[SEMCO] River Restoration Master Plan Professional Seminar & Public Meeting

[Tompkins, Laurie (DCR)]

RIVER RESTORATION MASTER PLAN DEVELOPMENT
for the
WAQUOIT BAY WATERSHED RIVER SYSTEM

On Thursday December 16, the Waquoit Bay Reserve will offer two opportunities to learn about the draft results and recommendations of this plan and provide input:

2:30 - 4:00 pm            Professional Seminar on the Master Plan Development Process and Lessons Learned and Draft Results and Recommendations

Target Audience: Federal, state and local agency staff, municipal officials, restoration professionals, land trusts, local board members (planning, conservation, zoning etc), who work on habitat restoration issues.
Registration is not required but is encouraged.   Register at www.waquoitbayreserve.org<http://www.waquoitbayreserve.org>

7:00 pm                       Public Meeting - all are welcome. Registration is not required.


Both events will be held at the
Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, 149 Waquoit Hwy - Rte. 28, Waquoit, MA, 02536

Background
Through a $25,000 grant from the MA Office of Coastal Zone Management, the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve has begun developing a Restoration Master Plan for the seven tributary streams that flow into Waquoit Bay.  The Louis Berger Group in Needham was hired to comprehensively identify and examine all the river systems feeding into the Bay, determine where good restoration potential exists, and prioritize those projects.  Completing this strategic plan will better position the Reserve to quickly apply for construction funding if/when such monies become available.

With help from Reserve staff and project partners such as US Fish and Wildlife, MA Fish and Game, MA Division of Marine Fisheries, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, Mashpee and Falmouth natural resource agencies, and Trout Unlimited, the consultants compiled and gathered data about limitations to fish passage, and habitat and water quality impacts along all the rivers. They considered the potential for a habitat to recover if a limitation or impact were corrected.  A cost-benefit analysis was conducted and the impact of social and political issues were also factored in (for example, if a project involved many privately owned parcels it would factor lower than if it was a town-owned piece of land).  Removing barriers to fish passage, restoring a white cedar swamp or tidal marsh, and re-channeling a stream through abandoned cranberry bogs might be possible projects.  A deliberate process that scored various parameters was used in selecting projects.

The consultants will present their draft results and recommendations at both the professional seminar and the public meeting and solicit feedback.  Persons familiar with these Waquoit Bay watershed river systems (Quashnet/Moonakiss River, Child's River, Abigail Brook, Dutchman's Creek, Red Brook, Flat Pond/Sage Lot Pond system, Bourne's Pond system) are especially encouraged to attend to contribute information that might be important for the consultants to consider when ranking projects. Individuals working on habitat restoration issues are urged to attend the professional seminar to learn about the process used in developing this master plan even if their area of interest does not happen to be the Waquoit Bay system.

Key Objectives for the Seminar:

1.       Provide feedback on the draft results and recommendations for potential restoration projects in the Waquoit Bay watershed river system.



2.       Learn about the systematic process used to identify and rank potential restoration projects (steps include developing project list, working with partners, integrating diverse sources of information, ranking projects etc).  This process may be replicated in other areas and can serve as an educational tool for organizations engaged in habitat restoration efforts.



3.       Discuss lessons learned from the process used to develop this plan





Laurie Tompkins
Event Coordinator
Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve
P.O. Box 3092
Waquoit, MA 02536
Tel. 508-457-0495 x108
Fax 617-727-5537
www.waquoitbayreserve.org<http://www.waquoitbayreserve.org/>

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