7/10/2008 ENVIRONMENTAL OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE Minutes

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Ed Baker-Review of Action Items 2. Mashpee River Dredin chuck Green is setting up a library of engineering reports regarding the Mnshplt�s suggested that the Waterways Commission has not been active on the Mashpee Riveer. The r Dreg g or Selectmen request the Waterways Comm ission ma become it more active Board of Selepctmee en did discuss isver dredging he have a town department or outside engineering manage issue at the last meeting but did not take action. The Environmental Oversight Committee can reiterate its concerns. The Committee members discussed changing the project name to Mashpee solveRiveres the Restoration better reflect the goals from the 1990's and the Spring Warrant of 2004 t problems to sedimentation and shellfish closures. Over time, more has been inis eaed abut sedimentation aspect what need, runoff problems, the importance of marshes and global warming_ Dredging Y o een a consideration, to be done in the Mashpee River and marshland rfund stuch has sprojectalways re more likely to be available to Government funds that may become available to a restoration project. motion made by Ms.Kane to retitle the Mashpee River Dredging project to the Mashpee River Restoration. Motion seconded by Mr. Baker. All voted unanimously. Rick York Shellfish Constable Mashpee River Restoration, Mr. York reported on the Oyster Project and With the renaming of the state of the bay and ponds. The Shellfish Department has re st D W truck tomovethe 4 tons of seed batch and one large batch which required the use of the large bags with shell fragments and newly set spat. They expect them o gs in tie Mashpee�Riveoysters,50 bags in project has taken a lot of work and has resulted in 810 oysterg Hamblin Pond and 14 in Little River. Waquoit Bay has a better habitat t.ocantinues to work verr the oysters but the there. is that there are more predators. Although its riskier, the Shellfish Dept. There are currently 'h million oysters in trays in the MashpeeRileve r where they are growing very fast. The single oysters started earlier in the season in May, whenthey were sand-sized, have now grown to 1" in size. Quahogs are also growing from seed. Amedone. oerpThe��11Waterways Departmentisots and other n target far volunteers have been very helpful in getting the work d meeting the December 2009 goal of 1 million oysters. The remainder of the single oysters are expected this week. More can be learned from an excellent article earlier in the week in the Enterprise, This project is an effort to restore the river by using the oysters to filter out the algae, keeping the river from getting worse while it is determined how to limit the nitrogen. A monitoring unit has been set up in the river next to the oyster bed. The algae mats are still present and very thick. The algae mats are settling on top of the oysters when they're on trays, but float during the day with oxygen. The Waquoit Bay mats are not impacting the shellfish beds because they're close to the beach. However, at low tide they are exposed to the air and causing a smell, as it rots, that is blowing toward the island. Some of the algae is beginning to wash out and the department hopes it will continue to improve. John's Pond is also experiencing an algae bloom, which is beginning to dissipate. It is a blue-green algae that is a nitrogen fixer so there would be a problem even if there is no nitrogen. There are also problems in Santuit and John's Pond, which the Shellfish Dept. will be able to look into later in the summer. 3