Land Protection

Up on the Rooftop

John Coolidge, Conservation Restriction Stewardship Specialist

As the year of monitoring winds down and we frantically try to complete all our visits by year’s end, occasionally I’m caught totally off guard by the unexpected. And this year was no exception.

Being one who puts off the best for last, monitoring that is, I saved my visit to Gosnold until now.

Gosnold is a small town located on Cuttyhunk Island, at the end of the Elisabeth Islands, off the tail of Cape Cod. The island has less than 20 permanent residences and a school age population that currently  stands at two—brother and sister ages 8 & 6. Mail comes twice a week along with general supplies to the island, depending on the weather. Winters tend to be very long, cold, and a bit windy (to say the least).

In the summer months (July & August) the population quadruples with summer residents and that doesn’t count the many pleasure boats that visit, passing through on their way to the Cape & Islands.

My visit to Cuttyhunk earlier this week was beautiful, pleasant and cold. But let me back up…

Until age 3 or 4 I’m told I was a real believer in the jolly old man in the red suit, until one day when I discovered my parents wrapping a lump of coal…   

Well, yesterday my belief was restored. Shortly after the ferry docked on Cuttyhunk, I was finishing a hot cup of coffee with the Captain & crew (after all it was quite cold, and none of us wanted to leave the warmth of the ship's galley), when all of a sudden  there was quite a clatter on the upper deck! We all jumped  with wild expectations of what could possibly be going on. We rushed on deck thinking the ship was headed down! And who, to our surprise, was standing there on a pre-Christmas visit to the children of the Island?.... Old Saint Nick!  

And I have the picture to prove he is real:

 

Photo of Santa making a special trip to see the Lynch Family on Cuttyhunk Island!

Tying up loose ends

Dinah Rowbotham, Land Protection Program Assistant

Three land protection projects featured on this blog, our project in Norfolk, the Valencia project, and the Almy project, have closed and are now permanently protected! To refresh your memory on which land parcels I’m referring to, here’s a quick run-down on how these three projects enhance Mass Audubon’s sanctuary system:

Our project in Norfolk has brought 7 additional acres to Stony Brook Wildlife Sanctuary. The land was given to us by the developer of an adjacent parcel, who was motivated by the Planning Board and their new Open Space Subdivision rules. The newly protected land is upland pine-oak woods which partly surround Bristol Pond.

The Valencia project was a gift of 0.70 acres of wetlands mostly surrounded by Broad Meadow Brook Wildlife Sanctuary. The parcel was created when a house was built on an adjacent lot, and this piece was left over as a remnant. The little parcel of land fits beautifully into our sanctuary, and we’re very grateful that it’s former owner donated it to become permanently protected habitat.

Lastly, the Almy project is a new 5.7-acre conservation restriction adjacent to Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary. The protected land consists of upland pasture that was identified as a priority for protection by Mass Audubon in our sanctuary protection plan and consists of both high quality habitat and a scenic landscape.

Adventure to Elizabeth Island

Lindsey Sarquilla, Land Information Systems Assistant

Recently on a beautifully clear and sunny day, two intrepid stewardship staff members (John Coolidge, CR Stewardship Specialist, and I) crossed the waters of Spy Pond in Arlington to reach the shore of one of Mass Audubon’s newest CRs, Elizabeth Island.  The 1 ¾ acre island is owned by Arlington Land Trust, and Mass Audubon co-holds the CR with the Town of Arlington (check out our previous blog post on this project).

With the sun at our backs we ventured out to the island with the help of a canoe borrowed from a local friend of Mass Audubon and the Arlington Land Trust.  We gathered baseline documentation (photos, GPS locations of trails and landing areas, etc.) by water and land to help inform future monitoring of the island.  We were delighted to see that the island is undoubtedly well-loved by the public, with no recent evidence of trash or other abuses found.  It really is no surprise that this lovely oasis of natural habit is a beloved landmark in Arlington—and we’re very proud to help protect it!

 
John Coolidge, CR Stewardship Specialist, taking in the property conditions (and the sunshine).

 
Swan sunning on northwestern point of Elizabeth Island, now dubbed “Swan Point.”

 
Taken from the canoe; the same view of the island as you see from Concord Turnpike.

Making progress on several fronts

Charlie Wyman, Senior Land Protection Specialist

We’ve made good progress lately on several projects reported on in recent months:

Western Mass Electric Company.  On Monday evening the Agawam City Council voted unanimously to approve these two conservation restrictions, totaling 65 acres at two sites, following Conservation Commission approval in late March. Western Mass. Electric is working to wrap up a few final permitting issues with the Corps of Engineers and the state’s Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, with hopes of completing the process and conveying the conservation restrictions this summer and initiating construction in the fall. Our crew heads out next Wednesday to gather baseline documentation (pictures, GPS locations of boundary points, etc.) that will help our stewardship staff monitor the property going forward.

Almy Property.  This 5.7-acre conservation restriction nestled against Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary in Dartmouth and other protected land will be placed on record any day now. The CR has been approved by the Dartmouth Select Board and by the state’s Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs, and is awaiting the blessing of the Dartmouth Planning Board as part of the Board’s approval of the family’s 3-lot Open Space Residential Design subdivision.

Valencia Property.  The gift of this 2/3-acre bit of wetland surrounded on three sides by our Broad Meadow Brook Wildlife Sanctuary in Worcester is a couple of steps closer to completion. Earlier this month I walked the property with Deb Cary and Martha Gach from the sanctuary staff as part of our routine evaluation of any contamination risk from oil or hazardous waste. The property passed with flying colors and we had a nice conversation with one of our prospective neighbors to boot.  A draft purchase-and-sale agreement is circulating.

 
Above: Mass Audubon staff Deb Cary and Martha Gach on the proposed Valencia gift. 

 

Another 10 acres in Sharon to be permanently protected

Bob Ford, Land Protection Specialist

Fast on the heels of the protection of 72 acres in Sharon through our partnership with the town and Massapoag Sportsmen’s Club, Mass Audubon is working with the town of Sharon again – this time, to place a conservation restriction (CR) on an additional 10 acres.  The CR will insure the permanent protection of an area of woodlands and wetlands adjacent to the 72 acres protected two months ago.  Conservation of the land will further contribute to the protection of Massapoag Brook, which borders the property, and create an extension to a town-wide hiking trail known as the Massapoag Trail. 

Turtles and Transmission Lines

Charlie Wyman, Senior Land Protection Specialist

Western Massachusetts Electric Company (WMECO) has proposed upgrades to their transmission lines running from Connecticut through Agawam and Chicopee to Ludlow.  Work associated with the upgrade will result in some impacts on wetlands and rare species habitat along the route, requiring that the company obtain permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Mass. Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program.  Those two agencies, seeking to mitigate the impacts that cannot be avoided altogether, are requiring WMECO to permanently protect wetlands and rare species habitat in two locations in the town of Agawam just west of Springfield.

Why are we telling you this?  WMECO has asked Mass Audubon to hold the conservation restrictions that will permanently protect these areas, a total of about 65 acres.  The properties are highly deserving of protection, with multiple designations related to ecological value and rare species. 

We have had several bargaining sessions, hammering out language that will ensure meaningful protection for the land while allowing WMECO to use it for electrical transmission.  We are closing in on our goal, and if all goes well, the conservation restrictions will go to record sometime this spring. 

 

 

More permanently protected wildland for Western Mass

Dinah Rowbotham, Land Protection Program Assistant

In New Salem, Mass Audubon is working with landowners to permanently conserve 98 acres at Whetstone Wood Wildlife Sanctuary, the only Mass Audubon sanctuary managed as a wildland. 

These 98 acres are high priority for conservation—the chance to protect a sizeable tract of forest adjoining the sanctuary and significantly expanding a protected wildland is a rare opportunity in Massachusetts. Conservation of this land will enlarge a substantial stretch of undisturbed habitat for interior forest species like moose and bobcat. 

The property’s northern and western boundaries are shared with our existing sanctuary.  Expanding Whetstone Wood through this acquisition helps build the bridge between the two largest areas of protected land in the state— the Quabbin Reservoir and its surrounding watershed to the south, and the nearly 80,000 acres of land protected by private land trusts and by the state in Wendell, Orange, Erving, Warwick, Northfield, and Mt. Grace State Forests located nearby and to the north. 

If it weren’t for the conservation-mindset of the landowners, this fantastic opportunity would not be turning into reality.  They have generously agreed to a bargain sale to Mass Audubon for 70 acres outright plus a conservation restriction on 28 acres containing the home and farmstead, which they will retain.  The conservation restriction on the farmstead will be structured to accommodate the landowner’s needs, while protecting designated areas as wildland.

We're hoping to close on this project within the next few months!

Six Acres in Dartmouth on Track for Protection

Charlie Wyman, Land Protection Specialist

This past year Mass Audubon has been working with the Almy family to preserve 5.7 acres of upland pasture overlooking our Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary in South Dartmouth.  The property is part of a 10+ acre lot on Horseneck Road where the family has always planned to build three family homes. 

The houses could have been accommodated in what’s called a “conventional subdivision”, in which a new cul-de-sac off Horseneck Road would create frontage and provide access to the new house sites, but would have destroyed the landscape in the process.  In an example of a growing trend towards more sensitive subdivision design, the Almys are taking advantage of an innovative provision in Dartmouth’s zoning called “Open Space Residential Design”, in which the subdivision design process emphasizes landscape, open space and sensitive environmental features first, and then addresses how to fit appropriate development into that context. 

In this instance, the Almys and the town agreed to cluster the house sites near Horseneck Road and to dedicate the rear 5.7 acres, adjacent to the sanctuary and another conservation restriction, as permanent open space.  The conservation restriction, which will forever protect the property and will be given to Mass Audubon, is currently under review by the town, with hopes for a closing by spring.

 
A few would-be beneficiaries of a new conservation restriction in Dartmouth.

Nice Workin' with Ya' Partner!

Bob Wilber, Director of Land Protection

What great news it is that Elizabeth Island in Arlington has finally been protected. This island, located in the middle of 100-acre Spy Pond, has served as a beloved community landmark and urban wild for centuries, easily visible from Route 2 by thousands of motorists a day. Somewhat amazingly, until December it was also privately owned and unprotected.  We worked collaboratively with our local partner – the Arlington Land Trust (ALT) - to finally get the property under agreement last spring.  Mass Audubon then provided limited assistance to ALT in their successful effort to raise the $265,000 needed to achieve the longstanding goal of protecting this jewel. It is anticipated that Mass Audubon will acquire a Conservation Restriction on the property in the coming months – to be co-held with the Town of Arlington’s Conservation Commission. Way to go, Arlington!

Above:  Elizabeth Island - Spy Pond, Arlington

Updates, updates, and more updates!

Bob Ford, Land Protection Specialist

Warren Woods
Preservation of 120 acres in Ashland took a huge leap forward with the successful town meeting vote on November 27 to appropriate $5 million of CPA funds for the purchase of the land from Northeastern University. The very high attendance at town meeting was nearly unanimous in its vote. Mass Audubon is assisting the Town in various ways, financial and technical, and it is anticipated that a substantial portion of the land will be permanently preserved. Warren Woods is adjacent to a vast corridor of important open space, state forest, Ashland reservoir lands, and Mass Audubon’s Waseeka and Broad Hill Wildlife Sanctuaries. For more information on this initiative, visit www.savewarrenwoods.org.

 
Above: Warren Woods in Ashland, photo by Cindy Shields

Bechtold
Mass Audubon has recently been informed that generous landowners in Marshfield intend to add more land by gift to a previous 10 acre acquisition that expanded the North River Wildlife Sanctuary. The land contains important upland wildlife habitat.

Ocean Shores
In another Marshfield project, Mass Audubon expects to receive a CR within the next few weeks on nearly 30 acres of rare species habitat adjacent to Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary.  The CR is in the final stages of review at the State and here at Mass Audubon we’re finishing up the baseline report in preparation for closing.

Great Marsh Conservation Initiative
Our effort to preserve 80 acres of pristine salt marsh and associated upland in Rowley is advancing according to schedule with real estate due diligence inspections coming to completion. Mass Audubon will be meeting with the Rowley Conservation Commission next week to further discuss our plans for establishing the new wildlife sanctuary at the Great Marsh. 

Above: Great Marsh in Rowley, photo by Mass Audubon staff