“This has been one of my family’s favorite hiking spots for the last 20 years or more. I’ve grown up in those woods, on these trails and can’t imagine my life without them. Not only has it been educational learning about the ecosystem and wildlife that resides there but it’s a place of tranquility. To say that I’m opposed to the proposal set forth by the Federal Railroad Administration is an understatement.”
“In doing so it bisects the Frances C. Carter Memorial Reserve. This reserve was completely overlooked in the EIS analysis. The straightening also manages to cut through the Amos Green Farm and the Stoney Hill Cattle Co, which is a 4th Generation Family Farm. It also fills in wetlands at the Burlingame Wild Life Preserve and the Great Swamp Management Area in Kingston. Because the trains already travel at high speeds, it is difficult to see why this expenditure is needed. And the few seconds (if any gained) hardly justify the economic and environmental damage done by rerouting the tracks.”
We are here to defend the natural and human resources that this proposal destroys. This preferred route includes the degradation of homes, farms, our watershed and conserved lands of the Nature Conservancy, local Land Trusts, RIDEM, Tribal and municipalities. We have a legal obligation to object to the sale, degradation or taking of these lands. There are legally binding conservation easements and management plans attached to conserved properties, with the intent of preservation in perpetuity. Perpetuity meaning forever, protected on the basis of common trust and not to be violated.
This short film was created by Carla Ricci, owner of the Amos Greene Farm. The historic Amos Greene Farm is one of the many farms or parklands protected by conservation easements along the path of the proposed train route through Westerly, Charlestown and Richmond. Those easements protect the land from a change of use by future owners, developers, and state and local government. Will they be strong enough to stand up to the state of Rhode Island if the Federal Government is their partner? Where the state holds the easement, they have a legal obligation to enforce the easement – even enforce it against another state agency. Contracts are not always followed, especially when no one is watching, but we are watching and ready to fight!
On December 23, The Wood Pawcatuck Watershed Association released the following statement about the Federal Railroad Administration Plan to create new rail lines in Charlestown and other affected towns. “The […]
Charlestown resident Kevin Tanner has set up a petition at MoveOn.org to let State and Federal officials know there is local opposition to the proposed railway path in Charlestown. The […]
I find that my quality of daily life in Charlestown is most affected by the type of candidates we elect to local office. These candidates have succeeded in public office because they produce public policies that work for the majority of Charlestown residents and focus on the general well being of the public.
In our door to door campaign this fall of talking and listening to voters we have heard consistently that residents feel that the current Town Council and Planning Commission’s goals of preserving the character, the resources and the way of life is what the majority want with little major change. Although we may be of different political parties for Charlestown we are Independents because we all share a common vision for the town. Politics is not the issue, the good of Charlestown is the driver.
Following an extensive public process, and with overwhelming public support, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has finalized the creation of Great Thicket National Wildlife Refuge, dedicated to conserving and managing shrubland and young forests for wildlife in New England and eastern New York. The approval of the refuge marks a key step, enabling the Service to now work with willing and interested landowners to acquire land.
The following letter appeared in local newspapers and is shared with us here by the author, Steve Dubois. I read with great interest the various news reports about Representative Blake […]
The Salt Ponds Coalition is dedicated to the preservation and restoration of Southern Rhode Islands Salt Ponds. This short film was produced by Vic Dvorak, a former executive director of the […]
The following letter appeared in local newspapers and is shared with us here by the author Karen Jarret. Ms. Jarret is President of the Charlestown Land Trust. The following is […]
The Charlestown Democratic Town Committee has given the town a window into its style of politics — and it’s disturbing and ominous. On Nov. 6, take a stand against bully politics in Charlestown. Vote against the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee’s chosen slate of Democratic town candidates.
The Salt Ponds Coalition 2012 Annual Meeting was held last Monday, 20 Aug, at the Kettle Pond National Wildlife Refuge visitor center. The guest speaker was Dr. Jon Boothroyd, the RI State Geologist*. He provided the presentation “Climate Change, Coastal Geologic Hazards and Sea-Level Rise: Some RI Strategies”
The proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) doesn’t give power to the Federal Government. The Federal Government has all the power it needs. An MOU is about information sharing between the Town and Wildlife Biologists.
By fostering a work environment that encourages inclusion instead of exclusion, I hope the town can reestablish sound working relationships with all stakeholders and collaborate on Ninigret Park improvements that serve both the town and National Wildlife Refuge.
A debate has emerged in Charlestown on whether the town administrator should inform elected officials of information or decisions staff make that impact land use and the community that is our home.
As concerned citizens of Charlestown, Rhode Island, we support the land use goal of our town’s Comprehensive Plan to protect the natural and cultural resources and rural character of the […]
