Harwich Residents Organize To Protect Freshwater Ponds

HARWICH – The health of freshwater ponds is becoming a matter of concern to a number of residents, and a group of about 60 citizens, many living along the edges of ponds, came together to begin shaping plans to protect these resources.

The gathering inside the community center July 13 was the inaugural meeting of residents working to establish the Harwich Pond Coalition. Its mission is to coordinate the effort of stakeholders to protect the quality of freshwater resources in Harwich, especially ponds, through data-driven advocacy, education and public outreach.

“There is a real need for this to happen in Harwich,” said Ann Frechette, a resident of Great Sand Lakes, noting the successes of similar coalitions in Brewster and Orleans. Frechette, who is a member of the board of director of the Great Sand Lakes Association, said Buck’s Pond, one of the chain of water bodies in the Great Sand Lakes, was closed down on July 4 because of the presence of cyanobacteria, a toxic algae that can be harmful to humans and animals (see separate story).

Frechette was one of the lead speakers in the inaugural gathering, speaking of the need to assemble volunteers for the board of directors, help write a charter, work on education and political action committees, assist to expand the membership, and get involved in science and testing.

“The town is under-staffed and has trouble coordinating with people, and around Harwich it’s a little frustrating,” she said

The town has 24 ponds entirely within its boundaries and another 12 that are connected with other communities. There are also 25 unnamed ponds, according to information provided during the meeting.

Among the 70 people who registered for Saturday's meeting, water quality and pond health were the major issues, according to Frechette. Cyanobacteria and e-coli were of major concerns. Nutrient loading from septic systems, fertilizers and road runoff were also cited as in need of addressing.

Frechette said 80 percent of the excessive nutrients going into the ponds are from septic systems and generate the e-coli and cyanobacteria problems. One resident noted road runoff that passed through her backyard and into Buck’s Ponds. She said the town installed a berm to redirect the runoff.

Another resident spoke to increases in rain intensity. He said storms that previously generated a quarter-inch of rain now drop two inches, and he is concerned about fertilizers used in agriculture and on lawns that are making their way into the ponds. Nitrogen and phosphorus were identified as causing major degradation of the ponds. Over the past two decades cyanobacteria blooms have become annual issues in many of the town’s ponds.

Joyce Bearse related the efforts of the Long Pond Watershed Association for alum treatment after the pond experienced fish kills and algae blooms 15 years ago. The treatment worked for Long Pond, she said.

John Ketchum, chair of the conservation commission and one of the coordinators of the gathering, provided the history that led to an alum treatment in Skinequit Pond last October. He noted the initial use of a Solar Bee pump that sought to address dissolved oxygen in the pond, which he said worked marginally. The neighborhood association hired a limnologist, who recommended alum treatment. The town has also employed an alum treatment in Hinckley’s Pond to address fish kills and algae blooms.

There was discussion about invasive plants such as phragmites in local ponds. Robin Clinton said he pulled up phragmites by hand, and took them to the town dump, admitting it was an arduous task as they continued to spread. Mats on the bottom of the pond were considered to keep sunlight from reaching the plants, he said, adding that chemicals would not be used to address phragmites problems.

It was pointed out that any such mitigation would require conservation commission approval, and in the 17 great ponds in town, state permitting would also be required. Frechette informed attendees that the Massachusetts Department of Conservation Recreation provides free workshops on invasive plant mitigation and will hold workshops with pond associations.

The Cape Cod Commission is conducting pond analysis and providing education materials on protecting the health of ponds, she added. Barnstable County is conducting e-coli sampling in local waters and the Association to Preserve Cape Cod is studying cyanobacteria in many ponds on the Cape and also providing a way to track blooms on its website. The town’s natural resources department is looking for volunteers to assess water temperatures, clarity and oxygen levels in local ponds, she said.

Patrick Otton, who over the past two years filed town meeting petitions seeking special legislation that would allow the town to govern fertilizer application, made a plea to those assembled to attend town meeting and vote for fertilizer limits. He said through their vote, 161 people made the decision not to pursue the legislation this year. He asked people present to join a focus group on the issue.

“They were not talking about the value of protecting the environment,” he said. “It was rejected on process.”

Harwich Conservation Trust Executive Director Michael Lach spoke about his organization’s efforts to preserve pond water quality. The trust has preserved more than 150 acres across 14 ponds, and 10,000 feet of shoreline. Lach said the trust would continue to work with the coalition to preserve pond-front lands. The trust uses acquisitions, tax benefits and conservation restrictions to put water resources protective measures in place, he said.

Frechette emphasized the importance of getting people to volunteers for committees within the coalition that will serve to protect the many ponds strung across Harwich.