Lake Champlain Committee

Come learn about the gravel wetland at Georgia Elementary & Middle School with us this Thursday! https://www.lakechamplaincommittee.org/event/gems-stormwater-open-house

Gravel Wetland Community Celebration

https://www.lakechamplaincommittee.org/event/gems-stormwater-open-house

The story of the Lake Champlain watershed cannot be told without trees. Over 70% of the land that drains into the lake is forested, and these forests are deeply connected to the health of our waters. From filtering runoff to storing carbon, trees play an essential role in water quality throughout their lives and long after they die.
Read the full June Lake Look Column--Wet and Woody: The Relationship Between Trees and Water in the Lake Champlain Basin--to learn more: https://www.lakechamplaincommittee.org/learn/lake-look/wet-and-woody-the-relationship-between-trees-and-water-in-the-lake-champlain-basin
One way to tell this story is through art: learn about Burlington's new Lakebone sculpture, to be installed on Wednesday 6/3/2026 here: https://www.lakechamplaincommittee.org/event/lakebone-community-parade-installation-celebration

Vermont’s legislature has passed S.323, a bill that makes permanent a collaborative stakeholder group that brings together farmers, environmental organizations, and technical service providers to improve agricultural water quality, permitting, and regulation.

From Conservation Law Foundation's press release: “It was heartening to meet face to face with farmers through the initial stakeholder group this year, and to talk about regulatory approaches that will be practical and workable for farmers, while also protecting water quality,” said Jenny Patterson, Executive Director of the Lake Champlain Committee (LCC). “LCC applauds the creation of a permanent stakeholder group that will be co-chaired by a livestock farmer and a representative of the environmental advocate community, and that will provide ongoing feedback as Vermont transitions to a new system of managing farm-based pollution while also creating clarity and predictability for farmers.”

Vermont Bill Creates Path Forward on Clean Water This legislation matters because Vermonters deserve real progress, not more half steps while farmers navigate a broken program and pollution continues to threaten our lakes, rivers, and communities.

Shout out to the team at Georgia Elementary & Middle School for their work on our collaborative project to learn and teach about stormwater through the gravel wetland constructed on their campus through Vermont Green Schools. They did an amazing job sharing the project with students from across VT and with Governor Phil Scott at the Cultivating Pathways Spring Celebration yesterday.

Come get a tour of the gravel wetland and learn more about the project, including the native plant landscaping design the students are putting in place this spring, at the Stormwater Open House at GEMS on June 4--learn more here: https://www.lakechamplaincommittee.org/event/gems-stormwater-open-house

Do you want to help protect Lake Champlain on your next errand run? You can help keep phosphorus off our lawns and out of the lake as a Phosphorus Investigator (“P.”I) with LCC this spring!

Phosphorus is a major water quality concern for Lake Champlain —the same nutrient that feeds our lawns and gardens fuels cyanobacteria blooms. LCC needs volunteers to visit their local lawn and garden stores, check out what kind of fertilizers they’re selling and how they’re displayed, and share signage and educational materials on keeping excess phosphorus out of lawn fertilizers with store personnel.

Interested in learning more and getting involved as a “P.”I? Contact Eileen Fitzgerald at [email protected].

Lake Champlain boasts a shoreline of 587 miles, spread throughout New York, Vermont, and Quebec. Lakeshores are beautiful places alive with energy and activity, but that beauty is both a blessing and a curse: it makes them make desirable locations for development. Traditional modes of lakeshore development have prioritized human habitation over ecosystem health and water quality. Balancing nature with human needs requires a bit of wisdom.

Read more about Lake Wise and how to get involved with work to make shorelines more lake-friendly in our May 2026 Lake Look column: https://www.lakechamplaincommittee.org/learn/lake-look/a-word-to-the-lake-wise