Roughly a month ago I along with two other concerned individuals appeared before the Wellfleet Conservation Commission to present the case of the
vernal pool's destruction. At that meeting we went over the issues regarding the vernal pool's destruction and how town bylaws protected the location even in the absence of state certification of the pool's existence. During this meet the Conservation Commission decided to order the Wellfleet DPW to re-mediate the damage. I'm not sure what steps might be taken but I pointed out that the gravel fill that they lined the former pool's bottom with would have to be removed to re-establish a correct ph for the pools wildlife. Since this time it is my understanding that the town's engineer is drawing up a plan to restore the area but that the restoration could be costly. This just leads back to the point of why didn't the Wellfleet DPW check with anyone especially after an abutter came down and talked to them objecting to their proposed work before they went ahead with the removal. Did you know that the conservation agent in town has to answer their phone 24/7? Seriously a simple call would have prevented the whole fiasco. I hope that this event is used to reform the practices of the Wellfleet DPW which currently runs with little oversight.
On a serious positive note the town will likely do a total re-assessment of their engineering maps to ensure that wetlands are properly delineated as there were some additional areas that were quickly pointed out to be wetlands that were not on town maps. This should protect these locations and critical habitats (specifically vernal pools and isolated wetlands) in the future not only from misguided town departments but from private developmental as well which is huge. Though this process I have learned a great deal on a lot of the issues surrounding environmental protect on a local level. I am planning my next post on vernal pool protection on a town by town basis on Cape Cod as well as how to get them certified in the State of Massachusetts, I also might do one that goes on a state by state basis but the research for that will take longer. Also the environmental groups and the Mass DEP were entirely unhelpful, most never bothered to return my calls or emails, the only one that got back to me was the Sierra Club with a email which read "fyi- some of our Sierra Club members have been involved in listing vernal pools on private property in the past." That sentence was the extent of their reply I should also note that it was sent to ten other people as well, which is even more concerning as that means that the destruction of these habitats are happening statewide and they are doing very little.
The amount of research that I had to do after initially being brushed off defiantly makes me wonder about the enforcement of environmental laws. I am not sure how many other people, especially those that work full time like I do would devote the amount of time that was necessary to achieve a resolution. It is likely that I might have to take further action in the future as so far the agreed upon restoration has not started, but we shall see. Oh and on a personal note it felt GREAT to make a difference like that, its an experience I highly recommend.
On a side if anyone needs help researching for a local environmental issue I would be happy to help.
