Presentation on Benthic Macroinvertebrates to be Held at Williams College

12:07PM / Thursday, April 24, 2025Print Story | Email Story

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Hoosic River Watershed Association, Williams College Center for Environmental Studies, and the Zilkha Center for the Environment will host a presentation titled "Turning Stones: a Presentation on Benthic Macroinvertebrates" with aquatic ecologist Declan McCabe on Tuesday, April 29, from 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM in Griffin Hall Room 3 at Williams College.

The program is free and open to the public, and families with children are welcome.

During the presentation, Declan McCabe will use a slide show and live aquatic macroinvertebrates to discuss several topics, including:

The properties of water that support life.
The differences in the characteristics and inhabitants of flowing and standing water ecosystems.
Adaptations of organisms that live on the water's surface.
Non-toxic methods for reducing mosquito populations near homes.
Low-cost ways to study macroinvertebrates locally.
Simple actions to protect watersheds and improve water quality.

Registration for this free program is required and can be completed by clicking the provided link.

Declan McCabe is an aquatic ecologist and a professor of biology at Saint Michael’s College. His book, Turning Stones: Discovering the Life of Water (2024, Down East Books), examines the biodiversity found in rivers. Mr. McCabe has experience communicating biological concepts to students and has also worked with high school audiences. His writings are featured in "Northern Woodlands" and "Connecticut Woodlands" magazines, as well as "The Outside Story" natural history series.

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Williamstown Housing Trust Gets Update on Summer Street Project

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
05:38PM / Thursday, August 27, 2026

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – Northern Berkshire Habitat for Humanity continues to make progress on a planned four-home subdivision off Summer Street despite rising costs.

NBHFH project manager Keith Davis was back before the board of the town's Affordable Housing Trust in August to give an update on the project being developed on a parcel granted to the non-profit by the trustees.

"The majority of the site work is now done," Davis said. "The road base is completely in. We won't blacktop the road until the first foundation is done. It doesn't make any sense to drive a loaded cement truck over fresh blacktop.

"The detention basin is in. All the [stormwater] structures are in. I talked to [DPW Director] Craig Clough about coming in and looking at it, so he can verify all the structures are in. Because a lot of them get buried. That's the next step, to do that and sod it."

The construction package to build the road and stormwater infrastructure cost NBHFH $330,000. The Affordable Housing Trust kicked in $120,000 toward that, and the trustees have committed another $100,000 toward the construction cost of the first home to be built in what the non-profit has named the Meadowlands Subdivision.

Davis told the board at its Aug. 19 meeting that a couple of issues have popped up that have slowed the project and added cost.

One was the removal of an additional five trees on the 1.75-acre parcel.

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