HomeMy WebLinkAboutMicrosoft PowerPoint - Art 43 Wetlands Powerpoint Presentation [Compatibility Mode] THE IMPORTANCE OF WETLANDS
& BUFFER ZONES
Town Meeting 2006
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WETLANDS & BUFFER ZONES :
❖ Provide important fish & wildlife habitat
❖ Follow closely behind rain forest & coral reef ecosystems in
the sheer volume of biodiversity they support
❖ Reduce flooding and storm damage by absorbing stormwater
& releasing flood/storm waters slowing acting as a natural
sponge
❖ Prevent pollution by filtering pollutants
❖ Help regulate water levels within watersheds
❖ Improve & provide natural water quality
❖ Support hunting, fishing, other recreational activities
❖ Help moderate global climate change
❖ Prevents erosion
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WETLANDS ARE NOT WASTELANDS
••• The importance of wetlands & their buffer zones
cannot be overstated
•'• Wetlands & buffer zones are the vital link
between land and water, which provide valuable
functions & benefits to humans and the
environment
•'• Protecting these resource areas can protect our
safety & welfare
❖ Approx. 75% of wetlands are privately owned,
so individual homeowners are critical in
protecting these areas
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THE WETLANDS PROTECTION ACT
(WPA OR "THE ACT") IS NOT ENOUGH
••• The state law is intended to afford a minimum
standard of protection
vo Under the Act, jurisdiction in the buffer zone is
thought of as advisory
•'• It is recognized that the rapid pace of development
continues to threaten resource areas and stronger
protection efforts through the adoption of more
restrictive bylaws incorporating buffer zone
setbacks are being encouraged by environmental
officials and organizations alike
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NORTH ANDOVER WETLANDS BYLAW
❖ The Attorney General adopted the first North Andover
Wetlands Protection Bylaw in 1987.
❖ Since that time, North Andover has strengthened the Bylaw
in ways that better protect these valuable resource areas,
whereas the bylaw has come to be a model within the
Commonwealth.
❖ In 1997, 40% of the 351 communities in MA had adopted
local wetland bylaws/ordinances
❖ This percentage has increased to 51 % & is growing
❖ The majority of the communities without a bylaw are those
in the western part of the state where development & urban
sprawl is not as prevalent
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THE IMPORTANCE OF BUFFER
ZONES & BUFFER ZONE SETBACKS
The "buffer zone" is an area that is set aside to provide distance
between the activity being regulated & the area being protected
•� Work within the buffer zone is likely to impact the resource area
•:� Buffers are a critical part of the wetland system
Buffers provide the initial filtering of sediments & other
pollutants from runoff water and slow the rate of runoff
Buffers serve as a "habitat connector", providing a protective
pathway for wildlife species
Buffers provide a visual & noise barrier between the inner core
of the wetland and adjacent activities,
1.At Home With Wetlands— a Landowners Guide, Joy Michaud for the Washington State Department of Ecology—
No date
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BUFFER ZONES (CONT.
❖ The recommended minimum buffer width for a healthy
wetland ranges from 50 to 300 ft or more. The width
requirement is based on the size of the wetland, the functions
it provides, the health of existing vegetation, the wildlife you
may want to protect, & adjacent land use2
❖ There is a fair amount of literature available to support that
naturally vegetated buffer zones are important to wetland
interests. The imposition to argue against the contrary is
difficult to challenge3
❖ Local setbacks are justified for this reason, suggesting that,
the disturbance of the upland area immediately adjacent to a
resource area will alter or degrade the resource area itself
2. At Home With Wetlands—A Land Owners Guide, Joy Michaud for the washington State Department of Ecology—
No date
3. Regulation of Wetland Buffer Zones Under Local "Home Rule" Bylaws, George A. Hall, Jr. &Anderson & Kreiger
LLP—2004
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REAL IMPACTS FROM WETLAND
LOSS & GROWING DEVELOPMENT
•'• Local — Recent historic floods
•'• National — Hurricane Katrina floods in
Louisiana;
Increase in human/alligator
encounters in Florida caused by
wetland/habitat loss due to increased
development and sprawl
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PROTECTING WETLANDS IS COST
EFFECTIVE & SAVES SSSS
❖ If a community had to build flood control or water
treatment systems to replace those functions provided by
wetlands, the costs could far outweigh the land purchase
price of preserving the natural wetland systems4
❖ In the 1970's, the Army Corps of Engineers concluded that
wetlands protection in the Charles River Basin was the
least costly solution to future flooding problems. The loss
of these wetlands would have resulted in an annual cost of
$17 million from floodings
❖ A 1990 study showed that, without the Congaree
Bottomland Hardwood Swamp in South Carolina, the area
would need a $5 million waste water treatment plant6
4.At Home With Wetlands —A Landowners Guide, Joy Michaud for the Washington State Department of Ecology —No date
5.A World in Our Backyard —No date
6. Water Connection —The New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission Newsletter— Summer 2000
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COST EFFECTIVE & SAVES $ (CONT*
•'• In 1975 alone, property damage from flooding
cost the U.S. an estimated $3.4 billion
•'• There is no precise formula that can be used to
determine the accurate dollar value per acre of
wetland, but the more we learn about wetlands
and their buffer zones, the higher the value
becomes$
7.A world in Our backyard —No date
8.At Home With Wetlands —A Landowners Guide, Joy Michaud for the Washington State Department of Ecology —No date
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ELIMINATING OR MAKING THE
BYLAW LESS RESTRICTIVE WOULD .
❖ Increase Flooding
❖ Increase Erosion & Pollution
❖ Contribute to the loss of wildlife & wildlife
habitat
❖ Impact water quality & quantity
❖ Increase development
❖ Disrupt the functions of our watersheds &
hydrologic balance
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WETLAND STEWARDSHIP
••• It makes more sense to preserve & protect
remaining wetland resource areas and their
buffer zones now than to try to replace them
after we damage or destroy them
•'• We may not be able to alter the course of
urban growth, but there are other ways in
which these resource areas can be protected,
and ensuring a best possible local wetland
bylaw is a good start.
•'• Therefore, the North Andover Conservation
Commission strongly urges you NOT to
support this article.