Conservation Commission
Minutes of March 8, 2012
Public Hearings
Mashpee Town Hall - Conference Room 2
Commissioners: Vice Chairman Ralph Shaw, Lloyd Allen, John Rogers, Patty Jalowy and Steve Cook
Staff Present: Drew McManus (Conservation Agent)
Call Meeting To Order: 6:55 pm
The meeting was called to order with a quorum by Vice Chairman Ralph Shaw at 6:55 pm.
There was no public comment.
Pre/Post Hearing Agenda:
- Minutes: Approval of the following minutes: N/A
- Fire Road Clearing- Tribal land (South Mashpee Pine Barrens) - NRCS funded a program as part of a USFWS New England Cottontail project. The Agent explains that they are proposing widening of the forest access road which is partly access for the New England Cottontail work on the tribal land and also part of the road widening work along stretches of Great Hay Road for wildfire access. Chuck Greene asked this to be presented for approval so that they can start the road widening work. It is approximately 15’ on each side of the road that borders the Mashpee Conservation Land parcel which abuts directly to the tribal land.
Motion made, seconded and unanimously carried to approve the offering
- Recap of Americorps Volunteer Workday (Mashpee/Quashnet herring runs/ tribal volunteers) – February 27th consisted of 10 volunteers from Americore and 4 volunteers from the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe to cover some of the upper reaches of the Mashpee and Quashnet Rivers to ensure free passage for the herring. The Agent states that there have been reports of herring scouts spotted and he assumes it is because of the mild weather. They also did a significant amount of clearing of an area adjacent to the parking lot at the Mashpee Herring Run which was very overgrown and had completely consumed a storm water swale.
HEARINGS
7:00 Lemonia Macropoulos (88 Cayuga Avenue) Remove five trees that are close to home that is damaging the deck and roof and are also potentially hazardous to the dwelling - RDA **WITHDRAWN by Representative**
Resource Area:
Material submitted:
[1:55] The representative has requested the application to be withdrawn without prejudice.
Motion made, seconded and unanimously carried to accept the withdrawal of Lemonia Macropoulos
7:03 Kevin Mulgrew **43-2687** (33 Sunset Circle) Construct wood retaining wall, fieldstone retaining wall and replace turf & patio area with sand and compensatory plantings - NOI **Continued from February 23, 2012**
Resource Area: Buffer Zone to Pondfront (Land Under Waterways/Waterbodies)
Material submitted: Plot Plan 1/13/12 Stephen J. Doyle
[5:26] Mr. Mulgrew explains that he would like to rebuild a retaining wall at the water’s edge that had been neglected by previous owners and to also add an additional retaining wall behind that one. Mr. Mulgrew states that a few trees will need to be removed so as to provide an access roadway for the trucks to deliver sand and field stone material. The Agent confirms that the existing retaining wall is barely visible as it has been dilapidated over the last several years and there is apparent erosion happening along the shore
line. The Agent states that Mr. Mulgrew is removing the pervious cement walkway and the existing grass turf which will be replaced with sand. The access road that will be created from removing trees will be compacted and will have some disturbance so the applicant will be placing grass plantings to re-stabilize the area when the construction is complete. The Agent states that the this particular area of John’s Pond is mapped within the NHESP 2008 bio-map and Mr. Mulgrew did have to submit requested information to them. The Agent reads the response letter from NHESP and the MESA comments for the record. Agent McManus recommends a special condition for the sand being brought in to which a letter from the supplier that states the sand is clean will need to be submitted. Mr. Allen questions the amount of trees being removed and asks if it is necessary. Agent McManus states that the equipment that is bringing the material in will need a
lot of width.
Motion made, seconded and unanimously carried to Close and Issue
7:06 Town of Mashpee (Santuit Pond) Install six solar-powered floating water circulators (SolarBees®) - RDA
Resource Area: Land Under Waterways/Water Bodies
Material submitted: Santuit Pond Diagnostic Study 7/29/10 AECOM Environment / State Public Health Dept Issues Warnings 8/5/11 Cape News Publication / Project Description – SolarBee® Specs
[14:56] Catherine Laurent, Director of DPW is representing the Town of Mashpee and she explains a brief history of Santuit Pond including an article that was released last summer of the closure of the pond to recreational use due to the algae blooms. The treatment process decision was made by the Town and Friends of Santuit Pond that the solar water circulators were the best option for cost and results. The Board of Selectman awarded a contract to SolarBee Inc. in November. Agent McManus reviews jurisdictional information in
regards to Natural Heritage and that this project is land under water and it is not mapped on their Bio-Map 2008. The Agent reads a letter submitted by the Harbormaster. The Agent states that they have received 13 letters of support from residents around the pond which he read a few of the letters for the record.
Rick York, the Shellfish Constable, states for the record that he is in favor of the circulators as they had been studying the pond with their water quality monitoring program, which they will continue to do that so that they will have hard data on the results. Mr. York states that they were very close to fish kill last summer due to oxygen depletion. Vice Chairman Shaw asks what time frame to see the 50% reduction and Mr. York is hoping for the summer. He states that if they are deployed by May, the AECOM report estimates that the blooms will be cut in half within a two-year period.
Vice Chairman Shaw asks the Agent about concerns they had with hazard warnings and monitoring. Ms. Laurent states that there is a power point presentation that shows beacons as part of the units being installed that the town opted to purchase so as to warn boaters of their presence. Ms. Laurent says that the town can work with SolarBee to determine the lights; what color, how frequently to flash, whether to run 24hrs or not, etc. Agent McManus asks how often the units will be monitored as the Commissioners would like to see specific information. He also asks what types of protocols are set to check for vandalism. Ms. Laurent states that the town has also purchased a maintenance program for the units as well as some training that
the company will be offering. Mr. Cook asks what happens during the winter when the pond freezes over and Ms. Laurent says the units will be left in place although the town could choose to tow the units to shore or remove but there will be costs associated and also there is not very much land available to store. She feels that there is no reason to not operate them year round and the town will post safety warnings for skating and other winter activities. Mr. Allen would like to suggest an undertaking from the people that live on Santuit Pond to discontinue use of excess phosphates and lawn fertilizers. He states that he cannot oppose this because it is desperate times to fix the pond but he does not want to see more phosphates put into it.
Brad Caffyn, Friends of Santuit states that they will be working with the community to reduce phosphates on their lawns.
Allen Waxman, 35 Santuit Pond Road, states that he was pleased to see all the endorsements and that there was no opposition for this project. He also states that monitoring the units will be simple enough by people who are canoeing around the pond and they can commit to going out to cleaning off the exteriors with a scrub brush. There is a digital control system inside that stores data that can be downloaded. Mr. Waxman says that there is an actual unit in Harwich that sits in the water year round and has survived multiple storms. Vice Chairman asks how old that program is and Mr. Waxman states 7 years.
Ms. Robbins, also from Santuit Pond Road, states her comments for the record.
Ms. Names, 35 Santuit Pond Road, Board of Trustees for Beachwood Point Condos, states that they have instructed Maffei Landscaping to use phosphate free fertilizer.
Agent McManus states that he will make himself available to any associations involved with Santuit Pond to recommend a regulation that promotes the creation of naturally vegetated buffer strips which will help filter pollutants running into the pond and it also provides valuable wildlife habitat.
Ms. Nelson, from Deerfoot Circle and a board member of Santuit Pond Estates comments for the record.
Motion made, seconded and unanimously carried for a Negative Determination
7:09 Robert Kraft (24 Popponesset Road) Remove and replace existing pool deck. Repair broken pool plumbing and upgrade pool equipment. Remove and replace shrubs and fence sections (for access) - RDA
Resource Area: Buffer Zone to Coastal Bank/LSCSF
Material submitted: Plot Plan 2/24/12 (Hand-drawn) Owner
[19:19] The representative states that they would like to repair the pool. Agent McManus confirms that the equipment underneath the decking to the pool has failed and all activity is within the existing footprint. Vice Chairman asks why the shrubs are being removed and replaced and Agent McManus states that it is for access to the pool area.
Motion made, seconded and unanimously carried for a Negative Determination
- APCC Herring Count Program – [Association of the Preservation of Cape Cod] Agent McManus explains that he set up Mashpee’s first Herring Count Program with them last year for the Quashnet and Mashpee rivers. Santuit is excluded because the site is approximately a 1 mile walk for a 10 minute count although if someone was interested then he would set it up but the access is difficult. A request for volunteers has been posted on the Conservation web site.
Motion made, seconded and unanimously carried to adjourn the meeting at 7:55 pm. [1:02:55]
Respectfully submitted,
Kris Carpenter
Administrative Secretary
***All material submitted for hearings can be found on Conservation Flash Drive dated 7/1/10***
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