CZ-Mail
October 2002

Welcome to CZ-Mail, the monthly email update from the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM). This update provides information on major CZM initiatives, available tools and publications, upcoming workshops and events, grants, contracting opportunities, job openings, coastal legislation, and other news of interest to people working on coastal issues. More information about CZM's programs, publications, and other coastal topics can be found online at http://www.mass.gov/czm/. If you have suggestions on how to make CZ-Mail more useful, would like to add your name to the mailing list, or would like to have your name removed, please email your request to CZ-Mail@state.ma.us.Note to current CZ-Mail subscribers: Due to technical problems, please sign up again for CZ-Mail.

Habitat Restoration
American Rivers and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Community-based Restoration Program announced the selection of thirteen projects in eight states intended to restore fish habitat. In the Northeast, three projects in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut were funded at $25,000 each. These projects will benefit migratory fish species such as alewife herring, blueback herring, American shad and American eel. The Massachusetts project is a multi-organizational effort to remove the Billington Street Dam on Town Brook in Plymouth, Mass. This dam removal will provide migratory fish unrestricted access to spawning habitat in Billington Sea. The dedication ceremony for the project was held Sept. 18. For more information see http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/releases2002/sep02/noaa02120.html

Shellfish Openings
The Executive Office of Environmental Affairs announced the reopening of roughly 1,800 acres of clam-flats in Plymouth, Kingston, and Duxbury. These flats were once so polluted that they were blamed for a typhoid fever outbreak. Thanks to $55.9 million spent on state water pollution abatement programs the flats are again clean enough to allow for shellfish harvesting, according to Environmental Affairs Bob Durand. "It's a tremendous environmental success story, an example of how people really care about the restoration of their natural resources,'' Durand said. The flats areas straddle 1,013 acres of Plymouth Outer Harbor, shared by Plymouth and Duxbury, and 800 acres of Kingston Bay, shared by Kingston and Duxbury. The total area annually should generate 10,000 bushels of softshell clams (steamers), cherrystones, razor clams, and littlenecks. More than 100 residents have already bought recreational shellfishing licenses.

Grant Opportunities
Coastal Nonpoint Source Grants Coordinator - CZM is seeking a Coastal Nonpoint Source Grants Coordinator to provide technical assistance to towns and other groups in coastal Massachusetts. The Coordinator will be responsible for administering all aspects of two state grant programs, including: outreach and education for the programs; technical assistance and project development prior to issuance of Request for Responses; coordinating review team and reviewing proposals; contracting with awardees; and individual project management. Applications are due by October 3, 2002. For more information see http://www.mass.gov/czm/jobsandgrants.htm.

Habitat Restoration Grants -The Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment has posted a Request for Proposals for the Habitat Restoration Grants Program. This grant offering is the second year of a three-year partnership between the US Association of Delegates to the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment and the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service's (NMFS) Community-based Restoration Program. The purpose of this partnership is to further the Council's goal of habitat restoration and to support a strategic approach to marine, coastal and riverine habitat restoration within Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. The partnership is inviting eligible organizations to compete for funding made available through this grant. Proposals must be received no later than November 15, 2002. For more information see http://www.mass.gov/czm/jobsandgrants.htm.

Calendar
COASTSWEEP 2002 - Thanks to all who participated in this year's COASTSWEEP cleanup. Two more shoreline clean up events will take place on the first weekend of October in Nahant and Medford. Please visit CZM's website at: http://www.mass.gov/czm/coastsweep.htm for more details on these last two cleanups. Last year, over 4,000 volunteers scoured 180 miles of coastline and removed close to 70,000 pounds of trash and marine debris! For additional information or if you have questions or comments, contact COASTSWEEP Coordinator Carey Gordon at COASTSWEEP@state.ma.us. Stay tuned to CZ-Mail for the final results of COASTSWEEP 2002.

Beaches Conference - Northeast Beaches: A Balancing Act is designed to stimulate discussion among the various coastal interest groups concerned with the welfare and health of our coasts. The conference will be held at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on October 24-26, with a pre-conference field trip on October 23. Researchers, managers, consultants, and coastal stewards will present papers and participate in panels to foster a creative and open dialogue on the following issues: coastal habitat, beach management, coastal access, coastal processes, water quality, dredging, beach nourishment, and beach economics. See the CZM website http://www.mass.gov/czm/calendar.htm for agenda and registration information.

Invasive Species Conference -The Northeast Region of the National Estuary Program presents Eyes on the Estuaries - Detecting and Preventing Marine Invasive Species in the Northeast, will be held November 14 - 15, 2002 at the New England Aquarium in Boston, Massachusetts. Next to habitat destruction, introduced species are believed to be the leading cause of decreased biological diversity in the US and worldwide. New invaders continue to threaten our coastal watersheds. Marine invaders can enter through a variety of pathways that are difficult to monitor and control. Since marine ecosystems are essentially borderless, an introduced species can easily spread from estuary to estuary, state to state. Regional coordination and cooperation is essential In order to effectively prevent and control future marine introductions. During this conference, participants will hear about the current status of marine invasive species in the Northeast and the efforts underway to control their introduction. Current monitoring efforts will be highlighted to stimulate discussion of a regional monitoring network for marine invasive species. For a complete conference agenda please visit http://www.massbays.org/.

Renewable Energy Options for the Cape and Islands - The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative will sponsor a forum on Renewable Energy Options for the Cape and Islands on October 26, 2002, the at the Barnstable High School Performing Arts Center Hyannis, MA from 8:30 am - 1:00 pm. This forum is part of a public outreach initiative aimed at promoting informed dialogue and decision-making with regard to the offshore wind farms currently proposed for Nantucket Sound. Panelists from ISO New England, The Conservation Law Foundation, The Union of Concerned Scientists, The MA Division of Energy Resources and the Cape Light Compact will provide an overview and respond to questions regarding the New England Energy system, potential regional impacts from global climate change, the status of renewable energy development here and abroad, and an analysis of specific opportunities for renewable energy development for the communities of Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. This event is free and open to the public. For more information call (508) 775-9201 or after October 1 please visit http://www.masstech.org/massrenew

ACEC Tours - Learn about natural resources and stewardship activities in Cape Cod's Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs). Dennis Murley, a naturalist at the Massachusetts Audubon Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, will lead the ACEC Tours. Registration is not required, but encouraged. Call Melissa Lowe at 508-349-2615 or email Melissa at mlowe@wellfleetbay.org for information or to register. Tours will last approximately 2-3 hours. Tour dates are:

• Friday, October 4th at 2:00pm - Inner Cape Cod Bay ACEC (located in the towns of Brewster, Eastham, and Orleans). Meet at: Crosby Landing Beach parking lot off Crosby Lane in Brewster.
• Friday, October 18th at 1:00pm - Pocasset River ACEC and Bourne Back River ACEC (both located in the town of Bourne). Meet at: town-owned, grass parking area just north of the Pocasset River Bridge on Shore Road in Bourne.

Massachusetts Archaeology Week - October 5-14 is Massachusetts Archaeology Week. A calendar of statewide events can be found at http://www.mass.gov/sec/mhc.

• On Saturday, October 5 from 11 AM - 5 PM at the Scituate Historical Society Maritime and Irish Mossing Museum, 301 Driftway, Scituate, MA. the Massachusetts Board of Underwater Archaeological Resources and the Scituate Historical Society are sponsoring Marine Archaeology in Massachusetts: Locating Lost Ships and the Forrest Queen Site - This display by the Massachusetts Board of Underwater Archaeological Resources and the Scituate Historical Society, will display the technology used by marine archaeologists to locate shipwreck sites and will feature artifacts and information from the wreck of the trans-Atlantic packet ship Forrest Queen (1853) off Scituate and the recent discovery of the steamer Portland (1898) in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Admission is free. For further information, contact David Trubey at (617) 626- 1032.

Products/Publications
Personal Watercraft (PWC) Management Guide: a Comprehensive Reference Handbook - In this document, the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management, in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Coastal Services Center, has collected and evaluated scientifically valid environmental, safety and management data to support the responsible development of public policy regarding the management of PWC. For more information, please see our publications website at http://www.mass.gov/czm/publications.htm.

Coastlines Magazine - The summer edition of the new CZM Coastlines magazine is now being distributed. Hurricanes are the feature of this 50+ page edition, which provides information on: Bay State hurricanes and their potential impacts, building and rebuilding to withstand a storm, preparing for hurricane season, and a wide range of tools available for reducing risks in hurricane-prone areas. Articles on invasive species, energy issues in the coastal zone, public access to the coast, and other coastal topics are also included. To add your name to the Coastlines mailing list, email CZM at czm@state.ma.us. See the CZM website for the new Coastlines magazine online http://www.mass.gov/czm/coastlines/index.htm.

CZM's New Shoreline Change Maps Are on the Web - Shoreline change maps, accompanying data, and all supporting technical documents from CZM's update of the Historic Shoreline Change Project are now on the CZM website and a browser developed by the Massachusetts Geographic Information System (MassGIS). The 1:10,000 scale shoreline change maps and accompanying data tables show the relative positions of four or five historic shorelines and depict the long-term change rate at 40-meter (approximately 131-feet) intervals along the shore. See http://www.mass.gov/czm/hazards/shoreline_change/shorelinechangeproject.htm.

Salt Marsh Monitoring Handbook - The Volunteer's Handbook for Monitoring New England Salt Marshes helps local volunteer groups collect and record data on salt marsh health in a consistent and scientifically sound manner. This 100+ page handbook includes chapters on salt marsh monitoring, New England salt marshes, study design, and monitoring plants, invertebrates, fishes and crabs, birds, salinity, and tidal hydrology. For an electronic copy of the handbook, see http://www.mass.gov/czm/volunteermarshmonitoring.htm. To order a hard copy, please email your request to czm@state.ma.us.

Still Available - These products and publications, listed in the last CZ-Mail, are still available:

• The Massachusetts Clean Marina Guide is available on the CZM website at: http://www.mass.gov/czm/marinas/guide/macleanmarinaguide.htm. The guide is designed as a reference for owners and operators of marine boating facilities and provides information on cost-effective strategies and practices to impacts on the coastal environment. For a hard copy, please email your request to czm@state.ma.us.
• Massachusetts Shifting Shorelines: New Date on Shoreline Change, a 4-page fact sheet describing the Massachusetts Shoreline Change Project, the recent updates to the state's shoreline change maps, and ways to use these maps and data is available. For a copy of the fact sheet, email your request and mailing address to czm@state.ma.us. For an electronic copy, see http://www.mass.gov/czm/hazards/shoreline_change/shorelinechange.htm
• A Technical Report Evaluating Innovative Stormwater Treatment Technologies, which evaluates two StormTreat(tm) System (STS) installations, is available in PDF at http://www.mass.gov/czm/masection319npsproject9502.pdf. Detailed data are given in the report, along with numerous recommendations to improve design, installation, and maintenance of these systems, as well as to perform future evaluations of their effectiveness.
• CZM is distributing 10,000 free bilge socks that remove oil, diesel, and other petroleum products from bilge water, preventing their discharge into the marine environment. For a bilge sock, email your request and contact information to Robin.Lacey@state.ma.us.
• 2002 Boater Guide to Tides and Pumpout Facilities, a wallet-sized pamphlet printed on waterproof paper, contains pumpout information and a tide chart for Massachusetts. For a copy, email your request and mailing address to czm@state.ma.us. For an electronic copy of the 2002 pumpout list, go to http://www.mass.gov/czm/potoc.htm.
• "Coastal zone management: it's the wave of the future" is the slogan featured on a window decal produced by CZM. If you'd like one, email your request and mailing address to czm@state.ma.us.

Project Review Highlights
Federal Consistency Review on the Web - The CZM website includes information on the project review and the federal consistency review processes in Massachusetts, including CZM Program Policies, a sample consistency certification, and the Coastal Zone Management Program Federal Consistency Review Regulations. A Massachusetts Coastal Permitting Agency Directory is also included. See http://www.mass.gov/czm/fcr.htm.

MEPA Review on the Web - For more information on state environmental review under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act, including a listing of all projects currently in review, see the MEPA Unit website at http://www.mass.gov/envir/mepa/index.htm

In the News
Here are links to newspaper articles from the last month on coastal issues:

• Tough fishing regulations may have been based on bad data (Boston Herald, 9/11/2002) - http://www2.bostonherald.com/news/local_regional/fish09112002.htm
• Judge halts work on wind farm data tower (Cape Cod Times, 9/26 /2002) - http://www.capecodonline.com/cctimes/archives/2002/sep/26/judgehalts26.htm
• EL NIŅO To Play Role in Nation's Fall, Winter Weather (NOAA, 9/12/2002) - http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories/s997.htm

Other Items of Interest
Gulf of Maine Expedition Update - Check out http://www.gomexpedition.org/ for updates on the progress of the kayakers journeying around the entire Gulf of Maine, from Provincetown to Cape Sable, Nova Scotia.