The Conservation Commission will meet Sept. 24 to decide on the depth of this year’s Bare Hill Pond drawdown, a drawdown that has been actively debated because of the low water level this summer.
Under the present order of conditions, which according to Conservation Agent Liz Allard has been extended two years by the Permit Extension Act, the pond would be lowered 6.5 feet this fall to combat invasive weeds and high phosphorus levels. Data provided by the Bare Hill Pond Watershed Management Committee suggests that this drawdown strategy and depth has proven effective. However, the commission can modify the order of conditions.
At the Sept. 3 Conservation Commission meeting, committee member Britt Argow said, “We have a responsibility to maintain the pond and remove invasives and maintain it in its natural state … and the drawdown is a well-studied mechanism to do that.” Fellow committee member James Gorss said, “I’m incredibly impressed with the pond committee. They have provided so much information and done so much research over the years that it’s amazing. We are in uncertain times with climate change and need to bring that into our calculation, but I’m confident that the pond committee will come up with what should be done based on science: Science-based decisions are really important.”
This uncertainty over climate change and the low water level of the pond this summer has led to a petition from a grassroots movement in town consisting of residents who own beachfront property and residents who simply “love the pond.” Brett Fairbanks and Garry Baer, co-chairs of the group, maintain that 270 people have signed the petition, which asks the Conservation Commission to “limit this year’s drawdown to four feet, collect groundwater and environmental data needed to better understand how the pond is responding to changing conditions, review compliance with the current Order of Conditions and applicable permit requirements, and continue the conversation with transparency and meaningful public participation before decisions affecting the next three-year management cycle are finalized.” The commission agreed to enter the petition into the record.
Leicher: Petition lacks ‘reliable evidence’
However, in a memo to the commission dated Sept. 2, pond committee Chair Bruce Leicher said, “A petition reflecting public opinion may be received and entered into the record of a Conservation Commission under the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act (WPA), but it cannot serve as the evidentiary basis for a decision under the WPA. A petition expressing community sentiment without accompanying factual, technical, or scientific support does not constitute the kind of competent, reliable evidence that can sustain a permitting decision.”
Further, the memo states: “This petition was sought utilizing multiple biased prompts in emails and on Facebook that allege misbehavior without evidence of the same; statements without proof that the winter drawdown depth is not supported by evidence; and allegations that MA Fish and Wildlife do not support the winter drawdown depth.” According to Leicher, both the Department of Environmental Protection and the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife have reviewed the Bare Hill Pond Watershed Plan and approve of the 6.5-foot drawdown.
The Conservation Commission will open the meeting to discussion on Sept. 24 and then make a decision about this fall’s drawdown. The public is welcome to attend.
