Earth Day Event Will Benefit The Pootatuck River

By Kendra Bobowick

Splashing through the heart of Sandy Hook Center is the Pootatuck River. Slipping over rocky shallows and pooling in deeper pockets, it is a favorite attraction spanned by footbridges and lined with quiet overlooks.

“Everybody loves water. Without it we don’t survive,” said Candlewood Valley Trout Unlimited (CVTU) President and Newtown resident James Belden. “Besides beauty, there is something within us that needs to be near water, we have to have it.”

A flowing river is “a natural resource you can see and feel and touch and enjoy,” he said, “and below is the aquifer.”

The Pootatuck will be the focus of an Earth Day cleanup sponsored by CVTU on April 22. Also participating will be the Sandy Hook Organization for Prosperity (SHOP), helping the CVTU celebrate the 42nd annual Earth Day by cleaning up trash and debris along the riverbanks from 11:30 am until 2 pm.

“We want to get people back by the river. It’s a great excuse to get out there, enjoy the river and do something good,” said Mr Belden.

Volunteers are also needed for the Pootatuck cleanup. Those interested in helping out should meet at the parking lot of St John’s Episcopal Church, 5 Washington Avenue, at 11:30 am. The cleanup will occur rain or shine. Volunteers should wear boots and clothes that can get wet and/or dirty, bring gloves, bug spray, and sunscreen as needed

Representatives will be available to sign forms for students participating in community service. To sign up, contact ann.astarita@cvtu.org.

“It’s a small but important act to draw attention to the Pootatuck River which, with the Pootatuck aquifer, supplies water to a large part of Newtown,” said CVTU member Ann Astarita.

“Unpolluted water sustains human life,” she added. “That in and of itself is a reason to protect it.”

By drawing attention to the river, Ms Astarita hopes to encourage people “to do what they can to conserve and protect water resources.” The water’s protection “is especially important this year because the Pootatuck River currently is running at low summer flows. We are concerned about the potential for drought and what that would mean to the river and to us.”

The Pootatuck

Mr Belden considered the river, which is surrounded by Sandy Hook Center’s main streets.

“It’s the reason why Sandy Hook’s there, actually…” The river first served as a place for people to settle, and later “drove our mills and factories,” he said. A community “sprung up, especially Sandy Hook,” on the river’s banks.

Mr Belden noted that the river and aquifer “supply our drinking water, which is the very center for sustaining a long-lasting healthy community — clean and abundant water.”

The Pootatuck, like other rivers in town including Deep Brook and the Halfway River, also creates a wildlife corridor “that is essential. It is a very well-defined natural resource corridor.”

Unfortunately, “we tend to abuse waterways,” he said. “But we are learning.” Pollution from lawns and septic systems, rainwater runoff, it all impacts waterways, he said.

“Look at the river with the lawns and roads around it and runoff [and pollution] infiltrating the aquifer — these are things we need to worry about,” Mr Belden said.

Water that is pushed off the road and into a pipe never soaks into the ground, which “exacerbates weather patterns,” he pointed out.

Droughts, floods, and changes in weather can also drastically change our water, he said. “We need to do more to counteract our built environment and its impact on the hydrological cycle,” he said.

 “We are learning to manage it. We are learning to have cake and eat it too.” Conservation efforts, zoning regulations, and more, promote cleaner water, he said.

With Earth Day and clean waterways in mind, Ms Astarita said, “If we live close to a pond, brook, or stream, let’s encourage a substantial vegetative border.” Plants, shrubs, and trees established between the water and lawns will create shade and prevent erosion into the water.

Rainwater runoff will also be absorbed, cleaned, and cooled before entering the water, she said. “Let’s clean up after our pets to discourage bacteria from polluting the waterways,” Ms Astarita suggested. She also warned about the use of fertilizers that generate pollutants causing algal blooms, and warmer water, which alters the water habitat.

Newtown’s Earth Day Event

One week later, Newtown’s annual Earth Day Festival will return.

“It’s easy to be green” states a flyer being circulated and posted by Newtown Earth Day Committee, reminding residents to join the celebration on Saturday, April 28, from 10 am to 4 pm, at Newtown Middle School.

Kids’ activities, live music, food, an environmental maze, a silent auction, litter pickup, a vendor fair and more will all be presented, indoors and out.

“It’s the perfect opportunity for learning how to help our community become a bit green,” the announcement states.

Guests will find a full-day of family fun and learning. Proceeds will support an annual green scholarship at Newtown High School.

Learn more at NewtownEarthDay.com.