Vision for the Future
The Coonamesset River Coalition advocates the restoration
of publicly-owned land along the Coonamessett River for the purpose
of the preservation and protection of the River and its estuary,
Great Pond.
The Coalition was formed in 2002, when several environmentally-oriented
groups and many individuals decided it was time to move forward with
restoration efforts that had stalled in the Town government in the past ten years.
The CRC envisioned the Town-owned property, which extends
about a mile along the Coonamessett River, as a mosaic of
naturalized wetlands, uplands, and small-scale, environmentally
responsible cranberry growing. They drew up a plan for this
restoration, and went before Town Meeting in November of 2003, where
the plan was approved by a two-to-one margin.
At this time, the Falmouth Board of Selectmen formed the
Coonamessett River Restoration Working Group to devise a plan for the area.
The formation of the CRRWG was a milestone in a process that began years ago.
A town-sponsored study on the future of the Coonamessett River, published in 1999, emphasized the need to restore and protect the river and to promote compatible multiple uses of the area. The recommendations made in this report were adopted by the Conservation Commission, but were never implemented by the town.
In a series of open, public meetings over the past two years, the CRRWG
has created a plan, with the participation of abutters and other
residents, with advice from experts in wetlands restoration, federal
and state regulators, and funding agencies. The plan calls for
demonstration projects for both restoration and cranberry cultivation,
with only Lower Bog and one of the small Flax Pond bogs being restored
to natural wetlands.
While this plan restores only a small section of the River, much less than Town Meeting approved, the CRC has endorsed it and is working for its approval.
The plan represents a compromise, and, more important, a way forward for the town.
The plan will be presented to Town Meeting on November 17, 2005.
The CRC has undertaken a volunteer program to monitor the Riverand to collect baseline data that will help document the sucess of restoration efforts. Please see the report, entitled Citizen Volunteer Monitoring of the Coonamessett River.
More information
Please follow the link to Information above to
learn more about the Coalition's goals, pesticide use on public
wetlands, and the potential for organic cranberry production in Falmouth.
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