Tag: DCR

  • Meeting Minutes: February 5, 2008

    Meeting Minutes: February 5, 2008

    Next Meeting: Tuesday March 4, 2008 at 7:30. Present were Erica Uramkin, Vaunita Schnell, John Mordes, and Brian Yates. Erica reported that there were no critical issues at the Reservation. More importantly she reported that she engaged NStar electric to work with DCR and the electricity is back on in the Stone Building. She is…

  • New DCR Commissioner

    On Wednesday, May 23, 2007, Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles named Richard Sullivan, currently mayor of Westfield, to be Commissioner of the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). He takes office June 11.

  • The Restoration of Echo Bridge: 2007 Documentation

    The Restoration of Echo Bridge: 2007 Documentation

    The Rehabilitation of Echo Bridge in the Hemlock Gorge Reservation has been a long term concern of the Friends. A major restoration of the stone work was completed in 1992, and the Echo Platform was repaired and restored in 2004, but restoration of the Railings remains to be done. An early cost estimate was provided…

  • Echo Bridge Legislative News: 2006

    Echo Bridge Legislative News: 2006

    April 29, 2006 Friends’ President Brian Yates has announced that $250,000 for restoration of the railings along the Promenade have been included in the House budget. Support for the appropriation appears strong in the Senate. We will keep you advised. June 15, 2006 $250,000 for the “Echo Bridge Safety Project”  was included in the House…

  • Stone Building Floor Installed

    Stone Building Floor Installed

    As announced previously, The Friends of Hemlock Gorge succeeded in our application for a Public-Private Partnership with the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). The Friends earmarked $2500 for a new floor and other repairs to the Stone Building, and that amount was matched by the DCR. On February 23, we were notified by the…

  • Report on the Adelgids and Ladybugs in Hemlock Gorge

    Final Report Pseudoscymnus tsugae Release Hemlock Gorge 2001-2005 Background: The Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) (formerly the Department of Environmental Management) was approached by the Friends of Hemlock Gorge regarding the possible release of the predatory ladybird beetle (Pseudoscymnus tsugae) for the control of an infestation of Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA) (Adelges tsugae) at…

  • Annual Letter to Members, 2005

    Annual Letter to Members, 2005

    As 2005 draws to a close, we again write to update you on the activities of the Friends. In addition, we appeal to you to renew your membership and your personal and financial commitment to our activities in 2006.

  • Quinobequin Road News: 2005

    Some 12 years age the Friends suggested to the MDC, now the DCR, that something to control off road traffic on the section of Quinobequin road just downriver from Hemlock Gorge would be desirable to prevent vehicles from degrading the riverbank. We initially suggested a wood railing, but later, after hearing from neighbors, we thought…

  • Governor Romney merges the former MDC into a new Department of Conservation and Recreation

    Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney’s proposal to eliminate the Metropolitan District Commission has been accepted by the Legislature and signed into law as part of the fiscal Year 2004 budget. However, the Metropolitan Park Commission’s spirit lives on. A new Department of Conservation and Recreation has been created in the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs. It…

  • 2001 Ladybug Release

    2001 Ladybug Release

    May 2, 2001 The long struggle to save the trees in Hemlock Gorge reached a turning point at 2:30 on Wednesday, May 2, 2001. At that time Massachusetts state forester Charlie Burnham and site supervisor Kevin Hollenbeck released the first of 10,000 ladybugs grown during the winter to combat the Woolly Adelgid. The insects, black,…