Approved Meeting Minutes
Herring River Restoration Committee (HRRC) Meeting
Cape Cod National Seashore Headquarters
Wellfleet, MA
December 13, 2012
9:30 am-5:00 pm
Members Present: Tim Smith, Eric Derleth, Hunt Durey, Steve Spear, Steve Block, Charleen Greenhalgh
Others Present: Margo Fenn, Don Palladino
Discussion:
Follow up on Workshop with Wellfleet Town Officials: The Committee discussed the December 12, 2012 workshop with Wellfleet officials and next steps in coordinating with the towns. Don Palladino commented that the towns might be able to contribute to the Restoration Project in a variety of ways, including in-kind contributions of time, seeking funding for specific project components such as road or culvert work, or perhaps providing Community Preservation Act funding-if there are project activities that are eligible for such funding. He suggested providing the Selectmen with a written proposal to appoint representatives to a Herring River working group prior to the January 7, 2012 Selectmen’s meeting.
Herring River Project Work Program: The Committee discussed upcoming work tasks and compiled a list of priority items to address over the coming year. The following is a summary of that discussion:
Fuss & O’Neill Engineering Work: Fuss & O’Neill (F&O) has completed the majority of its analysis for the Chequessett Neck Road (CNR) dike/bridge and tide gate options. They have prepared an existing conditions plan (Task 1), updated the CNR dike alternatives analysis (Task 2), and prepared a draft tide control option report (Task 3). They need to complete their report, following the workshop with Wellfleet town officials and also complete Task 4: Preparing a draft operations and maintenance plan for both the CNR and Mill Creek dikes. There are additional funds available under the RAE-NOAA engineering grant that were initially intended to be used for preparing the 25% design plans for the new dike/bridge. However, the FHR submitted a grant application to the Massachusetts Environmental Trust (MET) for
$50,000 to prepare the 25% design plans for a new CNR dike/bridge. If this grant is approved, then the RAE-NOAA funds could be used to analyze options for Mill Creek. The HRRC and Conservation Law Foundation would need to develop a new contract with F&O to prepare a Mill Creek dike analysis. This will require a new scope of work and contract.
Steve Spear agreed to talk to F&O engineers about what is needed to complete their work. He will work with Tim Smith and Steve Block to develop a new scope of work for the Mill Creek analysis. The HRRC will review the draft scope of work at its January 10, 2013 meeting.
MOU III: One of the critical next steps for the Restoration Project is to develop a new MOU to guide the Project through permitting, final engineering design, construction and implementation. This MOU (MOU III) must define roles and responsibilities among the Project proponents including ownership, maintenance, and operations of the tidal control infrastructure.
The HRRC has proposed setting up a working group with representatives of the Selectmen from both Wellfleet and Truro, the two town managers and Cape Cod National Seashore officials to meet with HRRC representatives on a regular basis during the coming months. The goal is to prepare a preliminary draft MOU by early summer and a have a final draft ready by the end of September so that a description of the management roles and relationships can be included in the Final EIS/EIR and Record of Decision.
The Wellfleet Selectmen agreed to discuss the working group proposal for MOU III at their January 7, 2013 meeting. Charleen Greenhalgh reported that the Truro Selectmen would also discuss the matter at an upcoming meeting. Margo Fenn and Don Palladino agreed to draft a proposal for the Boards of Selectmen to use in setting up and appointing representatives to the Herring River MOU III working group. They will also schedule and plan an agenda for a working group meeting in mid-January.
Cultural Resources: Tim Smith reported that the Public Archaeology Lab (PAL) had submitted a proposal to assist the HRRC and the National Park Service (NPS) in development of a Programmatic Agreement with the Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC). Copies of the PAL proposal were distributed to the Committee. The project team would consist of Deborah Cox, PAL President and Holly Herbster, Principle Investigator. NPS Archaeologist Jim Harmon suggested that the proposed scope of work be modified in Task 3 to redraft the Programmatic Agreement instead of providing a consultation memorandum. Jim Harmon and Holly Herbster will attend the January 10, 2013 HRRC meeting.
NOAA Grant Application: The Committee discussed the upcoming National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) grant announcement. This is a multi-year grant program that is seeking applications for large, regionally important projects. Applications are due February 19, 2013. Municipalities (such as the Town of Wellfleet) and non-profit organizations (such as FHR) are eligible to apply. This grant could provide funding for a myriad of activities in the next phase of the project, including but not limited to engineering design, permitting, design of mitigation for low-lying properties and project coordination. Tim Smith agreed to take the lead in preparing a scope of work for this grant. The group agreed to brainstorm ideas for grant tasks later in the meeting (see below).
The Committee briefly discussed the options for what entity should apply. All agreed that it is critical to have strong support from the Town of Wellfleet for a NOAA grant application, but the town does not have to be the applicant. The FHR could apply, or it could be a joint application between the FHR and the town. The grant could provide funding for a technical coordinator, who could prepare needed Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for engineering and technical work. This would be a way to build some organizational capacity for the Restoration Project in the town or FHR.
The Committee also discussed the need for support letters and the lead-time needed to get letters from elected officials.
Tim Smith agreed to draft a scope of work for the NOAA grant based on the list of tasks developed by the HRRC. The Committee will review this scope of work at its January 10, 2013 meeting. Once the general scope of work is agreed upon, Don Palladino and Margo Fenn will draft a sample letter and seek letters of support from local, state and federal elected officials for the NOAA grant.
Review and Response to DEIS/EIR Comment Letters: The deadline for submitting comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Report (DEIS/EIR) was December 12, 2012. NPS officials are compiling the comments submitted in the PEPC tracking system and the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) office is preparing a Certificate that will stipulate what needs to be addressed in the Final EIS/EIR. As part of its contract with the NPS, the Louis Berger Group (LBG) will catalog all the comments and develop “concern statements” that will need to be addressed in the FEIS/EIR. The HRRC must review the comments and prepare its responses in the next few months.
Tim Smith and Margo Fenn agreed to consult with Mark Husbands of the NPS Environmental Quality Division (EQD) and LBG about the process for compiling and responding to DEIS/EIR comments. Tim Smith will provide copies of all the comment letters to HRRC members.
Adaptive Management Plan: Tim Smith reported that the NPS is seeking additional funding for development and implementation of a Herring River Adaptive Management Plan. Tim Smith and Eric Derleth have been working with Charlie Roman of NPS/URI to plan a workshop with modeling experts, as discussed by the HRRC in June. The Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) will coordinate the workshop with funding from the NPS ($30,000) and the Corporate Wetlands Restoration Partnership ($20,000).
Tim Smith agreed to write up a scope of work and outline for the workshop. The CCS will seek proposals to conduct the workshop and prepare a follow up report.
Outreach and Landowner Engagement Plan: The scope of work for the RAE-NOAA Project Coordination grant (through the Conservation Law Foundation) calls for the Friends of Herring River (FHR) to develop an outreach and landowner engagement (O&E) plan as follows:
FHR will develop and coordinate implementation of an O&E Plan for the Herring River Restoration Project:
• Serve as the lead coordinator and facilitator for O&E Plan development and implementation;
• Work with the HRRC to scope the O&E Plan goals, content, and structure;
• Schedule, facilitate, and take notes on meetings and other communications related to this task;
• Prepare a Draft O&E Plan and coordinate partner review and comments;
• Prepare a Final O&E Plan;
• Coordinate O&E Plan implementation, including facilitation and tracking of O&E Plan implementation actions, development of press releases and other media communications, and documentation (via database) of interactions and follow-up needs with affected landowners.
Deliverables for this grant task include:
• Outline of O&E Plan goals, content, and structure;
• Copies of meeting agendas and meeting notes for this task;
• Copy of Final O&E Plan;
• Copies of press releases and other media communications produced under this task
• Copy of affected landowner interactions tracking database.
The O&E Plan is due to be completed by June 30, 2013. Margo Fenn agreed to work with Don Palladino and Hunt Durey to draft an outline of the O&E Plan for the HRRC to consider.
Low-Lying Property Outreach: The Committee discussed the outreach efforts to LLP owners. Letters describing the restoration project and possible impacts to private properties were sent to 293 owners (representing 376 parcels) on October 12, 2012. Thus far, 32 owners had responded, requesting additional information. The Committee set up a system to track these contacts and individual members have been assigned to speak with specific property owners over the coming weeks. HRRC members reviewed the contacts made to date and discussed various issues raised in the process. Some property owners have not responded to the initial contacts from HRRC members and will require follow up. All these efforts need to be documented using the Zoho tracking system.
The Committee discussed again the idea of creating an additional outreach effort for those properties that may have structural impacts. The Committee agreed that for most properties with structural impacts (e.g. to buildings, driveways, wells or septic systems) on-site surveys would be needed to better assess impacts. The Woods Hole Group (WHG) will run the cell data elevations for all parcels that will experience inundation effects.
The HRRC agreed to review the parcels with potential structural impacts at its January 10, 2013 meeting and determine next steps in working with these property owners.
The Committee briefly discussed needed follow up with Martin Nieski, who met with the HRRC at its November 28, 2012 meeting. Steve Spear agreed to contact Mr. Nieski and offer to do a site visit. Steve Spear and Charleen Greenhalgh will work with him to sketch out options for flood mitigation on his property.
Funding Needs-NOAA Grant Scope: The Committee compiled a list of upcoming project needs that could be included in the scope of work for the NOAA grant application.
Assuming that funds could be available for FY13 starting on October 1, 2013 and would run for a three-year period (through September of 2016), the following tasks could be included in the grant proposal:
-CNR final design
-Mill Creek Dike design
-Pole Dike Creek tide gate design and/or
-Design and evaluate flood proofing options for properties
-Final design for CYCC golf course
-Road elevation design (3 levels of engineering design)
-High Toss Road design
-High Toss culvert or bridge design
-Permitting, including wetland delineation
-LOMR/CLOMR
-Cultural resource Phase 1B investigations
-Monitoring for listed-species
-Vegetation management plan
-Project coordination
-Project administration/technical coordination
-Remote tide/water monitoring set-up
-Plans and specs
-Herring run improvements (culverts)
-Legal assistance for landowner agreements
-Legal assistance for project management authority
The Committee discussed how to order the tasks under the three-year grant period. The group agreed that preliminary design work is the highest priority and should be targeted for Year 1. Year 2 tasks should focus on permitting needs. Year 3 could then focus on final design tasks. The HRRC needs to flesh out the sub-tasks under each of the above topics.
Tim Smith agreed to break the draft list into categories and begin the process of fleshing out the subtasks for a grant scope of work. Charleen Greenhalgh and Eric Derleth offered to assist with this effort. The HRRC will discuss a more detailed grant proposal at its January 10, 2013 meeting.
Respectfully submitted,
Hillary Greenberg-Lemos/c
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