January 10, 2011 Conservation Commission Town of Wayland 41 Cochituate Road Wayland MA, 01778 Subject: Request for waiver of Chapter 194 application filing fee – Lake Cochituate
Commissioners: The Lake Cochituate Watershed Council (LCWC), a 501(c)(3) organization is seeking to facilitate the removal of Eurasian Water Milfoil by hand-pulling and DASH from Wayland waters of Lake Cochituate. This work would be performed at no cost to the Town of Wayland or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, but would rather be funded by abutters and sponsors. LCWC is providing administrative and contracting services in accordance with an NOI and a Memorandum of Agreement with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. We believe this activity will benefit the Town of Wayland, its Town Beach, its boat launch, and abutters. We request that the Chapter 194 application fee and Wayland’s portion of the WPA Form 3 filing be waived.
Sincerely, Lake Cochituate Watershed Council
Michael Lowery, Project Coordinator
Lake Cochituate Watershed Council Box 183, Natick, Massachusetts 01760
Registered 501(c)(3) ID: 320-303-380 www.lcwcs.org
Wayland Wetlands and Water Resources Bylaw, Chapter 194 Application 1. Applicant:
Lake Cochituate Watershed Council Email Address (if applicable)
Name (PLEASE PRINT)
P.O. Box 183
Natick
MA
01760
Mailing Address
CitylTown
State
Zip Code
508-653-2-8228 Fax Number (if applicable)
Phone Number 2. Representative:
Michael P. Lowery Contact Name
Firm/Business Name
120 Lakeshore Drive
Wayland
MA
City/Town
Mailing Address
01778
State
Zip Code
508-397-8828
508-370-4509
Phone Number
Fax Number (if applicable)
3. Property Owner(s)
MA Dept Conservation & Recreation, Tom Flannery Property Owner (PLEASE PRINT)
251 Causeway St.
Boston
MA
CitylTown
Address
Tom.Flannery@state.ma.us
Email Address (if applicable) State
Zip Code
617-626-1250
508-370-4509
Phone Number
Fax Number (if applicable)
4. Type of Application
[ [ [ [ [
] ] ] ] ]
[X ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
Request for a Determination of Applicability (RDA) Abbreviated NOI Notice of Resource Area Delineation After the Fact Amendment (AFA) Amendment to Order of Conditions
Notice of Intent (NOI) Extension of O.O.C. Certificate of Compliance After the Fact Filing (AFF)
5. Project
46,50,54,55
Lake Cochituate Location Address
55-034
Assessors Map(s)
Parcel(s)
Project Description (PLEASE PRINT): Removal of non-native Eurasian watermilfoil in the waters of Lake Cochituate within the Town of Wayland thru diver hand-pulling and diver-assisted suction-harvesting (DASH).
6. TitlelDate of Plan(s)
TOW assessors maps 46,50,54,55 - 2008 11
7. Bylaw Application Fee:
$
$200 See letter requesting waiver
8. Application filed pursuant to MGL Chapter 131, Section 40
[X] Yes
[ ] No Date
9. Signature of Applicant
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Date -------
Signature of Property Owner
(NOTE: This application shall be signed by the property owner as well as the applicant. Signature of the property owner on this application shall be deemed permission granted to the Conservation Commission and their agents to go upon the subject property.)
WAYLAND’S WETLANDS AND WATER RESOURCES BYLAW (“CHAPTER 194”) APPLICATION SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS CHECKLIST Page 4 of 4 Waivers Please submit the original and 8 copies of this page In the event that Applicant considers certain required information to be, in their opinion, not relevant to the scope or scale of the proposed project Applicant may request a Waiver of the requirements with this application to the Conservation Commission. Indicate all provisions requested for Waiver below designating the specific paragraph number/letter designation. Site Plan Minimum Requirement Waiver(s) Drainage Requirement Waiver(s) Soils Information Waiver(s)
None X List
not applicable None X List not applicable None X List not applicable
If applicable, attach a statement for justification of the requested waivers. In the event that any requested Waiver is not granted by the Commission or the application is otherwise found to be deficient in providing required information the hearing may at the discretion of the Commission either be closed and denied for the lack of information or continued for a specific timeframe approved by the Commission for the Applicant to submit the required information. The Commission has authorized its Staff personnel to review projects and to not accept project applications under the Bylaw that have apparent deficiencies to meeting the above requirements as a matter of avoiding lost time for the Commission, Applicants and other interested parties at the hearing. Notwithstanding that authority, acceptance of an application by the Staff does not represent a decision that the application is fully complete. In the event that Applicant considers the application fully complete over the objections of Staff the application will be accepted and Staff will report their findings to the Commission during the hearing. The property owner, as well as the applicant and/or representative (if different from owner) must sign this checklist and all other applicable applications. The property owner, by signing this checklist and the applications, acknowledges that the Commission and Staff may enter the property to inspect the premises as part of the assessment of the application.
Tim Murphy for MA Dept Cons. & Rec. Property Owner’s Name (Print)
1/10/2011 Property Owner’s Signature
Date
I certify under penalty of law that this document and all its attachments were prepared under my direction or supervision in accordance with a system designed to assure that qualified personnel properly gather and evaluate the information submitted. Based on my inquiry of the persons directly responsible for gathering the information, the information submitted is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, true, accurate, and complete.
Michael Lowery for Lake Cochituate Applicant’s Name (Print) Watershed Council
Applicant’s Signature
1/10/2011 Date
Chapter 194 Application Lake Cochituate – Wayland Diver hand-pulling of Eurasian Milfoil
PROJECT SUMMARY Project Overview & Purpose: Lake Cochituate is owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and under the jurisdiction of the Conservation Commissions of Wayland, Framingham, and Natick with review and oversight from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. Lake Cochituate is administered for the Commonwealth by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). Lake Cochituate suffers a growing problem with the invasive species Eurasian Watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) which reaches throughout the littoral zone of South and Middle Ponds, and threatens to return in North Pond. While the state and municipalities are severely constrained financially, sponsors and abutters are willing to pay for the removal of milfoil along the shorelines by non-chemical diver-hand pulling and diver assisted suction harvesting (DASH) – methods allowed by the Commonwealth. Sponsors and Abutters face a substantial, costly, and time-consuming regulatory process to obtain state permission as owner, and local orders of condition from conservation commissions under local regulations and the Wetlands Protection Act. These barriers are so substantial they make it effectively impossible for abutters and sponsors to commit their own funds to remove milfoil from Lake Cochituate. For more than a year the Conservation Commissions of Wayland, Framingham, and Natick have been collaborating with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation to find a simpler and cost effective means to permit abutters and sponsors to remove milfoil using techniques allowed by the DCR. This application from the Lake Cochituate Watershed Council (LCWC) and similar notices in Framingham and Natick are the result of that collaboration. This application seeks to enable and encourage private funds to be used to combat milfoil at no cost to the Commonwealth or the municipalities. We seek to enable this process for the 2011 season, and we hope you will permit the proposed activities.
January 10, 2010 - 1
Chapter 194 Application Lake Cochituate – Wayland Diver hand-pulling of Eurasian Milfoil
I.
Activities Proposed
The proposed activities within Lake Cochituate State Park will enable abutters and sponsors to pay MA DCR-approved contractors using DCR-approved protocols to remove Eurasian Watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) by using diver-hand pulling. Divers may use a waisthigh suction hose to move the hand-pulled plants to the surface for collection. Disposal will be 100’ from shoreline. The proposed techniques of diver hand-pulling and diver-assisted suction harvesting have been used successfully in Lake Cochituate to remove milfoil from North Pond, between North Pond and Middle Pond, and at the DCR beach, picnic area, and boat launch. There are expected to be at least four possible contractors. Activities will follow DCR Guidelines from its GEIR document with other recommendations specific to this project – which may be revised from time-to-time. The current Guidelines are in NOI Appendix C. The DCR has a set of Special Conditions under which the activity could be permitted. These conditions may be revised from time-to-time and the LCWC understands that the issued Orders of Conditions for this project may be similarly revised. The current Special Conditions are in NOI Appendix D. The DCR and the LCWC will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) setting out the scope of authority and process to be used. The agreement may be revised from time-to-time by mutual consent. The current MOU is NOI Appendix E.
Process & Responsibilities: Abutters and Sponsors will obtain project permissions from the Lake Cochituate Watershed Council which will be responsible for scheduling, assisting abutters and sponsors with contracting, notifying DCR and Conservation commissions for each abutter/sponsor project, record keeping, contractor supervision, and reporting to DCR and the Conservation Commissions. The DCR will monitor activities and compliance, and certify additional contractors. Yearend reports and statistical data will be provided to Conservation Commissions and DCR by the LCWC
January 10, 2010 - 2
Chapter 194 Application Lake Cochituate – Wayland Diver hand-pulling of Eurasian Milfoil
II.
Wetlands Resources at or Near the Site
The wetlands resource is within the lake itself extending from the shoreline through the littoral zone; normally extending into the lake within 50’ of the shoreline. Commonly, the contractor will be engaged to clear a swimming section of shoreline, and optionally a path to and from a boat dock, allowing boats to reach the dock without creating milfoil fragments. See NOI Appendix C for a DCR-provided detailed description of methods and Appendix D DCR-recommended special conditions. Lake Cochituate is within an NHESP delineation, and an MESA filing has been made - see NOI Appendix B.
III.
Resource Area Impacts
The removal of invasive milfoil through hand-pulling and DASH will benefit the resource area by improving habitat for native plants and slow eutrophication of the lake by removal of nutrients. Proposed activities will slow the spread of invasive plants throughout the lake. Proposed activities will also provide safer recreational uses although we understand that this is not a factor in your considerations. Harvested plants will be contained in mesh bags and surface workers will skim fragments which may have escaped the diver. Disposal of harvested plants will be 100’ from shoreline, and not on DCR property except by expressed consent. If suction-harvesting is used, the suction-hose will be at waist level and be used only to convey hand-harvested plants to the surface.
January 10, 2010 - 3
Chapter 194 Application Lake Cochituate – Wayland Diver hand-pulling of Eurasian Milfoil
IV.
Alternatives Considered
Whole-lake herbicide treatments have been proposed in the past and have not achieved regulatory approval. The DCR is currently financially unable to fund such activities. Spot herbicide treatment may be considered and if properly located and isolated might achieve regulatory approval – but these methods are not suitable for individual abutters and may not be suitable for all locations. DCR is not prepared at this time to enable abutters to use benthic barriers, although this technique might be considered in the future.
The appendices below are located in the MA WPA Form 3 Notice of Intent NOI Appendices: A. MAPS – Project Proposed Areas (all three towns included) 1. Wayland 2. Framingham 3. Natick B. NHESP - MESA filing C. MA DCR – GEIR Standard Operating Guidelines for Hand-pulling and DASH D. MA DCR – Special Conditions for Hand Pulling and DASH in Lake Cochituate E. MA DCR – Memorandum of Understanding DCR/LCWC F. Abutter Notifications (town-specific) 1. Wayland 2. Framingham 3. Natick
January 10, 2010 - 4