Editor:

So far, no environmental study is required for the Pine Oaks Village project. By not yet submitting a site plan for their project, the developers have sidestepped a local environmental study. And the state is so eager to build dense housing in North Harwich that it won’t require a state environmental study.

The developers propose to clearcut at least 20 acres of oak-pitchpine forest. Cape Cod's oak-pitchpine forests are documented to support over 200 state-protected species. And we know what animals live in our forest: the box turtles and horned owls, the foxes and fishers. But none of them would be identified or protected without a study. Ironically, once the resident wildlife and native plants are eliminated, the developers would then name the place Pine Oak Village after the trees and the habitat they’d destroyed.

Pitchpines and oaks keep our soil porous and help to recharge our aquifer. We know that our North Harwich forest is dotted with wetlands and vernal pools, and at least one of them is certified. But without a study, none of that can be protected, and those 20 acres would be clearcut, paved and covered by multistory buildings, with all wastewater running into the watershed that contributes directly to our endangered Herring River. 

But so far, no study or protection of our environment is required. 

Paula Myles 
North Harwich

Editor:

This year I turned 80, and the world has never seemed darker. So as I drive back from meetings at night, I say "Thank you" to neighbors who put out Christmas lights — little shining trees in the middle of cranberry bogs, front doors edged in red and green and blue, shrubs turned into clusters of magic, and sometimes a glorious show with shining candy canes and illuminated icicles dripping from the eaves. It is heartening to see that light can still shine in darkness and hope in the face of despair.

Alice Kelley
East Harwich