Riparian Buffer Restoration Completed Along Tributary of the Rock River

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 the Missisquoi Bay Basin.

The restoration site was identified through a riparian planting scoping effort conducted by FCNRCD staff. Situated beside active agricultural land within an impaired watershed, the location represented an important opportunity to improve water quality by reducing phosphorus runoff while also supporting flood resilience, erosion mitigation, carbon sequestration, pollinator habitat, and overall biodiversity.

The project was carried out in partnership with farmers and land stewards George Godin and Johanna Crane-Godin, who generously allowed native vegetation to be reestablished on portions of their property adjacent to working farm fields. Plantings included a diverse mix of bare root trees and shrubs sourced from nurseries in Vermont, New York, and Michigan, in addition to locally harvested willow and alder live stakes collected by FCNRCD staff.

20 students from the 8th grade class at Missisquoi Valley Union Middle School also participated in the planting effort, providing valuable hands-on assistance.

Over the course of several days in April and May, volunteers and staff planted a total of 1,467 stems and 250 live stakes. Species planted included Red Maple, Yellow Birch, Tamarack, Red Osier Dogwood, American Basswood, and many others.

FCNRCD staff will continue stewarding the site for the next three years to help ensure successful establishment of the trees and shrubs and to support the long-term environmental benefits the project will provide to the Missisquoi Bay watershed.

FCNRCD sincerely thanks all project partners and volunteers whose contributions helped make this restoration effort possible.