March 2000 NEGEF Grantees

NEGEF received 59 proposals and funded 35 groups this round. The grants totaled $64,140, bringing the total amount granted since NEGEF's beginning in 1996 to over $500,000 to 224 different groups around New England. Listed below are the groups who received support during our most recent grant round.

Allin's Cove Neighborhood Coalition
Barrington, RI
$2,000

To keep the community informed of the progress of plans by the Army Corps or Engineers for restoration of 11 acres of salt marsh and to provide information to the Corps to help cut costs of the project.

Blackstone Valley Community Pollution
Woonsocket, RI
$1,500

To help fund the expansion of the current efforts of education, protection and restoration in the Blackstone River Valley by including vernal pool identification/education.

Cape Clean Air
Sandwich, MA
$2,000

To continue their education and organizing campaign to promote the clean-up of the Canal Electric Power Plant.

Citizens for Preserving South Lee
South Lee, MA
$1,800

To help fund legal and technical assistance to counter a proposed development on the east face of Beartown Mountain in South Lee.

Citizens for Smart Growth
Exeter, NH
$2,000

To help fund a campaign against urban sprawl by opposing Wal-Mart's intention of locating in Exeter.

Cobbler's Brook Stream Team
Merrimac, MA
$1,000

To help fund a Stream Team which will work to increase awareness of Cobbler's Brook and its value to the community, restore the Greenway so it protects the quality and flow of water, and enhance the recreational benefits of the Greenway.

Committee to Keep Waterboro From Becoming the Pits
East Waterboro, ME
$1,550

To educate the public about a proposed town ordinance on gravel pit operation which will be voted on at the annual town meeting.

Concord Citizens for Responsible Tower Siting
Concord, MA
$2,500

To help fund a conference, "Microwaving Communities: The Link Between Cell Phone Antennas and Your Health".

Contoocook/North Branch Rivers Local Advisory Committee
Hancock, NH
$1,500

To purchase a new computer in order to combine previous data from two difference sources, and hire an intern to pull together data from three more towns not included in the original database.

Environment Council of RI/RI Sustainability Coalition
Providence, RI
$1,500

To fund a conference to address issues of long term sustainability in Rhode Island.

Environmental Health Coalition of Western Massachusetts
Leverett, MA
$1,500

To fund the design, printing and mailing of brochures designed to educate key sectors of the housing industry about the connection between toxic chemicals in homes and health problems which may result, including allergies, asthma and chemical sensitivity.

Frenchman Bay Conservancy
Ellsworth, ME
$1,500

To help fund the creation of an ongoing development program in order to take a more proactive approach to land protection.

Friends of the Mad River
Waitsfield, VT
$1,500

To help fund the preparation, publication and distribution of "Caring for the Best River Ever: A Citizens' Guide to Living in the Mad River Watershed", an educational booklet to raise public awareness about how their daily actions can impact the watershed.

Georges River Land Trust
Rockland, ME
$2,000

To develop and print a Conservation Trails Map/Educational Brochure that will educate recreational trail users and encourage them to become partners for conservation in the region.

Great Pond Mountain Conservation Trust
East Orland, ME
$1,600

To pay for the costs of printing and postage for fundraising materials and to help pay for a part-time project coordinator/fundraising consultant to assist the volunteer board.

Greater Boston Environmental Justice Network
Roxbury,MA
$2,000

To help GBEJN to build the essential infrastructure to enable its members to share information and resources on environmental issues and to give a strong voice to the grassroots environmental justice movement citywide.

Greater Springfield Nutrition and Wellness Coalition
Springfield, MA
$2,000

To help fund a gathering of low-income community gardeners from the Pioneer Valley who might benefit from net-working, having on-site soil testing, and learning more about composting, organic garden practices and land ownership options.

Green Mountain Conservation Group
S. Effingham, NH
$2,000

To broaden the scope of GMCC as an active conservation organization and to continue as a resource for the six towns in the Ossipee Watershed.

Lawrence Environmental Action Group
Lawrence, MA
$2,000

To help support a new chapter in its efforts to reduce waste, increase recycling and foster other alternatives to incineration of trash in the lower Merrimack Valley of Massachusetts.

Mount Desert Island Water Quality Coalition
Mt. Desert, ME
$2,000

To help support the initial organization and start-up costs of a non-profit coalition that will support environmental projects on Mt. Desert Island.

Native Forest Network
Burlington, VT
$1,500

To garner public support for the concept of a black bear and songbird refuge in the Lamb Brook area of the Green Mountain National Forest.

New England Coalition for Sustainable Population
Sullivan, NH
$1,500

To help fund a coordinator who will organize population activist meetings and trainings to generate additional grassroots activism on the population issue and raise public awareness of population and consumption issues.

People of Ayer Concerned about the Environment
Ayer, MA
$2,000

To help fund a campaign to stop a rail system facility's proposed 40-acre asphalt parking lot to be sited on top of a primary aquifer and adjacent to wetlands.

People's Earth Network
Jamaica Plain, MA
$2,000

To help fund the Biodevastation Conference 2000 to be held in Boston, the fourth in a series of conferences centered on the topic of genetic engineering.

Presumpscot River Watch
Portland, ME
$2,190

To support the production of three newsletters and to assure a biannual release of PRW newsletters through 2001 to educate the public on watershed issues, share monitoring data, increase membership and recruit new volunteers.

Project GREEN (D.A.R.E.)
Providence, RI
$2,000

To help fund work to ensure that neighbors in low income communities of color benefit from newly-won vacant lot policies, helping families get the lots and pushing the city to follow through on its commitments to make the lots lead safe.

Project Laundry List
South Royalton, VT
$2,000

To help fund expenses related to organizational development, including incorporation and long-range planning.

Route 2 Citizen's Alliance
Cabot, VT
$2,000

To help fund costs associated with their work to oppose the widening of US Route 2 in Cabot.

Sippican Lands Trust - Marion, MA
$2,000

To fund the printing of new all-purpose "people reaching" materials which can be used to reach members, advocates and funders to help the growth of the land trust.

South End/Lower Roxbury Open Space Land Trust
Boston, MA
$2,000

To expand and support the Garden Partners in Community Service Program, a network that links urban open space to the larger community through learning garden plots and plots for horticultural therapy.

Vanderbilt Farm Homeowners Association
Portsmouth, RI
$2,000

To help fund legal and professional fees contracted in the effort to preserve a 36-acre wetlands/old growth forested area being proposed for development on Aquidneck Island.

Vermont Genetic Engineering Action Network
Montpelier, VT
$2,000

To educate Vermonters about genetically engineered foods by holding educational forums, producing fact sheets and a newsletter, holding farmer kitchen meetings, and producing a GE consumer guide.

Vermonters for a Clean Environment
Danby, VT
$1,500

To keep the public informed and educated about the changing energy marketplace that gave birth to the natural gas power plant and pipeline project.

York Land Trust
York Harbor, ME
$2,000

To help pay for the design and printing of a new brochure as part of a comprehensive public outreach education program.

Youth in Action
Providence, RI
$2,000

To expand its youth community organizing work by intensifying its focus on specific environmental issues, including lead poisoning, vacant lots and unsafe traffic conditions.