An expert fly fisher and a county conservationist will present “How Buck a Duck Protected a River” at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 14, at the Waupaca Area Public Library.
Hosted by Winchester Academy, the program is free and open to the public.
Nancy Rose fell in love with the Waupaca River after she bought a farm and 30 acres of riverfront in 1982. She dove into conservation efforts to help ensure that the river would always be protected.
Interested in working with others in different parts of the river, Rose convened a meeting on her farm. More than 60 people attended, inlcuding representatives of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and county land conservation offices.
As a result, they applied for and received a grant to develop a project for cleaning up the almost 300-mile Waupaca-Tomorrow River watershed.
Rose, a member of Central Wisconsin Trout Unlimited River Keepers and the Federation of Fly Fishers, will relate her experiences as a conservationist, as well as her work with the promotional fundraiser, “Buck a Duck,” where 1,000 rubber ducks floated down the river.
Brian Haase, with the Waupaca County Land and Water Conservation Department, will speak about the steps that have been taken to protect the Waupaca River as a result of the grant.
He will explain public-private cooperation in curbing animal waste runoff and other pollution. The grant has helped to address water quality, lead watershed and conservation educational efforts, monitor the river, and provide technical assistance.
Winchester Academy programs are funded through sponsors and tax-deductible donations. This program is sponsored in memory of Ray Robinson by Helen Robinson.
For more information about Winchester Academys, visit www.winchesteracademywaupaca.org or contact Executive Director Ann Buerger Linden at 715-258-2927 or [email protected].