About the Stewardship Council

About the Wood-Pawcatuck Wild and Scenic Rivers Stewardship Council

The Stewardship Council is a key ingredient in the long term protection of these Rivers. Representatives from the watershed will be sitting around the table regularly, discussing issues and solutions regarding it’s Rivers. Updates will regularly be made back to appointing bodies, such as municipalities, state environmental agencies and conservation organizations. Each of these groups adopted The Stewardship Plan, which will be implemented by this Stewardship Council and various partners.

The Wood-Pawcatuck Wild and Scenic Rivers Stewardship Council was established in early 2019 with representatives from the twelve towns in the watershed, along with state agency and other non-profit conservation organizations.  Members for the Stewardship Council were sought from the towns of Charlestown, Exeter, Hopkinton, North Kingstown, Richmond, South Kingstown, West Greenwich and Westerly in Rhode Island and North Stonington, Sterling, Stonington, and Voluntown in Connecticut through a public application process open to all communities’ residents.  The Stewardship Council also includes representatives of the CT Department of Energy & Environmental Protection, RI Department of Environmental Management, Narragansett Indian Tribe, Save the Bay, The Nature Conservancy, The Westerly Land Trust, and the Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Association.  Up to two council members (representative and alternate) are appointed by each Town Council, Board of Selectmen, State Department or supporting conservation organization. Council members represent a broad range of expertise and interests related to protecting and enhancing the Wood-Pawcatuck watershed.

Funding from the National Park Service Partnership Wild & Scenic Rivers Program is controlled and managed by the Stewardship Council. The Wild & Scenic Rivers Program funds are supported by our partner and fiscal sponsor, The Westerly Land Trust.

Wood-Pawcatuck Wild and Scenic Rivers Stewardship Council members:

Members Representing Towns:

  • Charlestown, RI: Robert J Maietta
  • Charlestown, RI: Justin Andrade (alt)
  • Exeter, RI: Nan Quinlan
  • Exeter, RI: Sharon MacLean (alt)
  • Hopkinton, RI: Harvey Buford
  • Hopkinton, RI: Dave Augustyn (alt)
  • North Kingstown, RI: Ahren Cohen, Treasurer
  • North Kingstown, RI: vacant
  • North Stonington, CT: Madeline Jeffery
  • North Stonington, CT: Elaine Caldarone, Vice Chair
  • Richmond, RI: Antonia Bryson, Chair
  • Richmond, RI: Denise Poyer, Secretary
  • South Kingstown, RI: Tom Halavik
  • South Kingstown, RI: Ali Gretchner (alt)
  • Sterling, CT: Kim Gunn
  • Sterling, CT: vacant
  • Stonington, CT: Fred Wagner
  • Stonington, CT: Sara Baker
  • Voluntown, CT: William Gay
  • Voluntown, CT: vacant
  • West Greenwich, RI: Chris Grube
  • West Greenwich, RI: vacant
  • Westerly, RI: vacant
  • Westerly, RI: vacant

Member Agencies:

Wood-Pawcatuck Wild and Scenic Rivers Coordinator: Casey Merkle, coordinator@wpwildrivers.org

The Wood-Pawcatuck Wild and Scenic Rivers Stewardship Council began meeting in May of 2019.  Meetings are held on the fourth Wednesday of almost every month from 5 pm to 7 pm virtually or at the Westerly Land Trust, 449 Westerly Bradford Rd, Westerly, RI 02891. Meeting agendas and minutes from past meetings are available here. All meetings are open to the public. For information about upcoming meetings, contact the Wood-Pawcatuck Wild and Scenic Rivers Coordinator at coordinator@wpwildrivers.org.

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