Jammel Cutler reports in Columbia-Greene Media that The town of Canaan's park will get spruced up with a $6,000 grant from the Partners for Climate Action Hudson Valley to remove invasive species and restore plantings. On Earth Day, workers will begin adding native wildflowers and shade tree planting and removing European Water Chestnuts from the park pond. Dylan Cipkowski, Canaan’s Climate Smart Community Task Force member, said, “The pond is an essential part of the park.... It creates a lot of beauty, and it’s a wildlife habitat and it’s used by people for fishing. The Water Chestnut grows at a fast rate and outgrows other native species of plants, making it hard for them to persist in ponds, lakes, and rivers. That impacts wildlife, fish and people. The Water Chestnut makes it hard for people to fish.” Canaan will add Blazing Star, Brown Eyed Susan, and other native flowers, and grasses such Bluestem and Dwarf Fountain to the seven-acre park. Partners for Climate Action co-founder Bob Dandrew explained why Canaan won the grant, saying, “The project in Canaan was attractive to us because it involves volunteers from throughout the community,” Dandrew said. “We believe that it will be inspiring to other towns in the county.” Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com..