About the Organization

Mission & Vision Statement

Park Watershed Inc. is a non-profit dedicated to the revitalization and conservation of the 78 square mile watershed that the Park River and its tributaries filter through.

Located west of and connecting to the Connecticut River, this watershed encompasses the towns of West Hartford, Bloomfield, Hartford, Newington, New Britain, Farmington, Avon, Simsbury, Wethersfield and Windsor. The high urbanization of these areas make the continued preservation of the watershed vitally important to ensure natural assets, ecosystems and water quality of the region are conserved for generations to come.

By coordinating efforts across stakeholders- community members, government agencies, and educational institutions- our organization strives to safeguard the health and safety of our communities and the nature within them.

What We Do

  • Park Watershed supports integrative planning strategies through which municipal, state and regional agencies, projects and policy can shape a greener, more prosperous future.
  • Education & Outreach:  Presentations about how your neighborhood, business or nonprofit organization is related to local ecosystem health. Providing informational materials to K-12 Schools along the watershed.
  • We partner with and consult other local non-profits and agencies on projects concerning the ecological revitalization of the watershed. These partnerships include:

  • Coordinate watershed clean-up projects

  • Community Engagement: Volunteer Opportunities + Town Zoning Meetings that impact the watershed

  • Acts as liaison for advancing community connection to nature

  • Providing information and testimony to help affect federal, state, and local environmental policy.

  • Support scientific research

  • Advocates for policy that improves and protects the Park River Watershed, and all watersheds in the U.S., as community assets.

Get Involved

Our History

Park Watershed is celebrating a decade of work to raise awareness about the health of the Park River regional watershed.

The concept of Park Watershed emerged during research on urban watersheds conducted by The Ecological Cities that was funded by a National Science Foundation grant.  Then, The Park River Watershed Revitalization Initiative was formed in 2005- a project of the The Farmington River Watershed Association (FRWA). Project work included river-cleanups and stream surveys.  Based on goals outlined in the North Branch Park River Watershed Management Plan, which was approved in 2010 by US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, Park Watershed Inc. was formed as a 501c3 community stewardship organization on April 26, 2012.

Our Board

Mary Pelletier – Board Secretary, Director

Lisa Dahill – Miriam Therese Winter Chair for Transformative Leadership and Spirituality, Director of the Center for Transformative Spirituality, Hartford International University for Religion & Peace

Alan Hadad – Professor of Physics, University of Hartford

Craig  Mergins –  Community Recreation Supervisor, City of Hartford, Interim Board President

Michelle Kraczkowski – Associate Professor of Biology, Central Connecticut State University