Charles River Watershed Association: Wrapping Up

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Wrapping Up

I can't believe how fast this summer has gone by. Next week is already my last week at the office! I've been busy with finishing up the dock survey and compiling the results into a report. Cataia and I finished the field work last week, and we also finished matching the docks and permits. However, many of the permits were from the 1800s and therefore don't have an existing matching dock anymore. One difficulty that Cataia and I ran into is that since the majority of the old permits do not have addresses, it is nearly impossible to match the permit to any property, let alone a dock. These permits also travelled with the land, not the owner, so an original permit might be under a different name than the current property holder's name. I'd say the process of matching docks and permits was the hardest part of this project. Another difficulty we ran into is that in addition to Chapter 91 licenses issued by the MassDEP, there are wetlands permits issued by local conservation commissions. So a certain dock may not have the Ch. 91 license but may have the wetland permit from the town. Cataia and I tried calling a few of the local conservation commissions to inquire specifically about dock permits in the Charles, but we haven't been able to find out anything so far.

Here are a few photos from our last canoe trip, as well as today's flagging trip.

-Kyra

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Welcome to the Charles River Watershed Association's Intern Blog

CRWA's mission is to use science, advocacy and the law to protect, preserve and enhance the Charles River and its watershed.

One of the country's oldest watershed organizations, Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA) was formed in 1965 in response to public concern about the declining condition of the Charles. Since its earliest days of advocacy, CRWA has figured prominently in major clean-up and watershed protection efforts, working with government officials and citizen groups from 35 Massachusetts watershed towns from Hopkinton to Boston. Initiatives over the last four decades have dramatically improved the quality of water in the watershed and fundamentally changed approaches to water resource management.

While CRWA’s mission focuses on the Charles River, the implications and applicability of our science-based work go far beyond the watershed’s boundaries. Much of CRWA’s work is cutting edge and therein lies our unique strength and effectiveness: we use our scientific knowledge of the Charles to develop innovative, workable solutions to watershed problems. This knowledge allows CRWA not only to advocate persuasively for outcomes, but also to partner with government agencies and other environmental groups to protect the natural environment and to promote sustainable ecosystem policies and practices.