The Housatonic Valley Association is pleased to announce that Carolyn Klocker has joined the HVA team as the organization’s New York Watershed Manager. Klocker will support the newly formed Ten Mile River Watershed Collaborative, engaging community leaders and stakeholders in finding new ways to conserve the Ten Mile River Watershed’s outstanding land and water resources.
She will also handle education programs with our partner organizations and community leaders, and help implement stream restoration and management projects, water quality monitoring, and assessment of culverts and bridges to identify barriers to fish and wildlife movement and flood hazards.
Klocker comes to HVA with years of experience facilitating collaborative watershed management. In her previous capacity as Senior Water Resource Educator at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Dutchess County, Klocker served as a technical resource to many of Dutchess County’s municipal officials and watershed organizations. This included working with the Wappinger Creek Watershed Intermunicipal Council to secure a New York State Inland Waterway designation for Wappinger Creek, which has unlocked new funding opportunities for planning and management in that watershed.
“Carolyn’s experiences are a tremendous asset to us in eastern Dutchess County, where our community leaders are starting down the path of seeking Inland Waterway designation for the Ten Mile River,” notes HVA Watershed Conservation Director Michael Jastremski.
When she’s not in community meetings or in the field, Klocker will hold regular office hours on Wednesday’s from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at HVA’s Ten Mile office at 19 Furnace Bank Road (PO Box 315) in Wassaic, NY 12592. The public may drop by to say hello, or call Klocker at 845-789-1381.
The Ten Mile River watershed, located in eastern Dutchess County (N.Y.) and western Litchfield County (Conn.), drains into the Housatonic River and ultimately Long Island Sound. The watershed covers 210 square miles and includes all, or portions of, the towns of North East, Amenia, Dover, Ancram, Stanford, Washington, Union Vale and Pawling; the villages of Millerton and Pawling in New York; and the towns of Sharon and Salisbury in Connecticut.
HVA works across the Ten Mile River watershed to promote land and water protection and stewardship, reduce polluted runoff and help towns implement low impact development strategies – projects launched under the leadership of Tonia Shoumatoff, Klocker’s predecessor.
“Tonia’s dedication to the Ten Mile and watershed communities laid the groundwork for the developing Watershed Collaborative. Her passion and enthusiasm for this river are second to none, and we are grateful for the time Tonia spent with HVA,” Jastremski said.
HVA is the watershed conservation organization and accredited land trust uniquely dedicated to conserving the natural character and environmental health of the entire 1,948-square-mile HousatonicWatershed, from the headwaters in western Massachusetts, through eastern New York’s Ten Mile watershed and western Connecticut to Long Island Sound. Since its founding 75 years ago, HVA has worked closely and effectively with local, regional, state and national partners throughout its service area to conserve lands and waters for this and future generations. Visit www.hvatoday.org for more information.
