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ACTING
ON CONCERN
The Great Meadows
Conservation Trust was incorporated in 1968 by concerned citizens of
Wethersfield, Rocky Hill and Glastonbury
as
a non-profit tax-exempt land trust to protect and preserve the Great
Meadows. We wish to save the floodplain’s vital agricultural, scenic,
archeological and wetland resources, and are committed to work with
like-minded groups and landowners. We are organized to acquire land and
negotiate conservation easements. We interact with state and local
governments about decisions affecting the meadows, believing that the
intrinsic value of the land must be high on the public agenda.
AN OASIS OF GREEN
South of Hartford
the Connecticut River
winds through 4500 acres of open land, the Great
Meadows of Wethersfield, Rocky Hill and
Glastonbury.
This floodplain contains rich farmland, a varied habitat for wildlife
and the largest freshwater marsh in the state. It is an oasis of green
in the urban sprawl of Greater Hartford. Cultivated since prehistoric
times, the farmland with its plentiful water supply is some of the most
valued in the world.
HEED THE WARNING SIGNS
The meadows are
already scarred. Acres have been mined for sand and gravel. Highways and
industrial and urban development have usurped other of its space. There
is vandalism, dumping and misuse of wetlands which can cause irreparable
damage. Pressures to develop in the Great Meadows and along the river
intensify each year. Without action to protect it, this oasis will
disappear.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Trust will
continue to encourage agriculture and compatible recreational use in the
meadows; support archeological and ecological research and be alert to
activity that may cause needless damage. The Trust will work with others
in long-range planning for the Connecticut River
and its environs, believing that wise use of these
resources is vital today and for the generations to come.
STEPS ALONG THE WAY
Since
1968
the
Trust has directly protected a number of key parcels in the Meadows by
purchase, gift
or
easement. The Trust has also taken action...
• in
a successful fight to prevent a horse racing
facility in the Wethersfield
meadows
• to
halt the clear-cutting of one of the last remaining
flood plain forests
• to
have five miles of scenic river valley included in
the Nationwide Rivers Inventory
• as
a cooperator in the purchase of the Rocky Hill
Quarry for a Natural
Heritage
Park
• to
initiate a citizen’s River Watch with the Connecticut
River Watershed Council.
• to
monitor proposals affecting the river and the floodplain. |
