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On Thursday, July 23rd, 2026 Franklin County NRCD hosted our 4th Annual Missisquoi River Fishing Festival with the support of our partners: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Champlain Valley Trout Unlimited, Enosburgh Conservation Commission, Missisquoi River Basin Association, Lake Champlain Basin Program, and the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. This family-friendly event invites people of all ages to celebrate fishing in Franklin County. Featuring a variety of stat

The watershed that surrounds and contributes water to Lake Champlain covers more than 8,000 square miles and is home to over half a million people. Roads, houses, lawns, driveways, agricultural fields, and other developed lands can potentially contribute pollution to Lake Champlain. However, every property has an opportunity to reduce its impact on water quality and support the health of local rivers, streams, and lakes. Voluntary property assessments through the Stream Wise

On Wednesday, August 19th, 2026, 37 participants joined staff from the Intervale Conservation Nursery and Riparian Lands Native Seed Partnership, as well as the Franklin County NRCD, US Fish & Wildlife Service Partners for Fish & Wildlife Program, Vermont Agency of Agriculture (CREP Program), and the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department to learn about and discuss innovative approaches to riparian buffers. This event was the third in a series of Innovative Riparian Buffer Worksh

Iconic. Loveable. Engineers. All words used by many to describe Vermont's beavers. They are large semiaquatic rodents. In fact, they are the second-largest living rodents, after Capybaras, weighing up to 110 pounds! They form monogamous, lifelong pairs and will have 1 to 4 kits each spring. Kits will stay with their parents for up to two years before establishing their own colonies to begin the cycle again. Beavers spend their lifetimes (roughly 10-12 years in the wild) mai

The Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District (FCNRCD) seeks proposals from engineering consultants regarding final design along the Trout River floodplain in Montgomery, VT, as part of the Final Design phase of a proposed floodplain restoration project overseen by FCNRCD; this project involves 3 distinct sites with 5 different landowners. Funding is provided by the Missisquoi Bay Basin Clean Water Service Provider which has publicly available minutes and agenda

FRANKLIN, VT -- In June 2026, the Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District (FCNRCD) completed final design for a project that proposes to restore a segment of Westcott Brook, located on the western side of Lake Carmi in Franklin, VT. FCNRCD partnered with Fitzgerald Environmental Associates (FEA) and Hartgen Archeological Associates to complete the final design and submit relevant permitting applications. The project site is located on the lakeward side of Rile

2026 Tree Planting and Sale Intern Reflection by Bryan Dougherty Some people (myself) call me the “tree mule.” As a tree mule, you are tasked with spending most of your 40 hour weeks digging in the mud, planting trees. To some, this may seem like a dirty, strenuous, and tiring job. Those people would be right, and that’s exactly what I love about it. My name is Bryan Dougherty and I have been working with the Franklin County NRCD this Spring as a Tree Planting and Sales Inter

FRANKLIN, VT -- The Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District (FCNRCD) has completed a 3.4-acre riparian buffer restoration project along a tributary to the Rock River, which flows into Rock River Bay, an arm of Missisquoi Bay. The project was funded through the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation’s Clean Water Initiative Program (CWIP), via the Northwest Regional Planning Commission (NRPC) in its role as the Clean Water Service Provider (CWSP) for

BAKERSFIELD, VT -- The Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District (FCNRCD) has completed a 1.5-acre riparian buffer restoration project along two tributaries to Cooks Brook in the Missisquoi River watershed. The project was funded through the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation’s Clean Water Initiative Program (CWIP), via the Northwest Regional Planning Commission (NRPC) in its role as the Clean Water Service Provider (CWSP) for the Missisquoi Bay Ba

BAKERSFIELD, VT – The Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District, Stone Environmental, and others, have completed a four-year monitoring study in Bakersfield at the former location of the Johnsons Mill Dam along the Bogue Branch. This study, funded by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under assistance agreement (LC 00A00707-0) to NEIWPCC in partnership with the Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP), included annual monitoring of various physical an

What is the Board of Supervisors? Natural Resources Conservation Districts (District) work on everything from helping farmers implement conservation practices to restoring streams and improving water quality. With so many projects, partnerships, and community needs to balance, who helps set the direction? The answer is the Board of Supervisors—the local leaders who guide the District's work and ensure it continues to meet the needs of the community. Within Vermont, each Dist

FAIRFIELD, VT -- The Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District (FCNRCD) has successfully completed a riparian buffer restoration project along Black Creek, a major tributary of the Missisquoi River. Funding for this project was provided by the Vermont DEC Clean Water Initiative Program (CWIP), via the Northwest Regional Planning Commission (NRPC) acting as the Clean Water Service Provider (CWSP) for the Missisquoi Bay Basin. The 2.5-acre restoration project was

The Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District, in partnership with Redstart, and with funding provided from the Northwest Regional Planning Commission acting as the Missisquoi Bay Basin Clean Water Service Provider with funds from Vermont DEC Clean Water Initiative Program (CWIP), is advancing a project for the installation of strategic wood additions across headwater streams on private property in Montgomery and Belvidere, VT. The design includes installing app

On clear days after snowy nights, wildlife tracks can be seen and studied. The size, shape, and distance between footsteps all give valuable clues as to who was heading where, how fast they were moving, and what that animal might be doing within their habitat. During the winter, FCNRCD staff use these clues to help landowners determine what wildlife is using their property. With that knowledge, along with habitat characteristics, the FCNRCD team helps landowners determine how

Why does FCNRCD plant trees? Here at Franklin County NRCD, we get very busy working outside in the spring and summer! From site visits, community engagement events, and tree plantings, our team works hard to improve water quality and promote conservation in Franklin County! You can reliably find our team planting tree saplings along streams each April and May across Franklin County. These plantings are designed to expand the riparian buffer, the band of diverse, woody vegetat