It’s a seaside community, and with the beauty comes the issues associated with coastal erosion. The June 23 meeting of the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission found the commissioners exploring the technicalities of waterfront modifications along oceanfront and barrier-beach locations.
Coming before the commission was Dave Davignon of Schneider, Davignon & Leone Inc., representing property owners for four properties on Good Speed Island and 1 Wendell Road in the Crescent Beach area.
Both Notice of Intent filings were requests to make significant improvement along oceanfront areas to repair damages from storm and wave action that has severely damaged beaches and sea walls.
At the Wendell Avenue location lots listed as 142, 152, 153, 157, and 999, there are plans to have a continuous sea wall replacing the badly damaged and crumbling remains of earlier repairs.
At the Good Speed Island site, “cor-logs” (made of recycled coconut fibers) will be buried along the high-water mark to assist in limiting ongoing beach erosion. The barrier beach at Good Speed Island will also have a fence installed in the effort to limit wave action and erosion due to storms. Both projects received orders of conditions with grass planting at Good Speed and careful use of equipment and fuel storage at Wendell Street.
A substantial amount of time was spent with a Notice of Intent filing by Eversource for the substation expansion planned for the Crystral Spring solar array. Representatives from Burns and McDonald, the engineering firm working on behalf of Eversource, detailed the mitigation plans required due to both permanent and temporary disturbances created by the expansion. It was noted that Massachusetts Natural Heritage identified the Eastern Box Turtle as species in the area.
The project encompasses parcels located in Acushnet. The project has yet to be reviewed by that town’s conservation commission. The Mattapoisett ConCom hearing was continued to July 14.
In other business, George Luber, 3 Waterman Street, received conditioning for the installation of septic tie-in with the municipal system. It was explained that this will allow for the removal of fill originally used to build up the earlier system.
A request for Determination of Applicability was granted to the Pothier Family Trust, 7 North Street, for the construction of a utility shed on the edge of a mapped flood zone.
Another Request for Determination of Applicability filed by James Bradshaw, 20 Tara Road, for a new sceptic system received a negative decision, and an Order of Conditions was approved for 39 Mattapoisett Neck Road for a revised plan for tree removal. The project received a commission site visit and sign-off on clearing activities taken by Bradshaw.
Robert Field of Field Engineering, representing himself for property located at 100R Mattapoisett Neck Road, filed a Determination of Applicability and received a Negative Determination for the digging of a test observation trench for a possible agricultural pond in the future. The trench will allow the monitoring of water levels for suitability as a pond.
The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission is planned for Monday, July 14, at 6:30 pm at Town Hall, 16 Main Street.
Mattapoisett Conservation Commission
By Marilou Newell