Dam Removals on the Kennebec

John Burrows, Executive Director,
U.S. Operations, Atlantic Salmon Federation

Wednesday, February 14, 2024, 7:00 pm
See Video on Bottom of Page

John Burrows

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Friends of Merrymeeting Bay’s (FOMB) fifth presentation of their 27th annual Winter Speaker Series: Dam Removals on the Kennebec River, features John Burrows, Executive Director for U.S. Operations of the Atlantic Salmon Federation. Winter Speaker Series presentations are again being held via Zoom and are accessible via hyperlink at the top of the FOMB web page: www.fomb.org. This event takes place Wednesday, February 14th at 7 pm.

Atlantic salmon are a critically endangered species found only in a handful of rivers in Maine. The recovery of this iconic species will depend in great part on what happens in the next few years with four dams on the Kennebec River. John will discuss the importance of the Kennebec River to salmon recovery, and the current status of ongoing regulatory and legal proceedings that will determine the future of the Kennebec River, Atlantic salmon, and the further restoration of sea-run fish in the watershed for decades to come.

John R.J. Burrows is Executive Director of U.S. Operations for the Atlantic Salmon Federation (ASF). ASF is an international non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation and restoration of wild Atlantic salmon and their ecosystems. John oversees ASF’s restoration and conservation programs, communications, and advocacy activities in the U.S. He has been with ASF since 2000 and has worked on a variety of regulatory and policy issues, FERC hydropower relicensing, and habitat connectivity and river restoration projects, including the removal of several large dams. Under ASF’s Maine Headwaters initiative, John and other ASF U.S. staff have completed more than 50 small dam removal and fish passage projects across Maine, restoring access to more than 1,200 miles of river and more than 30,000 acres of lake and pond habitat. John earned his B.A. from Gettysburg College and an M.E.S. from the Yale School of the Environment.

FOMB hosts their Winter Speaker Series October-May, on the second Wednesday of each month. Due to the Covid 19 pandemic and ability for participants to attend from out of the area, the series continues via Zoom. The FOMB March 13th presentation: Biocontrol Research in Merrymeeting Bay features Hillary Peterson, Integrated Pest Management Specialist with the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry. This event takes place at 7:00 pm with the Zoom registration link available at www.fomb.org a week or so prior to the presentation.

Speaker Series presentations are free, open to the public. Visit www.fomb.org to see speaker biographies, full event schedules, video recordings of past presentations, become a member, and learn more about how you can help protect beautiful Merrymeeting Bay and the Gulf of Maine.

For more information contact FOMB at 207-666-3372 or edfomb@comcast.net.

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