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- Christin Ritz, a Fairhaven Sustainability Committee member, and Wendy Drumm, Vice Chair of the Conservation Commission, discuss design ideas for Macomber Pimental Park after the committee was awarded as $500 grant from Keep Massachusetts Beautiful to plant a variety of flowers, shrubs, and trees. Photo submitted by Keep Massachusetts Beautiful.
Press Release From Keep Massachusetts Beautiful
The Fairhaven Sustainability Committee was recently awarded a $500 Plant Something Bee-eautiful grant from Keep Massachusetts Beautiful to help beautify Macomber Pimental Park with a new pollinator-friendly garden.
“When complete, this will be Fairhaven’s largest public garden dedicated exclusively to plants native to coastal Massachusetts,” said Christin Ritz, a member of the Fairhaven Sustainability Committee. “A variety of native trees, flowering perennials, and berry-producing shrubs will increase flood resiliency, benefit birds and pollinators, and be a unique, immersive, and educational experience for visitors during all four seasons.”
Keep Massachusetts Beautiful’s Plant Something Bee-eautiful program provides $10,000 in annual grants to support the planting of pollinator-friendly public gardens, with financial support from Edrington, a Scottish purveyor of premium spirits.
“Our Plant Something Bee-eautiful program beautifies public spaces while also restoring natural habitats for pollinators,” said Neil Rhein, founder and executive director of Keep Massachusetts Beautiful. “Bees and other pollinators are an essential link in our food chain and this program provides funding to help protect and restore essential habitats. We’re pleased to support the Fairhaven Sustainability Committee in this joint effort.”
Bees and other pollinators are in serious decline around the world. According to the Pollinator Partnership, the monarch butterfly population has declined by 90% over the past 20 years. Pollinators, including 20,000 species of wild bees, contribute to the growth of fruit, vegetables, and flowering plants. Plants that depend on pollination make up 35 percent of global crop production volume.
The decline of pollinators is caused by habitat destruction, the overuse of pesticides that include neonicotinoids, farming practices that eliminate patches of wildflowers and cover crops, parasites, pathogens, as well as climate change.
Keep Massachusetts Beautiful is taking action to make Massachusetts a cleaner, greener, litter-free place to live, work, and play. Learn more at www.keepmassbeautiful.org.
The Fairhaven Sustainability Committee is dedicated to providing the town, its residents, and businesses with ways in which direct or indirect actions positively affect our future.
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