Wildlands Brushes Up on Outdoor Safety

Wildlands staff and volunteers work through a staged medical emergency scenario during the wilderness first aid class.

Wildlands staff and program volunteers recently had the opportunity to learn basic CPR/first aid and wilderness first aid from Dan Badger of Badger Wilderness Guides, “an outdoor and experiential education and  support service.”[1] Badger, a former US Army Ranger, is a certified instructor for various medical and rescue programs and agencies.[2] 

The basic CPR/first aid class trained participants in emergency and non-emergency medical situations that may occur in any setting. Those who completed the basic CPR/first aid class were then eligible to attend the wilderness first aid class. Held over the course of two-days, participants worked together through hands-on training scenarios to prepare them to provide effective first aid treatments for injuries and illnesses common in the outdoors.

With summer fast approaching and outdoor programs like The Big Ramble and OkTRAILberfest coming up, our staff and volunteers are ready to lead events that are both enjoyable and safe for all attending.

For more information on our upcoming programs, visit: wildlandstrust.org/events

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[1] http://badgerwildernessguides.org/
[2] http://badgerwildernessguides.org/dan-badger/

Chainsaw School Comes to Wildlands

By Karen Grey

Land Stewardship Coordinator, Tommy Blanchard, working under the direction of chainsaw safety trainer, Bill Girard.

Chainsaws are high speed, fast cutting tools with the potential to cause serious injury and because of that, Wildlands enforces a strict policy for their use on our properties. All Wildlands staff using chainsaws must attain safety certification that requires participation in a 16-hour chainsaw training course. Under normal weather circumstances, Stewardship Director, Erik Boyer, and part-time Land Steward, Owen Grey, both certified chainsaw users, can keep up with Wildlands’ tree work; however, the March 2018 storms were anything but normal. By late March, with an estimated 150 trees needing to be cleaned up, our small Wildlands crew was overwhelmed with work.

“We conducted a rapid assessment of our highly visited properties so we could close down trails with unsafe trees,” said Boyer. “That’s all we could do. We knew we had months of work to do.”

But next time, we will be better prepared! Partnering with Mass Audubon, which was also feeling the pinch of too much tree work and not enough trained staff, we brought in Game of Logging Instructor, William Girard, to hold a 2-day training program at Davis-Douglas Farm. The result: 8 new certified chainsaw users from Mass Audubon and Wildlands Trust.

Brockton Envirothon Team Soars at Competition

Each year since 2015, Wildlands Trust has helped coach the Brockton High School Envirothon team for the annual state competition. This past Friday the team spent the morning at Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park in Uxbridge competing against twenty-four other teams from across the state. Ten students split up to compete in forestry, wildlife, water, and soils before coming back together to present their research on watershed issues in Brockton. For the first time, the team took first place for their presentation, as well as earning third place in forestry!

The team presents their current issue research on watersheds to a panel of judges at the May 18 competition.

Throughout the school year, the team thoroughly investigated the current issue topic “Working with Nature in Watersheds”. They met with climate scientists, city officials, foresters, ecologists, and more at afterschool meetings to help understand the complex watershed issues in Brockton. From the city’s complex drinking water supply issues to green infrastructure initiatives in the Taunton River watershed, these students covered it all.

Taking action, the team assisted Wildlands Trust staff in building a boardwalk over wetlands at Stone Farm Conservation Area to help provide public access to nature while protecting sensitive wetland habitat. Then, they put together a seven-step restoration plan for their school’s degrading Flagg Pond with the help of restoration ecologist Brad Holmes. Step one was to organize a school-wide pond cleanup, where thirty-six students collected enough litter to fill a truck bed. This pond leads directly into West Meadow Brook Pond in West Bridgewater, then to Lake Nippenicket in the Hockomock Swamp, and from there into the Taunton River itself. The rest of the Flagg Pond restoration plan will require a community effort that the school and Wildlands Trust will continue to investigate.

The team assess conditions at Flagg Pond with restoration ecologist Brad Holmes in April

We are very proud of everything the team accomplished this year. While the majority of this year’s students will be graduating in a few short weeks and going off to college, we look forward to coaching another great team starting next fall.  

Congratulations on a job well done!

Canvassing Increases Awareness, Participation for GGCP

Wildlands Trust hits the streets of Brockton to promote Greening the Gateway Cities

Tommy Blanchard and Conor Michaud with a recently planted tree at Brockton City Hall

Spring has launched the new planting season for the Massachusetts Greening the Gateway Cities Program (GGCP) and in Brockton, it’s off to a great start. As of April 27, 611 trees have been planted throughout the city, 179 on public land and 432 on private, putting the program on track to reach its overall goal of planting 2,400 trees within three years. Success will increase canopy cover by 5-10 percent and reduce heating and cooling use and costs for households throughout the planting zone.

Responsible for supporting the program's outreach initiatives, Wildlands’ Community Stewardship Program Coordinator, Conor Michaud, and AmeriCorps member, Tommy Blanchard, have met with community members throughout the planting zone and have received overall positive responses from residents. Many who utilize the program report they first heard of GGCP from a canvasser.

Conor and Tommy will be kicking off their first tabling event of the season at the Plant and Seed Swap at the Frederick Douglass Community Garden on Sunday, May 6, from 12:30–3 p.m. To learn more about the Greening the Gateway Cities Program, stop by their table or visit our website at wildlandstrust.org/greening-the-gateway-cities.

High School Woodworking with Wildlands

On Friday, March 23, 15 high school seniors from Rising Tide Charter Public School in Plymouth took part in a bat box and bench building project hosted by Wildlands at our headquarters. This volunteer event was one of several attended by students as part of an annual Rising Tide field trip day involving community service.

Seniors at Rising Tide build bat homes and benches for Wildlands Trust properties.

Students were given pre-cut pieces of wood and constructed the boxes and benches using power drills. In just over 3 hours, we were able to finish building two benches and 12 bat boxes, and they all came out beautifully! The benches and bat boxes will be installed on several Wildlands preserves at a later date. Before we install the boxes, however, we will paint their exteriors -- bats like a warm environment, so a dark paint will help retain heat.

Thank you, Rising Tide, the project was a huge success and we absolutely loved having you!