MONSON CONSERVATION COMMISSION
MINUTES MAY 23, 2012
MEMBERS PRESENT: Leslie Duthie, Glenn Colburn, Audra Staples and Davis Johnson.
MEMBERS ABSENT: Dana Staples
7:00 Audra Staples moved to approve the minutes of May 2, 2012 with a correction on Page 4 Mr. Lavallee stated he gave the Town sand not land.
Glenn Colburn seconded the motion.
It was so voted unanimous.
6 Mill Street Danil Kishko and Maria Kishko met informally with the Commission to discuss an enforcement order issued by the Commission regarding the construction of a shed within the riverfront area.
Mr. Kishko stated several trees were damaged on his property and he cut them down and wants to level out the area in order to build a shed for his garden equipment.
Leslie Duthie stated she looked at the site and the trees have been removed and gravel has been placed although it does not appear as though there will be a lot of excavation.
Mr. Kishko stated he wanted to make it flatter behind the house.
Glenn Colburn questioned if fill would be brought onto the site and what kind of machinery would be used?
Mr. Kishko stated he would not use machinery he would use a wheelbarrow and shovel. In addition to building a shed he would like to do some landscaping and create an area for additional parking. He stated grass does not grow well on his property because the yard is shady.
Leslie Duthie questioned what was happening with the wood debris?
Mr. Kishko stated it would be moved out. A lot of branches came down in the October storm so he cut the trees down and has been waiting for a friend to come with equipment to chip the wood.
Leslie Duthie stated she thought it would be beneficial for the Commission to make a site visit to see how close to the riverfront the work would take place and to observe what has happened so far and how much soil would be leveled. She stated any activity on the property would probably fall under riverfront area and would require a filing with the Commission. The danger is that a heavy rainstorm could cause erosion into the stream. She questioned what vegetation was in that area of the property?
Mr. Kishko stated trees mostly.
Leslie Duthie suggested installing a silt fence or hay bales where the pad for the shed is.
Mr. Kishko stated the soil is not going anywhere because it is mostly rocks and gravel.
7:30 King Avenue Quaboag Riders. The Commissioners made a site visit to look at the motorcycle track that has been created and found a stream crossing has been created and some maintenance work needs to be completed on the hill.
Davis Johnson stated the area that heads up to the top of the hill has always been a problem.
Glenn Colburn stated there is erosion just before the stone crusher but at the top of the hill turn north and that is where there is a new stream crossing. A stream crossing is something that must be filed for with the Conservation Commission.
Ron Guertin stated the Club never intended to have a stream crossing but became complacent about what was going on.
Davis Johnson questioned how the Club could avoid a crossing?
Ron Guertin stated the race track could be kept totally on the north side of the brook by going west and south west a little. There was no need for a crossing.
Davis Johnson stated if the track was moved away from the brook and the crossing removed and the area restored it would not be so much a problem.
Ray Mansfield stated the Club could move the track and leave the area alone to let it grow back.
Ron Guertin stated they did discuss a crossing to take material across to the top of the hill, but once the motorcycle activity started it made a mess.
Davis Johnson questioned if the racing continued even though the crossing was not good.
Leslie Duthie stated if the Club intends to keep the crossing to move material up the hill, the Club will have to file a Notice of Intent and make sure the crossing is done in accordance with regulations.
Mr. Guertin stated the Club will file a Notice because it is the intent to keep the crossing and road to move soil to the top of the hill.
Glenn Colburn stated the Commission will expect a filing within a reasonable amount of time. The access road has always been a problem it would be a good trade off to trade the problem access for a new road from the pavilion side to get material up to the hill.
Ray Mansfield stated there are two parts of the road one comes out from the top of the hill and the other from the middle of the hill. The Club needs the road that comes out from the middle because that is the return access for the hill climb.
Leslie Duthie stated the Commission will expect a filing for the crossing within four weeks, if it is going to take longer contact the Commission.
7:55 Steve O’Shea, Parks & Recreation Commissioner met informally with the Commission to discuss a plan his Department is putting together for Flynt Park. He stated they wanted to have some logging done but did not know how to access the property. He questioned if the Commission could help with that?
Leslie Duthie stated logging plans must be approved by the State Forrester, Carmine Angeloni, she questioned if the Commissioners have hired someone to prepare the plan and do the work?
Mr. O’Shea stated they are just in the planning stages.
Leslie Duthie suggested Mr. O’Shea contact Carmine Angeloni.
Leslie Duthie recused herself to avoid the appearance of a conflict.
8:05 Dan Donohue Director of Land Protection & Stewardship at the Norcross Wildlife Foundation, Inc. met informally with the Commission to discuss a problem at property owned by the Foundation located at the top of Crow Hill Road. Norcross Wildlife Foundation owns approximately 56 acres of protected wildlife habitat bordered by Peaked Mountain (owned by the Trustees of Reservation) to the north and the Connecticut/Massachusetts line to the south. There is an improved gravel road at the end of Crow Hill Road that is the only means of access to the 56 acre parcel. In 2005 heavy rains washed out a culvert taking part of the access road with it. Norcross made repairs the following year using a hard ford approach of 4” to 6” stone to firmly stabilize the roadbed, minimize any downstream
movement of fill material and provide for the passage of surface water. A result of this was that beavers abandoned their dam-building activities at this location. Mr. Donohue stated he was seeking the Commission’s approval of a plan to repair damage to the access road and manage a small beaver colony a short distance upstream. An old beaver pond upstream gave way taking a portion of the old stone and earthen dam and draining the pond. The proposal is to repair the access road by replacing the stone fill with the material that is still there and within reach, also to use non-lethal measures to discourage the beaver from re-colonizing the old pond. Woody growth will be cleared from the access road and where needed reseed with annual grasses.
Glenn Colburn questioned if there was a culvert under the stone?
Dan Donohue stated no.
Glenn Colburn questioned if silt would clog between the stones?
Mr. Donohue stated no, the stones are large enough that water filters through when it flows at a normal rate. The problem was when the beaver dam gave way it flowed fast.
Glenn Colburn questioned how often it was proposed to go up and manage the beaver?
Mr. Donohue stated once a week and it would all be done by hand, no equipment would be used. The vegetation would be cleared along the gravel drainage structure.
Davis Johnson questioned the regulations for removing beaver?
Mr. Donohue stated he spoke with Fish & Wildlife regarding the beaver regulations and the regulations prevent tampering with a dam without approval. In this case there is no dam to tamper with the idea is to stop the beaver from establishing a dam. Fish & Wildlife told them to contact the local Conservation Commission. There is no intent to trap beaver and now the pond has drained the idea is to keep the beaver out.
Davis Johnson questioned if any houses would be in jeopardy?
Mr. Donohue stated there are houses on Crow Hill Road but this work is being proposed to protect the access road. The wetland is more of a marsh, apart from what happened to the road you would not know that anything happened, the wetland absorbed all of the water. He stated he believed the work could be done without causing any significant problems.
Glenn Colburn stated he believed this could be accomplished with a simple Request for Determination.
Leslie Duthie returned.
8:50 268 Palmer Road Raymond Lavallee, Ray’s Mobile Home Park. Leslie Duthie stated after the Commission made a site visit to Mr. Lavallee’s property on Palmer Road, Wednesday May 9, 2012 she contacted Mark Stinson at DEP Thursday May 10, 2012 for advice. Mr. Stinson stated DEP would need photographs and documentation before they could be of assistance. On Monday May 14, 2012 Karen Hirschberger, DEP called and after reviewing the Enforcement Order and copies of photographs taken by the Commission stated it was a solid enforcement order but it lacked the dates by which the violations must be rectified. Ms. Hirschberger advised the Commission to issue a superseding Enforcement Order that specified the actions the Commission wanted the property owner to take to rectify the
violations and the dates by which it must be done. Leslie Duthie stated it was her understanding that in order for the DEP to be involved the Commission must issue deadlines in its enforcement order.
The Commission discussed at length the violations and the best way to move forward to correct the violations that have occurred on the property. It was the consensus of the Commissioners that:
1. The property owner shall cease & desist all work in the area.
- The property owner shall submit the name of a wetland scientist for approval by the Conservation Commission within 10 days of receipt of the Enforcement Order.
- The property owner shall place hay bales at the toe of the slope where construction debris was removed immediately.
- The property owner shall submit a plan by June 13, 2012 for removal and restoration of two debris sites any work planned for this area including but not limited to erosion control, removal of sand and loam piles, seeding of disturbed areas, excavation of compost pit and stabilization of site to prevent erosion.
5. This enforcement order supersedes all other enforcement orders.
9:05 Leslie Duthie stated Amy McDonough Tighe & Bond contacted her regarding a possible solar array site on Hovey Road. Ms. McDonough would like to meet informally with the Commission to discuss a conceptual plan. It is a fairly large system that is proposed and would require cutting trees in the resource area but if they had to they would reduce the size of the solar array in an effort to lessen impacts to the wetlands. Ms. Duthie stated she advised that they file a Notice of Intent with as much information as possible and the Commission would set a site visit.
Glenn Colburn stated his concern that if this is the area he was thinking of there is already a crossing there and this would be a second crossing. He would prefer to see them seek a common access and avoid a second crossing.
9:15 MAIL
- The Commission received notice from the Quinlan Trust of its intent to remove two building lots totaling approximately 4 ½ acres from Chapter 61.
Leslie Duthie moved to make a recommendation to the Board of Selectmen not to exercise the Town’s right of first refusal.
Audra Staples seconded the motion.
It was so voted unanimous.
- Copy of the base line report for Carpenter Realty, APR, on Town Farm Road.
- 6 Mill Street Mr. Kishko received the enforcement order.
- Forest cutting plan Gay Polluch 7.78 acres on Lower Hampden Road.
- Final for forest cutting plan on Ely Road Charles Lindsey.
- Forest cutting Plan Clifford Fisher 10 acres on T Peck Road.
- Forest cutting plan Adam Channing, Upper Hampden Road.
- NHESP report for forest cutting plan for Clifford Kruger Lower Hampden Road. Entire harvest area is eastern box turtle and wood turtle habitat the operation of motorized vehicles is allowed between December 1 and March 31, only.
- Various building permits.
Leslie Duthie stated she met with John Morrell on State Avenue to look at a culvert that is collapsing. He wants to put in a new culvert from the catch basin to the drainage ditch. Ms. Duthie stated she told Mr. Morrell to file with the Commission.
The Commission set a site visit for Bumstead Road, Lloyd Farrin and Danil Kishko 6 Mill Street, May 29, 2012 starting at 5:30 P.M.
9:30 Glenn Colburn moved to adjourn.
Audra Staples seconded the motion.
It was so voted unanimous.
Respectfully submitted,
Linda A. Hull
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