State: Dredging Doesn’t Need More Environmental Study

by Tim Wood

            CHATHAM --- Further environmental study isn’t needed in order for the town to renew permits to dredge the Stage Harbor entrance channel.

            That was the recent ruling of Massachusetts Secretary of Environmental Affairs Ian Bowles, who stated a waiver from the requirement of a mandatory environmental impact report for large-scale dredge project is not likely to cause environmental damage.

            The news, while positive, was not unexpected, said Coastal Resources Director Ted Keon.  The review by the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Unit office was “quasi-routine” because the work has been previously permitted.

            The approval, issued in early May, comes just before the Army Corps dredge Currituck is due in town to begin the work.  When the dredge arrives, now scheduled for on or about June 21, it will be the first time in eight years the federally maintained channel is dredged by the federal government.

            As of last week, Keon said it looked like the way was clear for the town to contribute financially to the project.  The work is being done using $150,000 the Corps’ New England Division diverted from other dredge projects, but the town wants to make sure enough money is available to take care of severe shoaling in the channel.

            “Our interest obviously is to get as much done as they can while they’re here,” Keon said.  The town has additional funds from a state Seaport grant — which is also paying for the permitting — which can be added to the $150,000 once a final agreement between the town and federal agency is executed.  The town already set up an account to transfer the money, and all that’s missing is the final signatures, Keon said.

            The town is also gathering some information on horseshoe crab spawning on Harding’s Beach in conjunction with Mass Audubon.  The state division of marine fisheries indicated dredging or dredge disposal might not be allowed during the creature’s spawning period, which coincides with the new and full moon cycles in the spring, which is usually the time the Currituck is available to dredge.

            The certificate from Bowles suggests that the dredging be restricted from May 1 to June 30 to protect spawning horseshoe crabs.  The site, he states, contains the largest concentration of spawning horseshoe crabs in the state.  The channel connects the largest areas, between Stage Harbor and Monomoy Island.

            Evidence indicates that horseshoe crabs prefer the eastern side of the channel to the western side, which is where disposal areas are located, according to the certificate.  Keon said the town hopes to gather information bolstering the case that more spawning occurs near Morris Island and Monomoy, rather than Harding’s Beach.

            The dredging window is further narrowed by the presence of nesting shorebirds in the summer and winter flounder in the early winter, Keon said.

            Submission of final state permits is awaiting that data, Keon said.

            Bowles’ letter states that the project involves dredging up to 150,000 cubic yards of sand from the channel, either by the Army Corps of the Barnstable County dredge.  Disposal would be two near-shore sites as well as Cockle Cove and Harding’s Beach.

            Because the work is in an historically dredged area, it is not likely to cause environmental damage, according to the decision.

            The Currituck will also dredge Aunt Lydia’s Cove during its stay in Chatham.

6/12/08