It’s been a year since the great floods of last July washed through our region, and washed out most of the 350 acres that make up Burlington’s Intervale Center. After months of work and support from their community, however, many people at the center said it’s come back to life again. But for people like Patrick Dunseith, the Intervale’s land manager, the memories of the floods are as vivid as the moment it started on July 10, 2023. “It was so overwhelming, shocking, horrifying, really to see everything that you’ve put into the whole first half of the year just disappear,” Dunseith said. He added that the progress seen today couldn’t have been possible without the support the center received from the second recovery efforts began. “Volunteers were showing up every day by the dozens to help farms clean up,” he said. But he said there is an underlying fear today, that all of the hard work could be washed away again. “I think everybody’s kind of just feeling that natural energy of this was, you know, the sun’s in the same spot it was last year,” Dunseith said. That’s why as recovery efforts continue, the Intervale Center has already begun kicking climate action into high gear. “We’ve been working with partners through Vermont Farm to Plate Network to develop a plan that we delivered to the legislature during this last session,” said Mandy Fischer, the center’s director of programs. Fischer said that plan is known as the food security roadmap; it works to create a more proactive approach to addressing the climate crisis and its impact on Vermont agriculture. “How can we make sure that we value agriculture in our state from a cultural perspective, from an ecological perspective, and make sure that the people that grow our goods are safe and secure in their jobs and are able to provide the food we need in the changing climate,” Fischer explained. Because as the climate crisis persists, many including Fischer and Dunseith feel it’s not a question of “if” but rather “how soon” until the next flood strikes. “We’re going to be kind of holding our breath, I feel like, for a little while,” Dunseith said. But, for now, the Intervale Center is also celebrating the progress it’s made over the last year and is inviting everyone to come out and see it for themselves at Summervale, which kicks off on Thursday, July 11.
It’s been a year since the great floods of last July washed through our region, and washed out most of the 350 acres that make up Burlington’s Intervale Center.
After months of work and support from their community, however, many people at the center said it’s come back to life again.
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But for people like Patrick Dunseith, the Intervale’s land manager, the memories of the floods are as vivid as the moment it started on July 10, 2023.
“It was so overwhelming, shocking, horrifying, really to see everything that you’ve put into the whole first half of the year just disappear,” Dunseith said.
He added that the progress seen today couldn’t have been possible without the support the center received from the second recovery efforts began.
“Volunteers were showing up every day by the dozens to help farms clean up,” he said.
But he said there is an underlying fear today, that all of the hard work could be washed away again.
“I think everybody’s kind of just feeling that natural energy of this was, you know, the sun’s in the same spot it was last year,” Dunseith said.
That’s why as recovery efforts continue, the Intervale Center has already begun kicking climate action into high gear.
“We’ve been working with partners through Vermont Farm to Plate Network to develop a plan that we delivered to the legislature during this last session,” said Mandy Fischer, the center’s director of programs.
Fischer said that plan is known as the food security roadmap; it works to create a more proactive approach to addressing the climate crisis and its impact on Vermont agriculture.
“How can we make sure that we value agriculture in our state from a cultural perspective, from an ecological perspective, and make sure that the people that grow our goods are safe and secure in their jobs and are able to provide the food we need in the changing climate,” Fischer explained.
Because as the climate crisis persists, many including Fischer and Dunseith feel it’s not a question of “if” but rather “how soon” until the next flood strikes.
“We’re going to be kind of holding our breath, I feel like, for a little while,” Dunseith said.
But, for now, the Intervale Center is also celebrating the progress it’s made over the last year and is inviting everyone to come out and see it for themselves at Summervale, which kicks off on Thursday, July 11.
