FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, January 11, 2023

Hingham Land Conservation Trust announces Goodrich Grant recipients

The Hingham Land Conservation Trust, which instituted the Goodrich Environmental Research Grant program as part of its 50th Anniversary activities in 2022, is pleased to announce the recipients of inaugural year Goodrich grants.

The purpose of the Goodrich Environmental Research Grant program is to fund research projects by an institution, organization, or town:

— that will assist in the conservation of open space (land and water) in Hingham and adjoining South Shore communities for the benefit of flora, wild creatures and all of us who depend on this environment, and

— to improve access to or to encourage area residents to enjoy and respect the importance of our parklands and conservation areas.

The two projects approved for funding are:

WILD COHASSET, INC: Creating a pollinator meadow

Local environmental group Wild Cohasset works to improve biodiversity and aid local wildlife by removing invasive, non-native plants in the South Shore region. In 2023, the group plans to install a native pollinator meadow in Cohasset (Wheelwright Park) to aid endangered songbirds, butterflies and other pollinators. The Goodrich grant will be used to help pay for plant material, potential professional labor to supplement volunteers, potential trucking of water in the first growing season, plus educational signage at the site. More about Wild Cohasset: www.wildcohasset.org

WEYMOUTH CONSERVATION COMMISSION: Using eDNA to detect presence of wild trout

The Weymouth Conservation Commission is engaged in multiple related projects to improve local waterways, making them more hospitable to wildlife including fish. The Goodrich grant will be used for one of these projects. Using eDNA technology samples taken from the Old Swamp River will be analyzed to determine if wild brook trout remain in Old Swamp River. This river, which spans Weymouth, Hingham, and Rockland, is a designated cold-water fish resource, and historically has been home to wild trout.  More about the Weymouth Conservation Commission: www.weymouth.ma.us/conservation-commission

“These projects each reflect well on the legacy of Sally Goodrich, founder of the Hingham Land Conservation Trust in 1972, whose bequest to the HLCT created the seed money for the grant program” said Eileen McIntyre, who chairs the 5-person grant selection committee for the HLCT. McIntyre serves on the HLCT board along with fellow Goodrich Grant Committee member Don Kidston of Hull. Other members of the selection committee are local wetlands expert Steve Ivas of Norwell, former HLCT board member Barbara Wollan of Hingham, and Chuck Goodrich as representative of the Goodrich family.

When notified that Wild Cohasset’s pollinator meadow project would be funded, Lisey Good, founder and board member of the organization said, “The timing of this news is perfect. We can immediately start ordering the native plants so that work on planting the meadow can begin as soon as the ground softens at the end of winter.” Weymouth Conservation Commission administrator Andrew Hultin was equally enthusiastic when he learned that the wild trout e-DNA detection program would be funded, “We will be ready to start sampling the Old Swamp River this spring and look forward to sharing the project’s findings with the community.”

More about the Hingham Land Conservation Trust at: www.hinghamlandtrust.org

More about the Goodrich Environmental Research Grant at: https://hinghamlandtrust.org/grants-and-scholarships/