Conservation Commission

As a member of the Conservation Commission, you are responsible for local administration of the state’s Wetlands Protection Act. If your community has its own local wetlands protection laws, your commission also administers local wetlands permitting. In many communities, the Conservation Commission also oversees open space planning and acquisition and stewardship of municipal land set aside for conservation through direct ownership or through conservation restrictions.

As you work to protect state and local wetlands, remember that two of the eight interests of the Wetland Protection Act are flood control and storm damage protection.

Following are some of the ways that you can help protect people, property, and natural resources:

Hazard Identification and Mapping

• Interpreting Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) and Flood Insurance Studies
• Understanding the limitations of Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) and Flood Insurance Studies
• Sources of additional information
• Making hazard information available & accessible

Planning

• Creating a community master plan
• Creating a multi-hazard mitigation plan
• Creating risk mitigation strategies
• Creating a multi-objective management plan

Regulation and Development Standards

• Considering potential future conditions when siting new development
• Passing a protective wetlands bylaw
• Keeping public infrastructure outside of hazard-prone areas
• Incorporating NFIP requirements into local ordinances and regulations
• Ensuring local regulations allow appropriate development techniques
• Creating permanent no-build areas
• Using freeboard to elevate structures above predicted floodwaters
• Requiring foundation/building certification
• Conducting inspections of lower-area enclosures

Mitigation and Shore Protection

• Using non-structural shore protection
• Using flood and erosion control structures
• Retrofitting existing structures
• Relocating existing structures
• Acquiring existing structures
• Using freeboard to elevate structures above predicted floodwaters

Infrastructure

• Regularly inventorying hazard risk to all public property
• Siting critical facilities out of harm's way

Emergency Services

• Improving disaster response coordination
• Creating a post-disaster recovery plan

Education and Outreach

• General hazard awareness
• Hazard training for local officials
• Sources for outreach materials