RANGELEY — A free technical training workshop will be held Tuesday, Aug. 8, at the Maine Forestry Museum.
The workshop will focus on the proper installation and maintenance of road/stream crossing structures to prevent erosion and to enhance water quality and fish passage.
The workshop will also include forest management strategies to benefit a variety of birds and other wildlife.
The training, hosted by Maine Audubon, in partnership with the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Maine Forest Service, will start with a classroom session at 10 a.m. at the museum and move outside a for a bring-your-own brown-bag lunch and discussion.
After lunch, several field sites in the Androscoggin River watershed will be visited to look at real crossing structures and forest habitat settings. The workshop will conclude at 2:30 p.m.
Landowners, including woodlot and camp owners, as well as lake and road association members, road construction contractors, loggers, foresters and forestland managers, will benefit from attending the free workshop. Others interested in habitat connectivity, stream restoration, fisheries management and Forestry For Maine Birds are encouraged to participate.
During the classroom session, Ben Naumann, Natural Resources Conservation Service fisheries biologist, will provide information about the importance of stream connectivity for fish and wildlife movement, major types of barriers to fish passage created by road/stream crossings, and how replacing these barriers can restore fish and wildlife habitat connections, improve habitat quality, and protect roads and public safety.
Tom Gilbert, Maine Forest Service water resources specialist, will discuss road-stream crossing best management practices, sizing and installing road stream crossings, and design strategies to achieve fish passage. Susan Gallo, wildlife biologist with Maine Audubon, will discuss strategies for managing a woodlot with forest birds in mind.
The field part of the training will give participants a firsthand look at crossing structures in the Androscoggin River watershed and introduce participants to how to do a quick habitat assessment of their woodlot. A variety of sites will be visited to learn how future road washouts and flooding can be prevented by using road-stream crossing structures that allow the free passage of water during major storms.
Participants will be introduced to information on how to manage their woodlots adjacent to streams to provide high quality habitat for birds and other wildlife. In addition, Natural Resources Conservation Service programs that provide technical and financial help for landowners to implement conservation practices – such as effective road/stream crossings and improved management for wildlife habitat – will be highlighted and shared.
Preregistration is required for the free technical training workshop. Continuing education credits are available for licensed foresters.
FMI, pre-register: 207-781-2330, ext. 219; amcguirk@maineaudubon.org.
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