7/15/2014 ENVIRONMENTAL OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE Minutes

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TbC Aa5ftee (EntUprW Mashpee Environmental Coalition Article published on June 28, 2014 by Michael Talbot Mashpee Makes Big Strides toward Protecting Its Bays There was great news this past month for those who love the bays, inlets,rivers and ponds of Mashpee. If you pay attention to local news, you know that both Popponesset and Waquoit Bays—and most of the estuaries on Cape Cod and Buzzards Bay—are degrading more and more each year because of excess nitrogen. While nitrogen is an important nutrient for plant growth, too much nitrogen promotes the excess growth of algae and plants in our marine estuaries. The results are ever more evident to those of us who enjoy our water resources: the water is murkier and less clear; the slime builds up while the fish and shellfish stocks decline. This is not only a loss to residents and guests, but a potentially serious economic loss to the Town. The Town of Mashpee is also in violation of the Clean Water Act. Without action to reduce our nitrogen load on our waterways, we could face court mandates that could be very costly to taxpayers and property owners. But the Town is stepping up to protect our precious natural resources. On June 16th the Board of Selectmen unanimously approved the Watershed Nitrogen Management Plan (WNMP) developed by the Sewer Commission. It is a comprehensive plan that takes into account the excellent work of our Shellfish Warden, Rick York, and others in reducing our nitrogen load through propagation and harvesting of shellfish. Like edible weeds in the garden, the best solution is eat your problem. If you are interested in the WNMP and the efforts of the Sewer Commission and their allies to promote cleaner waters for Mashpee, visit their website at www.mashpeewaters.com. The scientific work of the Massachusetts Estuaries Project (MEP) demonstrated that inadequate wastewater management is the principal cause of nitrogen loading in our estuaries. Septic systems and cesspools just don't remove enough nitrogen; hence the need for the WNMP. The MEP's work also documented that the,second leading cause of excess nitrogen degrading our bays and inlets is turf fertilizers—yes, those bags and tanks of stuff we apply to our lawns. Unlike wastewater management, however, this is a relatively cheap and simple problem to solve. We simply need to make some simple changes to the way we apply fertilizer to our lawns. On June 12th the Environmental Oversight Committee (EOC) for the Town of Mashpee, after months of work, unanimously approved the Mashpee Nitrogen Control Bylaw. Patterned after a similar bylaw passed overwhelmingly by the Falmouth Town Meeting in late 2012 (and the Town of Orleans in 2013), the goal is to reduce excess nitrogen from lawn fertilizers polluting our bays and estuaries. When properly applied, a reasonable amount of nitrogen enhances the growth and health of fine lawns. However, when nitrogen fertilizer is applied when lawns are not actively growing—or applied too close to waterways—a significant amount of that nitrogen can get into our ground and surface waters. Applying fertilizer to roads and other impervious surfaces without immediately cleaning it up is