Open Space Protection in the Midcoast

MEACC will hold a regional meeting in Waldoboro on March 9, 2011, from
4-6:00 p.m. at University of Maine Cooperative Extension Service
office, 45 Manktown Road, Waldoboro. The event will feature two
presentations regarding open space protection in the Mid-Coast area of
interest to both area conservation commissioners and land trust
members:

Beginning with Habitat has developed a variety of planning tools that
will be of interest to any group interested in open space and habitat
protection. Steve Walker, director of Beginning with Habitat, will
review those tools and how they can be used effectively.

The Twelve Rivers Collaborative is a regional land protection
initiative being spearheaded by nine Mid-Coast area land trusts to
protect lands within the one million acre region between the Kennebec
and Penobscot Rivers. Maureen Hoffman of the Sheepscot Valley
Conservation Association and Liz Petruska of the Medomak Valley Land
Trust will describe the vision driving that initiative and discuss the
role area conservation commissions might play in that project.

The event is open to conservation commissioners, land trust members
and other people interested in open space protection at a municipal
and regional level. The agenda will include both presentations and
ample time for participant / presenter discussion.

There is no charge for the event, but pre-registration is required via
MEACC’s website, www.meacc.net. Please register by March 4th.

CONSERVATION PRIORITIES WORKSHOP RESULTS

By a wide margin attendees at a Conservation Planning Workshop in Bremen January 27 picked access to the water as the greatest conservation concern in Bremen.

Bremen Conservation Commission Chairman Dennis Prior said the commission organized the workshop as one way of learning what residents see conservation priorities for the town. Prior said he was pleased with the wide cross section of residents who attended the workshop. He thanked everyone for coming on a cold winter night and said he was happy to see families bring their young children.

After viewing the latest version of the Beautiful Bremen slide show, participants heard a brief explanation of how the meeting would work, and then  gathered in small groups to suggest what they feel town conservation priorities should be. They were asked to asked to consider what natural resources that are important to Bremen residents are currently limited or in danger of being lost. The suggestions from the small groups were merged and discussed by all participants who were then asked to each select the five ideas they considered the most important and rate them as to priority.

Following the workshop, the Conservation Commission compiled all the prioritized suggestions, assigning a weighted score to each. Workshop participants selected public access to the town's saltwater and freshwater resources as the highest priorities by more than twice as much as that of any other.  Access to saltwater included access to the working waterfront and for recreational boating. Freshwater access included opportunities for non-motorized boating and swimming, including suggestions for a town park, picnic area and future public water supply.

Other top priorities were hiking trails; access to the town's high elevation areas; maintaining unfragmented blocks of land, open space and farmland; recreational facilities and programs, especially for children; and better access to Bremen Long Island and town alewife runs.

In addition, there were suggestions from workshop participants to develop revenue streams from town recreation opportunities, consider the financial aspects of public properties, map vernal pools, and make better use of existing town properties including the town landing. It was also suggested that funds in the town's Conservation Account might go further if spent for rights-of-way and easements rather than large land purchases.

Prior said the Conservation Commission will use all the prioritized suggestions to develop a strategic plan for acquiring and maintaining the town's natural resources that residents see as important to Bremen's future.

News Detail regarding LD 1 Proposals

Follow this link to read more.
http://www.nrcm.org/news_detail.asp?news=4019

Vernal Pools Educational Poster

This poster may give those who are unfamiliar with vernal pools more insight into why they are so important.

Environmental Regulations on Maine Legislature's Front Burner

Environmental Regulations on Maine Legislature's Front Burner
MPBN
01/21/2011 Reported By: Susan Sharon

With all the focus in the Republican-dominated Legislature this year
on environmental regulations and the possible rollback of those that
are perceived to deter job growth, environmentalists and lawmakers are
gearing up for a lively session. Dozens of environmental bills are up
for consideration, including repeal of Maine's bottle bill, a
moratorium on expedited wind permitting and relaxation of shoreland
zoning and protection of vernal pools.

This week Gov. Paul LePage made headlines when he suggested Maine's
regulations protecting vernal pools from development should be
relaxed. Vernal pools are small, fish-free bodies of water that are
dry for part of the year and fill up with snowmelt long enough to
provide a breeding ground for frogs and toads--the food source for
forest creatures such as weasels, skunks and even bear and moose.

But in just about every one of the governor's listening sessions on
regulations, Republican Sen. Tom Saviello of Wilton says vernal pool
protections have been raised as an example of overly-burdensome
regulations. As chair of the Environment and Natural Resources
Committee, he's expecting about ten bills on the subject to be brought
forward, either to his committee or to a newly established committee
on regulatory reform known as LD 1.

"The leadership may, in fact, decide that the best place to hear the
vernal pool legislation questions will be in front of the LD 1
committee," Saviello says. "So if they do that, they would sweep them
out of my committee and put them in front of LD 1."

Jen Gray, a staff attorney with Maine Audubon, says environmental
groups such as hers are concerned about vernal pool protections coming
under fire from the governor and others. She's hoping to meet with the
governor's nominee to head the Department of Environmental Protection
to explain the importance of vernal pools, not all of which are
regulated or prohibit development.

"We're hoping to have the opportunity to walk through how the vernal
pool legislation came to be and why the rules were developed the way
they were and how very few project have actually been impacted by
vernal pool protections," Gray says.

Also expected to come before the Environment and Natural Resources
Committee are several bills dealing with bottle redemption, a law in
place in Maine since 1978 intended to reduce roadside litter and solid
waste by offering incentives to recycle. One bill, introduced by
Republican Sen. Thomas Martin of Benton proposes to repeal the bottle
redemption law, although Martin says he will likely support other
related legislation instead.

"There are some similar bills out there so I put one in not knowing
there was another bill out there," he says. "And there are several
that I will probably let this one lapse."

Martin says he thinks Mainers are environmentally responsible enough
not to need the bottle deposit to encourage them to recycle. Short of
repealing the entire program, he says he supports a proposal to exempt
wine bottles from the redemption law. That bill is sponsored by
Republican Rep. Stacey Fitts of Pittsfield.

"First off, they're very bulky," Fitts says. "It's one of the only
glass, large returnables that are still in the system. And wine
bottles come from a lot of different places, and oftentimes they don't
have deposits on them."

In other words, they may be coming from out of state, where a deposit
was never paid on them in the first place, and Fitts says that winds
up costing redemption centers here in Maine money when they get
returned.

More than half a dozen bills dealing with relaxation of Maine's
shoreland zoning regulations are also being proposed. This week during
an environmental roundtable with the governor, representatives from
Maine's fishing industry urged the governor not to weaken regulations
dealing with water quality.

Patrice McCarron is the executive director of the Maine Lobstermen's
Association. She says consumers, who bought 100-million pounds of
Maine lobster last year, are depending on them.

"They know that it's harvested from the pristine waters of the Gulf of
Maine and we need to make sure that the rules that protect our waters
remain in place," she says. "You don't have to look far to see what
happens to lobsters when water quality is poor. The southern New
England lobster industry has grappled with disease, die-offs and, more
recently, a complete resource collapse."

Chad Coffin, president of the Maine Clamming Association, says
excellent water quality is also critical to his industry, which he
says is worth about $40 million to Maine's economy and supports 2,000
wild clammers.

"Excellent water quality starts in the lakes, ponds and streams
hundreds of miles inland and ends at the coast," he says. "We are
concerned about threats to water quality and our industry if the state
somehow loses sight of what we have gained in the last decade through
new legislation that has helped to clean up and improve the water
quality in our coastal waters."

In addition to water quality, windpower development is also going to
be scrutinized by lawmakers this session. There are no fewer than a
dozen wind-related bills being proposed, including several sponsored
by Republican Rep. Larry Dunphy of Emden. One of his bills would put a
moratorium on the expedited wind permitting process. Another would
create a code of conduct for individuals involved in large scale
energy development and yet another would protect citizens' property
values.

"You put in a 300- or 400-foot tower or a number of these 300- or 400-
foot towers and flashing lights and humming noises and that sort of
thing and is that gonna decrease the property value? It would decrease
my interest in buying property in that area," Dunphy says.

With all of the proposed legislation, it is possible that similar
bills may be merged. In the meantime, environmental groups say they
will be watching to make sure environmental regulations that protect
and define the Maine brand are not completely eroded.

Share your Photography on the BCC Blog

Share your Bremen winter photographs on the BCC Blog. Send to bcc@tidewater.net and provide your name at the bare minimum so that we can credit you when we post it.
Look forward to hearing from you!

Workshop on Land Conservation Priorities to be Held in Bremen January 27

Bremen residents are invited to a public workshop at 7 p.m. on Thursday, January 27, to help prioritize land conservation choices for the town’s future.
The workshop, sponsored by the Bremen Conservation Commission, is an opportunity for town citizens to express their preferences as to how the town’s Conservation Account should be used. The town established the account in 2008 for the purpose of acquiring land, easements and rights-of-way to maintain open space for Bremen’s future, and has appropriated funds to the account for the last three years. The Conservation Account has received additional funding from donations and events held by the Conservation Commission.
Chairman Dennis Prior said the Conservation Commission wants to better understand what types of land Bremen residents see as most important to future land conservation, such as access to ponds and working waterfront, scenic views, wildlife habitat, recreational areas etc. The workshop will be an important part of the learning process and a way to plan effectively for the future. He believes that the commission is set to undertake its most important work in the next few months starting with this workshop.

This is an important planning workshop and we strongly encourage the public's participation.

Big plans for Bremen alewives in 2011

Lincoln County News, Dec. 23, 2010

By Samuel J. Baldwin

There are several projects in the works to help restore alewife passage between Webber Pond and Muscongus Bay in Bremen. Successfully restoring passage to this spawning ground should be a big step in establishing a sustainable alewife run in Bremen, which recent federal law requires in order for a town to allow alewife fishing.  In order to spawn in Webber Pond, alewives must swim through Muscongus Brook, about a mile and half long stretch that crosses Rt. 32 twice.

For almost 10 years, Bremen resident David Wilkins and the Bremen Alewife Project has been working with local volunteers to restore fish passage in Muscongus Brook by building fish ladders and removing obstacles, such as the remnants of a massive stone wall.  Wilkins’ work will continue in the coming year, he said. On a snowy Dec. 23, Wilkins was knee-deep in Muscongus Brook with several volunteers hauling large stones out of a waterfall.

“Three fish ladders, four years, dozens of sandbags and hundreds of hours later, we can confidently say we know how to get alewives swimming up, into and through the [culverts] and into Webber Pond,” Wilkins wrote in an email to The Lincoln County News.  In that effort, Wilkins has been joined by Charlie Baeder and the Sheepscot River Watershed Council in a project to replace the culverts under the two Rt. 32 crossings.  Currently, the culverts are too small and smooth-bottomed to allow fish to swim upstream. The groups are working with the Maine Dept. of Transportation and several Maine and federal organizations to replace the culverts with either bridges or larger culverts that will allow fish passage.

Although the project is in its infancy, the SRWC received notice on Dec. 22 that they will receive $150,000 through the Maine Dept. of Environmental Protection, The Nature Conservancy and Army Corps of Engineers. (See story page 2.) They hope to receive a second large grant through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the American Rivers program. SRWC will know about the second grant in March, Baeder said.  Should they fail to receive the second grant, there are other funding sources SRWC is prepared to explore. “We’re going to keep at it until it’s through,” Baeder said.

The grant money will be used to provide a 50-50 match with DOT to pay for replacing the culverts, Baeder said.  The cost of the project won’t be known until DOT designs the culverts, but the initial estimate for the project is about $250,000 to $300,000 per culvert, Baeder said.

One of the culverts is “rotting out” and needs to be replaced anyway, Baeder said. The other culvert is worse from a fish passage situation. Because DOT and SRWC are splitting the cost of the replacement, DOT agreed to replace both culverts, Baeder said.

Although somewhat pricier than smaller culverts not designed for fish, the replacement cost shouldn’t be affected significantly by the considerations given to fish passage, Baeder said.

“From MDOT’s perspective, this brings in a lot of money that they wouldn’t have had,” Baeder said.

“It’s a way for us to ensure that the culverts are designed to allow fish to pass,” Baeder said.

DOT is currently surveying the two sites, and the design and permitting process will run through the winter, and Baeder hopes for a summer 2011 construction on the two culverts. Should road bumps arise, Baeder said the “worst case scenario” is summer 2012.

For fishermen, this project may be an important step towards ensuring they can continue to harvest fish in Bremen for years to come.  “This is good from a long-term perspective,” Baeder said. “In the short term, it may not help, but it’s the kind of thing that if it’s done in Bremen, and it’s done in 100 towns up and down the coast, it’ll be a major benefit in the long run.”

Earlier this year, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission passed an amendment to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Shad and Herring. Amendment 2, as it is known, prohibits the taking of river herring in all state waters on the east coast unless a town or state submits a “sustainable management plan,” according to a press release issued by the ASMFC.

The ASMFC defines a sustainable fishery as “a commercial and/or recreational fishery that will not diminish the potential future stock reproduction and recruitment,” according to the press release.

Fish measurements will be taken as soon as culverts are replaced and again in five or so years to demonstrate the impact of this project, Baeder said, and alewife passage into Webber Pond could be a key component for Bremen to demonstrate a sustainable harvest.  The coast-wide moratorium on river herring harvesting will take effect Jan. 1, 2012, according to the press release.  What this means for Maine is that by next year each town needs to have a harvest plan in place that allows DMR to demonstrate that the population of river herring is in line with the amount of fish being harvested, said Pat Keliher, the director of the DMR Bureau of Sea Run Fisheries and Habitat, during a meeting with fishermen and town officials in Bremen.

Next year, DMR will likely enforce closures of the river herring harvest during key months, in an effort to establish a fishery that will pass the ASMFC definition of sustainable, Keliher said.

What will the 2010 census indicate?

Could the population of Bremen in 2010 surpass the population in 1840? We'll know in February according to the 2010 census.

1830   770
1840   837
1850   891
1860   907
1870   797
1880   839
1890   842
1900   657
1910   550
1920   423
1930   322
1940   383
1950   409
1960   438
1970   454
1980   598
1990   674
2000   782
2010   ???

I thought this was interesting.  Notice a 45 person increase between 1950 and 1970!  And the high of 907 in 1860 just prior to the Civil War.

A Letter from the Chairman

Friends, Family and Neighbors,

After a busy year the BCC is set to hold its last meetings of 2010 on October 27th and November 10th.  As the hectic holiday season approaches the BCC typically takes this time off to recharge and get ready for the new year.  2011 looks to be an important year for conservation in Bremen! Starting in the new year community meetings will be aimed at encouraging a dialogue regarding our strategies as set forth by our conservation plan.  The BCC hopes to update the Bremen Conservation Plan, set forth a full fledged list of priorities and recommendations for open space conservation and to clearly define the role of our Land Conservation Reserve Fund in this process.

As always we are looking for volunteers.  If you have an interest in conservation please send an email to bcc@tidewater.net

And don't forget any donations to the Bremen Land Conservation Reserve Fund are tax deductible and greatly appreciated!

Thanks for your continued support,

Dennis Prior
Chairman, Bremen Conservation Commission

LAND GIFT COMPLETES BERGER PRESERVE

Daniel and Suzanne Goldenson of Bremen made a further gift of land to the
Medomak Valley Land Trust at their annual meeting held on Friday evening,
December 3 that will complete the Karl F. Berger Preserve on Bremen Long
Island. The gift consists of an additional fifteen acres, including a cove
and 700 feet of deep water frontage on the eastern shore of the 165-acre
preserve.

In 2007 the Goldensons donated 165 acres to create the preserve, which
covers the center of Bremen Long Island, shore to shore, with more than a
half-mile of ocean frontage. It was named in memory of Karl F. Berger, a
former Bremen Selectman who died suddenly in 2007 and who had been a very
active and community-spirited Bremen leader.

Working closely with MVLT and the Bremen Conservation Commission, the
Goldensons sought to preserve a major part of the 850-acre island. Bremen Long
Island was an active settlement, with several hundred residents who were
farmers and fishermen in the days before paved roads and electricity on
the mainland.

Today, Bremen Long Island is the summer home for about 25 families, many
of whom have owned their properties for generations. The Berger Preserve
is accessible from Hockomock Channel, on the western shore, and extends
more than 4,000 feet to the eastern shore where the swift ocean current
inspired the name “Flying Passage.”

The newly donated cove on the eastern shore provides the opportunity for
the land trust to develop a safe access point for visitors arriving by
motor boat or kayak. The western access is also within a protected cove,
and is the starting point of a trail that will extend into the wooded
parcel and across to the eastern shore. Trails and signage will
be developed this spring by MVLT and the Bremen Conservation Commission.

New BCC Member

I am happy to report the appointment of David Wilkins as a member of the BCC by the Bremen selectmen. The BCC welcomes David's enthusiasm, conservation mindedness and hands on approach, notably his work in the re-establishment of a sustainable alewife population in Webber Pond. We are looking forward to working with David and continuing to establish conservation as an important aspect of life in Bremen!

Taking a moment to teach local youth about the life cycle of an alewife

"Meet Your Farmer" short films Nov. 5

The Medomak Valley Land Trust and the Maine Farmland Trust will host a showing of eight short films that offer viewers a taste of where Maine's food comes from.  The films will be shown at 6:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 5, at the Waldo Theatre, 916 Main St., Waldoboro.  The documentaries tell the diverse stories of eight Maine farms, from Aroostook to York, from potatoes to dairy, and from large commercial operations to small famrs that sell directly to local people.  

 

After the films are shown, refreshments will be served that are made with locally grown ingredients.  Suggested donation for the screening is $5 per person. 

Hog Island

A news article in the newspaper Working Waterfront reports the Audubon Society may give Hog Island to Camp Kieve-Wavus, the children's camp headquartered in Nobleboro.  To read the article, go to: 

  

http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Audubon-turning-Hog-Island-over-to-Camp-Kieve/14083/

More information, including a recent letter from National Audubon concerning the possible transfer, is available on  the Friends of Hog Island website:

www.fohi.org

 

Meanwhile, the Hog Island Camp will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2011.  See the FOHI website for more details and registration information for classes next summer. 

Contributing Photography

We'd like to welcome Bremen resident Kathleen 'Kat' McClintock into the BCC blogging family.  Kathleen has agreed to share her beautiful photography with us from time to time.  Here is a sampling of her latest  photography via facebook.  Thanks Kathleen!

Webber Pond Alewife Update 10-08-10: Yoy Emigration

Contributing: Dave Wilkins

I believe the majority of young of the year (yoy)  alewives born in Webber Pond this summer left after a large rain event in late July. It was then I found a few dead adults caught up in various hangups along the brook. There were gulls at the estuary then also.  The young would have been quite small then and very hard to spot.

These past couple of weeks have stirred up the remaining alewives in Webber. We have spotted several schools of large (4 -4 1/2"+ sized) yoy that number in only hundreds.  My camera is never with me when I spot them! Yesterday (Oct 7) while the rain was ending I found few schools  around the pond level beaver dam. I encouraged them downstream with a part in the dam.  I could not find any today in the stream, though my weir by my dock provided an adult and a yoy this morning.

One picture has yoy moving over the beaver dam.
Another has the adult in my hand.
The last has a single yoy.

Harvest Dinner Raffle Items

Following are the raffle items from the Harvest Dinner September 18, and who won each one. All raffle items were produced in Bremen.

*Six 1-1/4 pound live lobsters donated by Melanee Osier-Gilbert, Maine Fresh Lobster, plus ten pounds of clams donated by Blair Pyne, Broad Cove Marine Services. Won by Sue Renelt.

*Overflowing basket of Harvest Vegetables donated by gardeners throughout the Town of Bremen. Won by Joan Ray.

*Miss Kitty" Cashmere Yarn Scarf Kit donated by Wendy Pieh, Springtide Farm. Won by Mary Berger.

*Two cases of tomato sauce donated by Suzanne Goldenson, Heirloom Tomato Sauce Company. One case each won by Robert Goth and Ann Marie Serwa. 

*Four bottles of Hard Apple Cider made from heritage apples grown on Bremen Long  Island,  pressed and donated by Alice and Ed  DeLuca . Won by Heather Smith.

Proceeds from Harvest Dinner Go To Conservation Account

At the Board of Selectmen's meeting October 7, Dennis Prior, Chairman of the Bremen Conservation Commission, gave the Selectmen $748 to be added to the town's conservation reserve account. The funds were the net proceeds from the Harvest Dinner the BCC held on September 18.

In turning over the proceeds to the town account, Dennis said the dinner was a great success. He thanked the dinner committee for their hard work, the people and businesses in Bremen and nearby towns who provided the food and raffle items, and all the those bought the tickets and came to eat the dinner. He said having the New Rangers entertain was a special treat.

The Commission has been asked if they will hold another Harvest Dinner next year. We'd love to hear from those who think we should hold a dinner next year, and especially from anyone who would like to help plan and serve it.

Credit Where Credit's Due

– "The best dinner, outside my own kitchen, I've had in the 13 years I've been coming to Maine."

– "Everything was excellent. The sausage meatballs were a real treat, the vinaigrette dressing was sooo good and the bread was to die for!"

– "We were so pleased to be able to come to the dinner. We remember all the wonderful dinners that used to be held in the Town House."

– "The best music I've heard since 1960!"

– "I hope that BCC was very pleased & proud, after all the work on the Harvest Dinner. It couldn't have been better! And the New Rangers were a great culmination.

These are just a few of the comments the BCC has received about the Harvest Dinner. Many people have asked who did what, e.g., Who made the squash casserole? Who made bread? For those who are curious, here the list of who did what:

Appetizers: Goat meat sausage donated and prepared by Wendy Pieh, Springtide Farm.

Bread: Made by David and Jessica Koubek from King Arthur bread flour and Maine organic wheat flour donated by Riding Tide Community Market.

Salad: The greens came from several Bremen gardeners, including Virginia Betts, Kathleen McClintock, Kerry Weber, and Sean McGregor. Carrots and beets donated by Kathleen McClintock and Bennett Collins, prepared by Marge Jicha. Lobsters donated by Bremen Lobster Co-Op, cooked and meat picked out by Dotty and Kent Booher. Vinaigrette dressing made by Kathleen McClintock. Ranch dressing made by Anna's Water's Edge Restaurant.

Ham provided by Abby and Mark Strobbe, Healthy Heritage Farm; sliced and trimmed by Kathleen McClintock. Raisin Sauce prepared by Mary Sue Weeks.

Squash and Dried Bean Casserole: Squash provided by Virginia Betts, Kathleen McClintock & Bennett Collins, Martin Klepeis. Beans supplied by Virginia Betts; tomato sauce by Suzanne Goldenson. Prepared by Virginia Betts and Joan Ray.

Roasted Potatoes: Potatoes donated by Steve and Jurate Barnes, supplemented with potatoes from Clark's Farm. Prepared by Sue Renelt, Mary Sue Weeks and Diane O'Connor.

Gingerbread Lobsters: Made and donated by Kim McClain, the original Gingerbread Lobster Co.

Ice Cream: Round Top Ice Cream, Vanilla flavor.

Cider: Supplied by Mike Reny, Biscay Orchards, who also donated the apples on the tables.

Coffee: Matt's organic coffee, donated by Rising Tide Community Market.

Photography by Karen Berg