: an invasive species crew working along the riparian buffer of Buttermilk Creek, a trash cleanup and stormdrain stenciling group to clear stormdrains and raise awareness of where stormwater flows, a bioswale rehabilitation crew to help restore and prep a stormwater BMP for planting, and a pollinator garden group to help Bee City Asheville plant flowers that attract native pollinators. Despite a few raindrops, our work day was a great success. It was incredibly fulfilling to be able to unite forces with Project POWER and work on maintaining the health of Malvern Hills Park and Buttermilk Creek.

homeowners to let them know we would be knocking on their doors on Saturday to educate about fire safety and install smoke detectors, as needed. After the pre-canvassing was complete, the AmeriCorps members headed back to the Red Cross office to prepare the materials for the main event.

On Saturday, May 7th, Red Cross volunteers, AmeriCorps Project Conserve members, and firefighters with the Asheville Fire Department gathered in an elementary school cafeteria in West Asheville. Teams were split up, each given a backpack, radio, maps, waivers, smoke detectors, and installation equipment. We all set out, knocking on doors, educating the public on fire safety, and installing smoke alarms. The day passed quickly and before we knew it, it was time to gather back up in the school cafeteria to turn in all of our materials and paperwork. We all departed with a sense of accomplishment. At the end of the day, the Red Cross reported that we had collectively installed 201 smoke alarms in more than 67 homes , making this the most successful event of its kind in the western half of North Carolina to date!

The Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy recognizes the need to build community awareness and understanding of hazards that could affect them and to provide WNC residents with tools and resources to be more prepared for a disaster. As such, AmeriCorps Project Conserve has made it a goal of the program to provide disaster preparedness training and disaster mitigation services to the community.

2015 – 2016 Trainings and Service Days

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Disaster Mitigation Service Days June 22 & 24, 2016

In 2015, more than 62 acres were scorched in the North Mills River area within 2 miles of Mr. John Humphrey ‘s home (pictured on right). Roughly 25 homes were threatened in the blaze, but luckily none were damaged. Homes like his fall within an area known as the Wildland/Urban Interface (WUI) - areas where homes and communities meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland vegetation. Homes built in these areas are at a higher risk of being destroyed by wildfire. Perhaps surprisingly, a 2000 study showed North Carolina ranks number 1 in the US for the amount of land area that falls inside WUI zones.

16 Project Conserve members braved the summer heat to help mitigate the impact of wildfire to Mr. Humphrey’s home on June 22. Members removed and treated non-native invasive plants, reducing brush and laddering (a process in which destructive fire travels into tree canopies via vines) within 200 feet of his home, and thinned a dense stand of young trees, reducing fuel loads if a fire were to develop there.

On June 24th, Members removed Kudzu (Pueraria), a vigorous non-native invasive vine originally from Asia, from an area in the floodplain of the Swannanoa River in Asheville. Native plant populations are essential to slowing floodwaters and reducing erosion in these areas. Removing the vegetation is one step in restoring a native ecosystem. The next step will be replanting native species and active management. The crown must be removed and destroyed to prevent regrowth of Kudzu. Some vines can grow to tremendous sizes (pictured to the left).

Water Quality & Ecology Peer Training June 6, 2016

By Chrissy Cochran

The only thing more important then water is oxygen, which is necessary to even

make up a water molecule. Literally every life on earth depends on this limited

resource and most of all we rely on that water to be clean. Many of us take for

granted that we have multiple sinks in our house that flow out clean water, but do

we even know the process and energy it takes to make clean water? On June 6th,

Project Conserve members spent the day touring the Asheville Water Treatment

Plant located in Mills River and learning to biomonitor the Mills River.

We began at the Water Treatment Plant to experience the process of

transforming surface water into potable drinking water. This newer treatment

plant has adapted an old practice of using ozone to disinfect drinking water instead

of just relying on chlorination and other chemicals. Although this seems like the

best way to disinfect water without using as many chemicals in the water we drink,

it’s not an easy process and requires lots of electricity.

Afterwards, we headed down to the Mills River and met up with Eric Romaniszyn, Executive Director of the Haywood Waterways

Association, to learn how to use aquatic benthic macroinvertebrates to monitor water quality. By taking an inventory of what kind of

aquatic insect larvae found, we can determine the quality of the water without the use of heavy lab equipment or chemicals. There are

three main methods of collection: kick netting, leaf packing, and flipping over rocks. Each method requires superb observation skills to

search for the presence of aquatic macroinvertebrates. After collecting many different types, we identified and sorted them in specific

pollution tolerant groups. The more pollution sensitive species, bioindicators, found indicates cleaner water and therefore can tell you a

story about this specific spot of the river. This bio-monitoring project is practiced in many organizations on many rivers around the

country to help indicate the quality of the water with the help of many volunteers.

If you would like more information on how to volunteer please log on to www.haywoodwaterways.org/volunteer.html

“The care of rivers is not a question of rivers, but of the human heart.”

- Tamaka Shozo

2015 – 2016 Trainings and Service Days

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Agriculture Peer Training July 11, 2016

By Gillian Scruggs

“There are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery, and the other that heat comes from the furnace.”

-- Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac Though we sing about the "amber waves of grain" of the Midwest and "the fruited plains" of the West Coast, some people don't realize that farmland in the U.S. has been diminishing, and our heritage as farmers is dwindling along with it. According to the American Farmland Trust, we lose about 40 acres of farmland an hour to sprawling development. We invest money into transporting food on highway systems, some of which have paved the very fertile lands that used to grow local food in the first place. One solution to the looming crisis is to support the small family farms and preserve the farmland to keep it in the hands of farmers. For our final AmeriCorps peer training we decided to celebrate the growing season by touring some sustainable farms that are providing solutions to the local food movement in Western North Carolina. The SAHC's Community Farm, donated to the Conservancy in 2010, serves as an incubator for new farm businesses, and models sustainable and environmental management. We toured Second Spring Market Garden, the current vegetable farm operation in the incubator program. We peeked into high and low tunnels, which were bursting with a wide variety of greens. Haley Smith, the SAHC's Conservation Education and Volunteer Outreach Coordinator (and fellow AmeriCorps Service Member) lead us on a hike around the property. We munched on freshly picked blackberries while she explained the Conservancy's efforts to manage and protect the farmland with stream and shortleaf pine forest restoration projects. After the hike, we ate a potluck lunch comprised of locally sourced dishes, learned a new game for teaching children about composting, and had a discussion with former Project Conserve graduate Patrick McClendon about his experience starting a brand new nonprofit in Polk County, Growing Rural Opportunities (GRO)….Click here to read the full article

2015-2016 Graduation July 29, 2016

Our AmeriCorps Celebration and Graduation was held at The Park at Flat Rock, located in Flat Rock, NC. AmeriCorps members and supervisors, as well as Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy staff , board, and volunteers attending the event. We shared in reflection, celebration, lunch, and games. Thanks to everyone who made the 2015-2016 program year a success!

From upper left to

bottom right: Our

Graduation Speakers:

Preston Welker (AC at

EQI), Ridge Graham

(AC at Appalachian

Voices), Amy Annino

(Supervisor at River

Link), Jesse Wood (AC

at SAHC), and Maria

Wise (Supervisor at

mills River Partnership.

Group poses for one

last photo together

after a giant game of

Capture the Flag.

Do you know someone interested in becoming an AmeriCorps Project

Conserve Member?

Service descriptions and application instructions will be available at the end of March!

PROJECT CONSERVE ALUMNI

The mission of AmeriCorps Project Conserve is to serve western North

Carolina by building stronger, more educated and involved communities

that understand the threats to their local environment, are equipped with

the tools and resources to take direct conservation action, and have signifi-

cant opportunities to engage in conservation activities through volunteer-

ing. Through the efforts of these dedicated communities and the direct

service of AmeriCorps Project Conserve members, we hope to ultimately

increase the amount of land and habitat conserved, protect and enhance

water quality, and support energy conservation throughout the region.

Amy Stout, Program Director projectconserve@carolinamountain.org 828-697-5777, ext. 208

Kristen Lee, Program Coordinator kristen@carolinamountain.org 828-697-5777, ext. 213

AmeriCorps Project Conserve Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy 847 Case Street Hendersonville, NC 28792 Phone: 828-697-5777 Fax: 828-697-2602 E-mail: projectconserve@carolinamountain.org.

AmeriCorps Project Conserve is administered by Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy and funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service, the North Carolina Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service in the office of Governor Pat McCrory, and the critical support of our host sites and community partners.

AmeriCorps engages more than 75,000 members in intensive service annually to serve through nonprofit, faith-based, and community organizations at 25,000 locations across the country. These members help communities tackle pressing problems while mobilizing millions of volunteers for the organizations they serve. Since 1994, more than 900,000 Americans have provided more than 1.2 billion hours of service to their communities and country through AmeriCorps.

For more information, visit NationalService.gov. AmeriCorps is a program of the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages more than 5 million Americans in service through its AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, Social Innovation Fund, and Volunteer Generation Fund programs, and leads the President's national call to service initiative, United We Serve.

www.americorpsprojectconserve.org

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Hey, Project Conserve ALUMNI!!

We miss you and would love to know what you’re up to! Please contact us by emailing projectconserve@carolinamountain.org

and give us a shout! Please be sure to include:

your current and updated contact information

host site and service year(s)

current job/ position title/ location

and any other exciting news you’d like to share!