Posted on November 30, 2015
Three Bays Preservation and Mass Audubon Society are seeking a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to dredge Nantucket Sound and Cotuit Bay.
The plans call for the dredging of 133,600 cubic yards of clean sand from a 218,400-square-foot area to be placed on Dead Neck Sampson’s Island in Osterville.
The majority of the sand, or 102,200 cubic yards, would be placed over a 300,010-square-foot area to renourish the eastern end of the island.
There will also be 11,400 cubic yards of material placed around the island for habitat restoration.
“The drift of the sand moves from east to west at that site,” said Lindsey Counsell, the executive director of Three Bays Preservation. “And what we plan to do is move the sand back easterly and create coastal bird nesting habitat that has been washed away by the series of storms we have had over the years.”
The remaining 20,000 cubic yards of sand will be used to restore dunes.
A federal permit application was filed with the Army Corps of Engineers in compliance with Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, which regulates removing or filling in U.S. waters and wetlands. The permit would also be in compliance with Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, which provides for federal regulation of any work in navigable waters.
The work will also affect the Essential Fish Habitat for various species but the Corps has determined that the site-specific effect will not be substantial. The National Marine Fisheries Service is consulting and will make recommendations prior to the final permit decision.
“It’s time to widen that channel, increase the flushing to Cotuit Bay so it will have a water quality improvement aspect and to rebuild the east end of the island,” Counsell said.
Public comments on the project should be sent to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers no later than Thursday, November 26. Email comments to Crystal Gardner at crystal.i.gardner@usace.army.mil.
The public notice for the project can be found here.
