CZ-Mail
March 2004

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.

Massachusetts Receives $71,000 to Combat Aquatic Invaders
CZM and the interagency Aquatic Invasive Species Working Group were recently awarded $71,000 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to implement action items outlined in the Massachusetts Aquatic Invasive Species Management Plan. Now in the second year of implementation, CZM and partners will use these funds to complete 12 action items outlined in the 2004 work plan, including the development of marine invasive species identification materials, the production of educational resources for conservation commissions, and the support of invasive species control efforts. Program highlights from the first year of implementation include the completion of an online marine invasive species database and web page (www.MarineID.org) and the development of a Lake and Pond Weed-Watcher Program. For more information on the Aquatic Invasive Species Program, or to obtain a copy of the fact sheet, Aquatic Invasive Species in Massachusetts, contact Jay Baker at jason.baker@state.ma.us.

Mystic River DPA Boundary Decision Challenged
Oral arguments in the challenge to CZM's boundary decision for the Mystic River Designated Port Area (DPA) were heard in Superior Court on February 13. The decision, based on the recommendations of a CZM study published in October of 2002, modifies the DPA boundary to exclude three properties subject to conditions that will facilitate construction of an industrial truck and rail route along the existing rail line through the DPA. Three DPA businesses and the Conservation Law Foundation challenged the decision. The Superior Court's decision is expected sometime this spring. The designation decision and study are available online on the CZM Publications web page under Regulatory Decisions, Reports, and Notices.

Wetlands Restoration Program Designates Priority Projects
In December, CZM's Wetlands Restoration Program (WRP) issued a Request for Responses (RFR) to identify priority projects. (All open solicitations can be found on the Comm-Pass website.) Of the 28 responses received, 22 were selected based on: clarity of goals and objectives; ecological importance and benefits; practicality/feasibility of the project; landowner support; funding received; cost-effectiveness; and several other evaluation criteria. This designation means that these projects are now eligible (although not guaranteed) to receive private sector technical services supported by the Commonwealth, such as survey and mapping, hydraulic analyses and modeling, and permitting. Projects not selected may still receive internal WRP technical assistance to evaluate the project goals and feasibility, answer technical questions, and identify supplementary means for achieving the desired goals. For a list of the selected priority projects, click here.

Commonwealth's First Desalination Plant Proposed on Taunton River
A private company has proposed a 20 million gallon per day desalination plant in Dighton, approximately 14 miles upstream from the mouth of the Taunton River. Water withdrawn from this tidal river would be desalinated through reverse osmosis, and the removed brine diluted so salinity levels do not exceed those of the river at the time of discharge. The desalinated water will be piped to Brockton where it will be used as a drinking water supply. This proposal is going through the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) review process, and CZM and a number of other state agencies have commented. A desalination plant raises several coastal management issues, including whether water withdrawals and/or the discharge of the diluted brine will impact water quality or habitat and whether water withdrawal mechanisms will harm fish and other organisms. Because the pipeline will convey water from coastal waters to an inland site, the project required a certificate of compliance with the Interbasin Transfer Act from the Massachusetts Water Resources Commission. The plant will be designed with screens and a fine-mesh exclusionary curtain to minimize the number of organisms and life stages impacted by the facility's intake, and the proponent has been working with the Division of Marine Fisheries to establish a monitoring plan to determine the effectiveness of these devices. It is anticipated that the exclusionary devices at the Dighton facility will serve as a model for future desalination facilities, such as those being considered for Swansea and Ipswich.

Feds Seek Comments on Proposed New Pesticide Regulations
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have proposed new regulations that will for the first time establish a formal, comprehensive multi-agency review process to ensure that pest and rodent control products approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) do not jeopardize threatened and endangered species. These agencies are soliciting public comments on this proposal through March 30. For additional information, including a link to the Federal Register notice and details on how to comment, click here.

Feds Deny Petition to List Fish Species as Endangered
NMFS refused a petition to list winter flounder and cunner populations in western Long Island Sound as threatened or endangered species. NMFS cited a lack of substantial scientific or commercial information to validate the petitioner's claim that EPA's program to reduce nutrient loading to the Sound has caused a drop in primary production (conversion of sunlight to energy by plants), causing a decrease in the size and number of the sport fish. For additional information, see the Federal Register notice.

Funding Opportunities
RFR to Develop Invasive Species Monitoring Protocol and Identification Materials - CZM seeks a qualified contractor to develop marine invasive species (MIS) identification materials and a field monitoring protocol. Monitoring materials will be used to train state agency and municipal officials, as well as watershed groups and volunteers, to track the spread of existing MIS infestations and monitor for new introductions. The contractor will work with CZM to incorporate these records into an existing web-enabled marine invasive species database. The contract is for $10,000 and the Request for Responses (RFR) closes March 5. All open solicitations can be found on the Comm-Pass website.

Wetland Program Development Grants - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) wetlands program is soliciting applications for Wetland Program Development Grants. Congress allots $15 million annually for these grants, which are distributed by EPA Regional Offices. Previous grant awards ranged from $11,000 to $496,000. Priority will be given to proposals that: develop a comprehensive monitoring and assessment program; improve the effectiveness of compensatory mitigation; and refine the protection of vulnerable wetlands. Proposals located within EPA Region 1 must be submitted to the regional office by March 10. Click here for a full posting.

Fisheries Research RFP - The Northeast Consortium (made up of the University of New Hampshire, University of Maine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution) was created to encourage partnerships between researchers and commercial fisherman for cooperative research and selective fishing gear development. The group has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) soliciting Planning Letters for proposed projects. Proposed projects should: involve commercial fishermen and/or commercial fishing vessels; address issues in fisheries and fisheries management, fishing gear technologies, and/or coastal ocean processes; and concentrate on the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank. Planning Letters are due April 7 and full proposals are due June 30. (Proposals will not be accepted without an approved planning letter.) Click here for a PDF copy of the RFP.

Reminders - The following grant listed in the last CZ-Mail is still open:

• Through the National Whale Conservation Fund Fishing Gear Mini-Grants, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and NOAA Fisheries fund projects aimed at reducing death and/or serious injury to large whales from fishing gear entanglements with seed grants of $2,000-$20,000 for creative and innovative projects that seek to work with industry to address this problem. Two grant cycles are held each year and proposals for the next grant round are due on April 1. For details, see the Fishing Gear Mini-Grants Program web page.

Products/Publications
Maine Aquaculture Report - The Maine Department of Marine Resources has published a Final Report from its Aquaculture Task Force. The report gives a vision for aquaculture in Maine and a set of guiding principles. For a PDF copy, click here.

Massachusetts Wetlands Restoration Update - CZM's Wetlands Restoration Program distributes a periodic email update. The current edition includes new contact information, highlights of selected recent projects, and news of upcoming restoration activities. To be added to the electronic mailing list, please email your request to wetlands.restoration@state.ma.us.

Websites
Redeveloped U.S. Marine Protected Areas Website - NOAA has remodeled its website covering Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the United States. In addition to updating and improving existing information, the reorganized website now contains a search feature, a glossary of MPA terms, and an extensive online library. To visit the site, see http://mpa.gov/.

NOAA Fisheries Media Center - This website include links to NOAA Fisheries press releases. Currently, the site features information on haddock populations on Georges Bank and recent surveys that have found the largest numbers of these young fish in 40 years. See http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/mediacenter/.

NOAA Pilot Project - NOAA Fisheries has created a website to highlight a new pilot education project called "Local Fisheries Knowledge Project." High school students will interview individuals in the fishing trade to gather cultural research surrounding the industry in their area. The site features the 2003-2004 project, which was conducted in Maine and is the first of its kind. See http://www.st.nmfs.gov/lfkproject for details.

Calendar
Reminders: The following calendar items posted in the last CZ-Mail are still to come:

• On March 6, at Holy Cross College in Worcester, the Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissions is holding its annual conference-the largest environmental conference in New England. For details, see the conference website.
• Climate Change and Our Natural Resources: Taking Action to Save Our Natural Places will be held on March 15-16 in Boston and is sponsored by The New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers. Conference information is available at http://www.negc.org/ClimateChange04.html.
• On March 20, The Citizen Planner Training Collaborative will hold its third annual conference for local planning officials and their planning staff at Holy Cross College in Worcester. For details, see http://www.umass.edu/masscptc/.
• On April 26-29, the Coastal Ocean Institute at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is hosting a forum consisting of a 2-day science meeting/short course and a 2-day workshop, entitled The Moving Shoreline: Coastal Change in Response to Rising Sea Level. For details, see the Coastal Ocean Institute events page.
• The Massachusetts Bays Program (MBP) is hosting the Massachusetts Bays Symposium to be held on May 6 and 7 in Boston. For more information, see the MBP conference web page.
• The Gulf of Maine Summit will be held October 26-29 in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, and is open to interested citizens, businesses, and organizations from around the Gulf of Maine, who will discuss current environmental conditions and trends in the area, develop a consensus of indicators of environmental quality, and design an action plan and build partnerships to move forward. See the Summit website for details.
• The Massachusetts Coastal Training Program maintains a calendar of workshops and other training events for coastal decision makers and others interested in managing the coastal zone. For more information, see http://www.coastaltraining.org/events/index.htm.

Other Items of Interest
Work Locally, Share Globally - On a recent vacation to Sri Lanka, Jan Smith, Director of the Massachusetts Bays Program, connected with a graduate environmental student interested in assessing wetlands conditions using biological indicators, such as birds. Months before, while surfing the web, the student found an abstract from a talk Jan gave on the subject, and then contacted Jan, who by coincidence was in the process of planning his Sri Lankan trip. So, Jan decided to provide technical assistance in person and spent more than three days in the field with the student, helping to design a study that would serve as a Master's project and will help Sri Lanka quantify and measure the impacts of land use and invasive species on their wetland ecosystems. Jan will continue to assist the student (from afar) while serving as a member of his thesis committee.

A publication of the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM) pursuant to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Award No. NA03NOS4190087. This publication is funded (in part) by a grant/cooperative agreement from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The views expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of NOAA or any of its sub-agencies.