9/13/2011 WATERWAYS COMMISSION Minutes

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Masbpee Waterways Commission Minutes of the September 13,2011 Meeting The meeting was called to order by Chairman Ken Bates at 9:08AM in Revised Meeting Room #3,Mashpee Town Hall. Present were: Ken Bates,Paul Zammito,Bill Taylor,Steve Pinard Absent: Al Wickel,Tim Leedham,Perry Ellis Also: Rick York-Shellfish Constable,Stephen Mone-Mashpee Harbormaster,resident Dick Cook A motion to approve the August 9,2011 Meeting minutes was made by Steve Pinard,seconded by Bill Taylor,and unanimously approved. Correspondence-none Committee Reports: Harbormaster Report: Stephen Mone reported on his trip made with Ken Bates and Steve Pinard to the Nantucket Sound area approximately 1 to 3 miles off the Popponesset Bay Outer Entrance Channel to locate potential areas for the positioning of a proposed offshore entrance buoy.GPS coordinates were obtained for a good site.(Please see more below on the proposed buoy). Harbormaster Mone also advised that all moorings have been reviewed and approved moorings have plastic tags attached. Unauthorized moorings will have their buoy painted with orange warnings that they will be removed shortly. Harbormaster Mone also reported on his inspection of all town floats and landings. He found all to be seriously deficient and in poor condition. Mr. Bates suggested that the Harbormaster should prepare a replacement plan with cost estimates, with repairs spanning perhaps three to five years that could be reviewed by the Waterways Commission,and supported by the Commission when submitted to the Board of Selectmen by the Harbormaster. Mr.Mone also reviewed his department's activities taken in preparation for Hurricane Irene. He noted that there was no damage to channel markers or Town property on the water. A few boats broke from their moorings but have been retrieved with little damage to property. Shellfish Report: Shellfish Constable Rick York provided the following report: The Mass. Division of Marine Fisheries closed all state waters for shell-fishing on August 28,2011 as Hurricane Irene approached The emergency closure was lifted on August 30 and shell-fishing areas returned to the pre-closure status. There is an abundance of littleneck and seed quahogs in Waquoit Bay resulting from massive spawns in 2009 that were detected during monitoring for shellfish larvae that year. Scallop season starts October 1,but there are very few scallops in Waquoit Bay(the best area for scallops). We have been seeding Waquoit Bay since the 1990s and Falmouth has also. This was effective with about 50 to 100 bushels harvested,but in the last couple of years the harvests have been lower. Predators such as crabs,birds and fish are a problem. The River Restoration Newsletter for June is on the DCR website at http://www.mass.fov/dfwele/der/newsletters/ebbflow8/Cbbflow8.htm and you can get other issues there also.