Rutland
posted
Feb 20, 2013
To honor her lasting legacy and continuing environmental work by
Vermonters, Green Mountain Power has called for nominations for the
2013 GMP-Zetterstrom Environmental Award, named for famed osprey
advocate Meeri Zetterstrom.
The GMP-Zetterstrom Environmental Award was originally created
by Central Vermont Public Service in 2010, and is presented
annually to one person, business, group or non-profit to honor a
significant contribution to Vermont's environment. It will be
accompanied by a $2,500 donation to the winner's environmental
cause.
"The award highlights the ongoing efforts of some of Vermont's
most forward-thinking environmentalists," said GMP President and
CEO Mary Powell. "We will continue to solicit nominations and honor
a special Vermonter each year to highlight Meeri's legacy as part
of our ongoing commitment to Vermont's air, land and water."
Zetterstrom inspired countless Vermonters through her dogged
efforts to protect and restore Vermont's osprey population.
"Meeri had an innate ability to connect people with nature and
explain the importance of conservation and wildlife preservation,"
said Steve Costello, a GMP vice president, who worked with
Zetterstrom on osprey conservation. "She inspired me
personally and helped start and lead a statewide conversation that
led directly to the preservation and recovery of ospreys, and
ultimately their removal from Vermont's endangered species
list."
Zetterstrom's efforts began at Lake Arrowhead, where she lived
and which straddles the border of Milton and Georgia, Vt. Her
requests - and demands - for assistance from the Department of Fish
and Wildlife and utilities prompted a long-running effort to
educate Vermonters about the birds and help them expand their range
in the Green Mountain State.
With a bird's-eye view of the lake, Zetterstrom was among the
first to notice when ospreys returned to fish Arrowhead's waters
after their near extinction in the 1940s. Starting in 1988,
the state and CVPS began cooperating to assist the ospreys,
creating artificial nesting platforms, buffer zones and educational
materials to provide the birds a fighting chance. GMP began a
similar effort.
A decade later, the first osprey chick in memory hatched and
fledged at Lake Arrowhead, and seven years later, the birds'
revival allowed their removal from the Vermont Endangered Species
List.
Past award recipients include Sally Laughlin, a leading wildlife
advocate and scientist whose work was instrumental in restoring
three species of endangered birds in Vermont; Michael Smith, the
founder and driving force behind Rutland's Pine Hill Park; and
Margaret Fowle, who has long led Vermont's peregrine falcon
restoration program, which is responsible for their return from the
brink of extinction.
Nominations for the GMP-Zetterstrom Environmental Award will be
accepted through March 15, and the winner announced in the spring.
The winner will be chosen by a panel of GMP employees with
responsibilities related to land management, resource protection,
community relations and education, and environmental
compliance.
Nominations may be made by the nominee or by any other entity,
and should demonstrate a commitment of the nominee to benefit
Vermont, its land, air or water, wildlife, or the enjoyment of the
outdoors by others. This may be through educational efforts,
environmental stewardship, resource rehabilitation, protection or
preservation, or conservation. The award is intended to
support environmental protection and inspire individuals to benefit
Vermont's environment. Vermonters of any age may be
nominated.
For a nomination application and more information, visit
www.greenmountainpower.com.
