News from Selected Category

Join the Lake Champlain Committee (LCC), Satellites, Weather and Climate (SWAC) and Champlain Basin Education Initiative (CBEI) partners as we consider how to structure investigations of the places we live using a variety of technology. Read...

Rail transport of explosive Bakken crude oil through the North Country has increased dramatically due to tremendous growth in outputs from Canada and the Bakken oil fields of North Dakota. Rail incidents in Quebec, Alberta, Alabama, North Dakota, New Brunswick, and Virginia have led to fires and explosions. Last year's derailment at Lac-Mégantic, Quebec killed 47 people and devastated the community. Read...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is hosting a series of public meetings this November to outline the next steps in Vermont’s efforts to restore water quality in Lake Champlain.  Read...

Join us at the Lake Champlain Committee's (LCC) 51st anniversary party on Thursday October 16 from 6:00 - 8:00 PM at the FlynnDog Gallery and Chef's Corner South End restaurant area at 208 Flynn Avenue in Burlington. Read...

Join LCC in Plattsburgh, NY on August 28, 2014 from 7-9 PM for the Oil Train Community Forum. A panel of experts and partner organizations will be discussing risks oil trains pose to the North Country and steps community, state and federal governments need to take to respond to and prevent disasters. Read...

Help assess Lake Champlain water conditions around the lake this summer as a blue-green algae monitor. The following monitor training sessions are free and open to the public. Stay tuned for additional dates and locations of other upcoming training sessions. Read...

LCC, the US Environmental Protection Agency and other WaterSense partners are promoting a week focused on water conservation. Wasting water wastes energy and money and can contribute to lake pollution. More than one trillion gallons of water are lost annually in the U.S. due to easy-to-fix household leaks. MORE Read...

Climate change trends pose threats to the Lake Champlain watershed and Lake Champlain's water quality. Using the notion that "two heads are better than one," the University of Vermont (UVM) and Vermont EPSCoR's Research on Adaptation to Climate Change (RACC) seek to "crowdsource" solutions to these threats. MORE Read...

February 2nd is World Wetlands Day, a day to raise public awareness about the importance and value of wetlands.

There are countless flooded forests, marshy swales, and peaty bogs throughout the Champlain Basin which help to prevent major floods from occurring downstream and provide important habitat for fish and wildlife. MORE Read...

The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, the Vermont Agency of Agriculture and Food Markets, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have scheduled a series of public meetings to discuss the Lake Champlain restoration plan (the Lake Champlain TMDL). MORE Read...

We had a wonderful 50th anniversary celebration at Flat Rock Camp in Willsboro earlier this month. The sun shone, conversation flowed, the food and drink were delicious, and a good time was had by all! LCC founding father Peter Paine reflected on the past and told some stories about LCC's seminal work. MORE Read...

The final fall meeting on shoreline protection will be held Thursday October 3 from 6:00 - 8:00 PM at Contois Auditorium in Burlington. Please attend and and speak out in favor of protecting our waterways! MORE Read...

Please join in LCC's 50th birthday party on Saturday, September 14 from 2:00 - 5:00 PM at Flat Rock Camp in Willsboro, New York. We'll reflect on 50 years of lake protection work, honor special volunteers, and look to the future. MORE Read...

The Vermont Legislature has created a Lake Shoreland Protection Commission to provide information about existing and proposed shoreland protection measures and receive public input on ways to improve regulation of shoreland properties. MORE Read...

LCC's blue-green algae monitoring program got underway several weeks ago. Staff Scientist Mike Winslow has trained over 200 people to assess conditions, differentiate blue-green algae from other lake phenomena, and categorize water quality. MORE Read...

Don't forget to mark your calendar and plan to join us for our 50th anniversary celebration at Flat Rock Camp in Willsboro, New York. We'll have great food, camaraderie as we reflect on the past and look forward. Many thanks to our hosts the Paine Family and event sponsor Champlain National Bank. Further details will follow but please set aside the date for this special lake gathering. Read...

Get out on the water and support great lake-related causes - including the Lake Champlain Committee - by participating in the 2013 Regatta for Lake Champlain! This year’s event, the tenth annual, will take place on Burlington’s Waterfront July 19 and 20. The Regatta for Lake Champlain is not your ordinary day out on the Lake; it's a family-friendly benefit sailboat race to promote the health, well-being, sustainable use and stewardship of Lake Champlain. MORE Read...

Join LCC for our last Bird Walk this Friday, May 31 at 8:00 AM at Oakledge Park. LCC’s Staff Scientist will help participants identify birds by sight and sound. We'll conclude with a post-walk social with coffee and bagels at LCC's office. MORE Read...

Join LCC on April Stools Day! This is a springtime citizen effort to remove dog doo from our sidewalks and recreation paths. Pet poop contains bacteria and excess nutrients that are bad for our health and waterways. Dog doo left on hard surfaces washes into stormdrains any time the snow melts or it rains. From there it enters streams or the lake from which almost 200,000 people get their drinking water. MORE Read...

Give some TLC to your body and the lake on Wednesday April 3 at O'Briens AVEDA Institute. A $20 donation at the door gets you four spa services with all the money going to LCC programs to protect water quality, safeguard natural habitats, promote access, and foster stewardship. Read...

Area Aveda salons will be co-hosting a cut-a-thon on Earth Day at O'Brien's Aveda Institute in South Burlington. The event is part of a global round the clock cut-a-thon to raise money and awareness for water protection and set a Guinness World Record for the most money raised for charity by haircuts in a 24-hour period. MORE Read...

LCC is partnering with EPA’s WaterSense Program to promote water conservation. Save water, energy and money by finding and fixing leaks at your home and workplace as part of national Fix a Leak Week, March 18 – 24. MORE Read...

Following the record-setting lake flooding of spring 2011 the International Joint Commission (IJC) appointed a Workgroup to recommend studies of measures to mitigate flooding and the impacts of flooding in the Richelieu River and Lake Champlain Basin. MORE Read...

Join Senator Bernie Sanders, Bill McKibben, LCC and Vermont and national leaders from 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM on Saturday March 16 at Montpelier High School for informative workshops about what climate change means for Vermont and what we can do about it. Learn about global warming impacts on Lake Champlain, agriculture, forestry, infrastructure, tourism and our economy. MORE Read...

Here's early notice that our annual gathering will be held Saturday, September 14, 2013 at Flat Rock Camp in Willsboro, New York. Further details will follow as we get closer to the date but please mark your calendars and plan to join us in celebrating this special anniversary with reflections on our past and a look to the future. MORE Read...

Join veteran kayaking instructor and Kokatat representative Suzanne Hutchinson for a cold water immersion clinic. The day-long program includes both inside instruction about the dangers of cold water paddling and how to prepare along with an outdoor portion on the water. Participants will learn about appropriate dress and skills for paddling in cold conditions. MORE Read...

Come join Lake Champlain Committee (LCC) board, staff and friends at the “Barnhouse" amongst the fields, farms, forests, and fossils of historic Isle La Motte, Vermont for LCC's 49th Annual Meeting. Learn about LCC’s work, get a status report on lake health, converse with other lake lovers, eat great food all in a beautiful lakeside setting courtesy of the Turner Dale families. MORE Read...

The team will travel in a 36' Voyageur canoe on a 1,118 mile journey from Ottawa to Washington, D.C. Graphic by Capital to Capitol.

On September 5 a group of paddlers set off from Ottawa Ontario in a voyageur canoe bound for Washington DC. They will follow an 1800 kilometer route on rivers, lakes and canals to learn more about local water issues and stimulate greater civic engagement and collaboration in protecting water resources. MORE Read...

The 2012 Vermont EcoFest will be held in Burlington, VT on September 8 from 11:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Graphic by Outdoor Gear Exchange.

The 7th Annual Eco-Fest takes place Saturday, September 8 from 11:00 AM until 5:00 PM at the Lake Champlain Community Sailing Center. Wander down to the Burlington waterfront for live music, good food, and to learn about regional conservation efforts. There will be equipment demos, short informational talks running every hour, and tips for environmental stewardship. A silent auction will raise money for LCC and other good causes! MORE Read...

Protect our waterways from pharmaceutical contamination by disposing of them properly at a Take Back Collection Day. Photo by morguefile.com.

Federal and state agencies are teaming up to host a National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, September 29, 2012 from 10:00 AM until 2:00 PM. LCC encourages everyone to check medicine cabinets for unwanted, unused pharmaceuticals and safely dispose of them at a nearby collection site. More than 1.5 million pounds of medication were removed from circulation during four previous National Take Back Days. MORE Read...