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Causes: Adult Education, Education
Mission: 1. To support the establishment of water quality regulations and operating licenses and permits that will improve the quality of the water in the androscoggin river;2. To oppose attempts by river users or state or local government to impede any program of water quality improvement, either through regulation or legislation, or through governmental decision to permit establishment of new or expanded industrial, commercial, or residential operations and developments that would unreasonably degrade water quality, or would delay progress being made towards its improvement;3. To enhance aquatic life in the androscoggin river and its tributaries, through improvement of fish passage at the brunswick, me fish ladder, and perhaps removal of non-hydro dams on tributaries of the androscoggin;4. To provide educational efforts to increase public and local government appreciation of the benefits of a cleaner androscoggin river, which include the health of river valley inhabitants, greater recreationa
Programs: Ara received additional funding in 2011 to continue the first ever study of returning adult atlantic salmon in the androscoggin river water shed in conjunction with the maine department of marine resource (dmr). The ara funding provided 20 telemetry tags that were to be implanted into the salmon at the head of the tide dam in brunswick. Unfortunately, the 2012 season eliminated by an early june flood on the androscoggin river forced the closure of the brunswick fishway because the fishway had been completely inundated with flood debris during the peak salmon return season. No salmon returned to our river during the 2012 season. In 2013, ara tried again with only 2 salmon returning to the river. Due to the salmon listing as an endangered species, the state of maine required a study of attraction flow at the fishway. The 2 salmon that returned were tagged and then trucked back downstream to see if they would return to the fishway; they did not. The entire study was lost for 2013 as well.
the ara working with maine department of marine resource (dmr) and the us fish and wildlife service, and bowdoin college, along with the brunswick dam owner started an american shad upstream passage study. Ara supplied 2 computer systems loaded with specially designed software to count fish in conjunction with underwater cameras. Over 25,000 shad were counted circling just below the fishway. Only a handful, approximately 17, of shad actually climbed the fishway.
fish friends project continues to be very successful, working with local schools to rear atlantic salmon fry from eggs that are released into a tributary of the lower androscoggin river. Each year more schools join the program and we are now releasing about 2,000 salmon fry. That translates into several hundred students that learn about the androscoggin river and its native fisheries and water quality issue. In 2012 the woodstock elementary school joined the program. Ara had several other requests but with limited funding and equipment the ara had to start a waiting list.
ara gave 6 presentations about the river and ara's effort during 2013 that included; bates college, bowdoin college, walton elementary (auburn), east auburn school,mastlanding school (freeport), woodstock elementary school, and 3 presentations were given in homes of local citizens to their friends and neighbors.
ara worked with media outlets to spread the word of our efforts, this included interviews for broadcast and meeting with editorial boards to educate them about specific efforts.
ara continued to share our watershed maps with the public. It continues to be very popular and in high demand. Several hundred copies of the map were shared back in 2011.
ara partnered with atlantic salmon federation to open access to historic spawning habitat for alewife on the sabattus river. We partially removed one dam and worked toward removing several other dams on the sabattus river that no longer serve a purpose except to block native andromous fish migration.
ara concluded its campaign against national geographic society (ngs). After much effort, on the part of ara and our partner organization, real improvement has been made within the verso paper mill on the androscoggin that over time will improve the river's water quality. Our national partners continue their effort to get ngs to incorporate recycled paper in the publishing of their magazine. Ngs is posting or, has recently posted the results of our efforts on their website.
This organization's nonprofit status may have been revoked or it may have merged with another organization or ceased operations.