NEWBURY CONSERVATION COMMISSION
Meeting Minutes January 9, 2006
Present: William Weiler, Deane Geddes, Eric Unger, William Annable, Frank Perrotta
December 2005 minutes: Moved Unger, seconded Perrotta, approved as read.
Intents to Cut:
1. Marjorie A. Michie, New London. Requested permission from the selectmen to remove downed trees she considers a safety hazard on her property on High Point Road (Tax Map 30, Lot 275/316). Property is under sanction by the town due to a previous cutting issue.
Wetlands:
1. Harold Messer Trust, property on Old County Road, off Baker Hill Road (Tax Map 27, Lot 418). Received DES permission to begin cutting in area containing wetlands, with certain conditions. Permit valid from Dec. 15, 2005 to Dec. 15, 2007.
Old Business:
1. Conservation GIS Database.
a. The ArcView GIS program has been installed on a town laptop computer and can be used with the projector in the Town Meeting Room.
b. Weiler said he wanted to use the GIS database to better identify deer wintering areas (deer yards) in Newbury and add the data to the Natural Resources Inventory. Perrotta said he would look into it.
c. Files containing GIS data used to compile the NRI are unsuitable for transfer to the Conservation GIS Database. Perrotta said he would return the NRI disks given to him by Weiler to the Conservation Commission file cabinet in Town Hall.
d. The N.H. Fish & Game Department said the final version of the wildlife study in the GIS Database should be sent to the town by March 1
2. Acquisition/Easement Study. Perrotta said he was unable to meet with the SRK Greenway and the Ausbon Sargent land protection specialist regarding possible trail-easement negotiations. He expects the meeting to take place before the next Conservation Commission meeting.
New Business:
1. Conservation Plan. The commission took steps that will lead to publication of a Conservation Plan. The goal is to include the plan in the upcoming revision of the Master Plan, which is about a year away. Weiler said the project requires a consultant to do the job, paid for by the Conservation Fund. To guide a consultant, the commission decided to:
a. Acquire and review copies of other towns’ conservation plans (Perrotta).
b. Prepare a “scope of work” detailing the commission’s objectives (Geddes). The document will be based on Chapter 6, “Developing a Conservation Plan,” published in the Handbook for New Hampshire’s Municipal Conservation Commissions (2004).
c. Seek at least three consultants to bid on the project (Perrotta). The commission will seek the assistance of the N.H. Association of Conservation Commissions to identify possible candidates, as well as procuring samples of conservation plans.
Adjourned: Unger moved, Annable seconded, approved at 8:45 p.m.
Next Meeting: February 14 at 7:15 p.m., Municipal Meeting Room
Prepared by: Frank Perrotta
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