- Division of Ecological Restoration
The goal of DER’s Cranberry Bog Program is to restore wetlands and streams on retired cranberry farmland. In the absence of restoration, many of these lands will persist in a severely degraded state owing to legacy agricultural impacts including a sand fill layer and ditching. With 3 completed projects to date, we have developed promising practices to rejuvenate wetland conditions on these sites.
DER has seven (7) cranberry bog restoration projects in planning, representing approximately 500 acres of future restored wetlands. With the continuing economic crisis in the cranberry industry, we continue to hear from landowners who are interested in pursuing a conservation and restoration exit strategy. Over a dozen new potential projects lie on the horizon, representing almost 1,000 acres of restored wetlands. Limited capacity and resources are the biggest challenge preventing more beneficial restoration work at this time.
To increase our capacity, we continue to pursue a strategy to grow evidence, partners, and funding. To that end, program manager Alex Hackman has delivered numerous talks aimed at recruiting partners in the past few months, including as a keynote speaker to the Southeastern Massachusetts Watershed Action Alliance (video link), USGS Northeast Water Science Center, Mass Association of Conservation Commissions, Buzzards Bay Coalition board of directors, Mt. Holyoke College, and more. We have also worked with other Divisions within the Department of Fish and Game to put forth a vision for a ‘green exit strategy’ for interested landowners involving land protection, wetland restoration, and open space management. We continue to seek new funding for these needed services.
Internal capacity at DER has recently increased through the hiring of Eivy Monroy. Without skipping a beat, she is already involved in restoration projects and broader analyses of restoration opportunities. DER staff are in the field extensively these days to support the above-referenced projects, build new partnerships, and meet with landowners about new potential projects. Please feel free to contact Alex Hackman for additional information: alex.hackman@mass.gov.
Upper Images: Left: New potential project in Carver during an inspection with NRCS in April. Right: Restored stream and wetlands at Tidmarsh Wildlife Sanctuary during a DER led class in April.
