Minutes
Minutes
Shellfish Advisory Board
July 19, 2017
Wellfleet COA
Present: John Duane, Barbara Austin, Jacob Puffer, Tom Siggia, Zack Dixon,
Rebecca Taylor, Brett Morse
Regrets: Jim O’Connell
Others in Attendance: Nancy Civetta (shellfish constable), Chris Manulla
(asst. shellfish constable), Barbara Brennessel, Jeanne Weierheiser, Kathleen
Bacon, Ben Gagnon, Fred Richard, Jason Lance Weisman, Michele Insley,
Lee Clark, Justina Carlson, Margaret Jennings, Helen Miranda Wilson,
Kristine Barrio, Evan Bruinooge, Casey Semple, Michael DeVasto, Peter
Hamilton, Katie Murphy
Meeting called to order, 7:08 p.m.
1.MINUTES
Barbara Austin motioned to accept the minutes, Jake Puffer seconded.
The motion passed 6-0.
2. INTRODUCTION OF SHELLFISH CONSTABLE NANCY CIVETTA
AND DISCUSSION OF FUTURE PLANS.
Barbara asked Nancy when she will start. Nancy said that it is not firm, but
she is thinking August 10.
Nancy said that she is looking forward to making Wellfleet the best
shellfishing town in the state.
Brett asked if Nancy is interested in going after grant monies to encourage
propagation and other projects.
Audience member asked why Nancy decided to go out for the job. She
answered that she has been working with fishermen for the past 10 years and
that is what motivates her. She now is excited to do that in her own town.
Jake asked her if she has any ideas for this board. She answered that she has
been hearing in recent meetings about regulation changes and also
propagation.
Kristine asked about the town grant. Nancy stated that she has not started the
job yet, but she is interested in getting the town grant going again.
Fred said that the blood arks and the quahogs are not healthy. He requested
that SAB request county testing.
Evan Bruinooge mentioned that the pond behind the Inn at Duck Creek
(Haws Pond) is dead. The tide is not flowing. Nor is it flowing in Mayo
Creek.
Jake Puffer said that he is not sure about the pond behind the Inn, but Mayo
Creek is being looked at.
Kathleen Bacon suggested that SAB look into involving Cons Com and
Americore.
Barbara B. said that Dept. of Transportation recently replaced the valve and
this led to the reduced flow at Haws Pond. These are both being looked at,
but they are complicated issues.
Barbara Austin emphasized to Nancy C. the need for a master list of grant
holders and shellfish license holders . . . an e-mail list to contact everyone
easily.
John D. asked if it would be worthwhile to contact the person at DOT who
was in charge of the valve at Haws Pond.
3. SHELLFISHING CALENDAR
Helen has come up with a Shellfishing Calendar. It is not really for those
who fish, but more for BOS and other Boards that are not as familiar with
shellfishing. Helen stated that this is an informal document.
(ATTACHMENT 1)
Mike Devasto said that any type of “shellfishing calendar” should be left to
the Shellfish Dept. Helen said that she agrees and that it is an unofficial
document.
Helen mentioned that we overlooked 6.4.1 (d) when we were working on the
dates for hats in Chipman’s Cove.
4. LETTER FROM CONSERVATION COMMISSION REGARDING
HATS IN THE COVE
Barbara read aloud the letter from the Conservation Commission
(ATTACHMENT 2).
Barbara A. said that she is confused about who is in charge of permitting this
activity.
Mike Devasto stated that spat collection is fishing and not aquaculture and
therefore not subject to permitting by Cons Com. He asked why Cons Com
is even bringing it up since it is not under their purview.
She also mentioned that Cons Com has brought this up because they are in
favor of Spat Collection in the Cove, but they would like to know more
about it. She contacted DMF and they said that the activity is a somewhat
generous interpretation of the laws (permitted as long as it is considered
fishing and not aquaculture, because DEP does not regulate fishing gear).
Chris Scillaci said that the town should develop by-laws regarding this
activity. Barbara B. said that Cons Com is not even sure if permitting
through them is necessary.
Barbara B. said that Friends of Herring River will be having a meeting in the
Fall to talk about all of the new testing being done in the harbor.
Helen requested the projected hat removal date to bring to BOS. Zack read
from the April meeting where John M. stated October 20 as a hard deadline.
John Duane said that he is not a fan of over regulation and that he sees no
imminent danger presented by spat collection, but it should be somehow
regulated and permitted. Mike D. said that it is already permitted by the state
and the town regulates where they can be placed.
Barbara Austin made a motion to recommend to BOS that the date for
spat collection device removal from the Cove be October 20 of each
year, Brett Morse seconded. The motion passed, 6-0.
NEXT MEETING SCHEDULED FOR TUESDAY AUG 29 AT 7:00 PM
Meeting adjourned at 8:39p.m.
ATTACHMENT 1
SHELLFISHING CALENDAR
All sections referred to are from the Town’s
Shellfishing Policy and Regulations, not CMR.
• December 1- January 31: Local Commercial and Annual Noncommercial
Permits issued.
• December 1: Duck Creek opens “unless otherwise regulated”.
• December: Pitting oysters begins, depending on the weather. This is
optional.
Batch tagging for what is to be stored is permitted.
• December 31: State Permits (including propagation permits) application
deadline. It used to be that the DMF wouldn’t issue a permit until the annual
report was submitted to them. Because the Annual Report is now due on
February 28, not December 31, the DMF may allow a bit of leeway in
granting permits before that.
• January 15 “or before ice” overwintering contract signing and grant
preparation completed: Either racks are removed or adjusted for the winter
• [No harvesting from the wild when temperature is below 28°. Not a
deadline but a threshold that should be watched for in winter. ]
• February 28: Annual Reports due. Department starts to compare what’s in
them
with what’s noticeable from direct observation of the fishery.
• Mid-March or early April: Herring River Area open, sometime after an
ok water test done by the DMF and a vote by the Selectboard.
• April 1: All aquaculture leases must be marked with the yellow boundary
buoy floats until at least November 1.
• April/May/June lunar closures for the harvest of horseshoe crabs.
Harvest is prohibited for 2 days before and 2 days after the full moon in
these months. The exact dates are determined by the DMF from year to year.
• April 1: Scallop season closes “unless otherwise regulated”.
• April 30: Duck Creek closes “unless otherwise regulated”.
• May 21, 2017: Vibrio Season began (date is around then, can be changed
by the DMF from year to year).
• May 31: • Scallop season closes.
• June 1 :“Fishing” with spat collecting devices set out in an area designated
by the Shellfish Department in Chipman’s Cove begins “unless otherwise
regulated”.
• June 1: South Lt’s. Island closed to the taking of (all species of) shellfish.
• June 1: Seasonal Non-commercial Permits issued.
• Late spring-early summer: planting millions of baby clams begins and
continues through the summer into fall, using various techniques. “Double
tides”, morning and evening at times, and long hours of daylight.
• Summer: Shellfish begin to grow and spawn as the water warms.
(Oysters and hard shell clams begin to spawn around when the water gets
into the 70°s.
•July: State issues official data report based on what has been submitted for
the previous year.
• September 30: Seasonal Non-commercial permits expire.
• October 1: Scallop season opens “unless otherwise regulated”.
South Lt’s. Island opens.
•October 16, 2017 Vibrio Season closes
• October 15: “Fishing” with spat collecting devises by Commercial Permit
holders in Chipman’s Cove is over.
Recently amended, a temporary open-close for this activity in Section 7.15.3
states that spat collection devices may be set out in the Cove June 1-October
15. This conflicts with Section 6.4.1 (d.). which gives different dates for this:
June 1st-October 31. Not amending 6.4.1 when we did 7.15.3 was an
oversight. We hope that the Conservation Commission will be issuing a
decision about this before October 2017, at which point these two sections
can be coordinated. It’s in the works.
•Last Sunday in October: Chipman’s Cove reopens.
• October, weekend after Columbus Day: Oyster Fest.
• November: planting seed coming to an end. Although it’s not usually done
so late in the growing season, some people “field plant”, if they can get the
seed.
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
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Non-commercial Shellfishing
These annual open/close dates are a bit confusing and because of that I
havn’t put them in the calendar narrative list for the commercial fishery
above. Here’s the entire Section as printed in our regulations. The bold-face
type is mine.
5.1. Seasonal Restrictions: Open and Closed Areas
The opening and closing of non-commercial shellfishing areas, as well as
catch limits, may be subject to change by vote of the Board of Selectmen.
(See Section 5.3.2 Noncommercial Catch Limits) Notification of such
changes will be available on the Shellfish Department section of the Town
web site and on the Shellfish Department answering machine.
•Chipman’s Cove: closes for the taking of all shellfish on April 30 and
reopens on the last Sunday in October, unless otherwise regulated.
•Area 2 (Indian Neck): open for the harvesting of shellfish, with the
following limits and on the following days, unless otherwise regulated:
~June 1 through September 30; will be open Sundays and Wednesdays,
annually. ~October 1 through May 31; will be open seven (7) days a
week, annually.
•Area 3 The rest of the Harbor (with the exception of commercial-only
areas): Open for the harvesting of shellfish on the following days, unless
otherwise regulated:
~June 1-September 30; will be closed to all non-commercial shellfishing,
annually.
~October 1-May 31; will be open seven (7) days a week, annually. (See
Section 4.1.)
ATTACHMENT 2
June 28, 2017
Wellfleet Board of Selectmen 300 Main Street
Wellfleet, MA 02667
Dear Members of the Board:
Wellfleet Conservation Commission 220 West Main Street Wellfleet, MA
02667
!
At the Commission’s meeting on June 21, 2017 a discussion took place on
Chipman’s Cove and the activity of catching remote oyster sets. This activity
was not considered in the Notice of Intent and is not a part of the aquaculture
permit obtained by the Town. It is our understanding that this activity has
been ongoing for several years. It is also our opinion that this activity should
be permitted by the Commission as it has the ability to impact land under the
ocean and a wild fishery. We are also in agreement that the activity should
continue this year as it has in the past however we would like to have a
better understanding of the activity, a management plan, and a pathway laid
out for permitting by January 1, 2018. We feel this schedule is important so
that permits can be in place for the spat collecting season which commences
in June of 2018.
It is important to recognize that the Conservation Commission’s jurisdiction
is relative to the effects to the land under the ocean and to the fishery. This
being said, several questions came up during our meeting and it became
evident that a larger discussion was needed with input from your Board, the
Shellfish Department, and the Shellfish Advisory Board. Some of the
questions are bulleted below:
▪ Who gets to place their equipment in the Cove?
▪ How large an area can one individual cover?
▪ Is there a limit to the number of people and equipment using this area?
▪ Is there a type of equipment that may be more beneficial to the
environment? ▪ Does the Town benefit from this activity?
▪ Could the Town sell permits for use of Town property?
▪ Does this activity interfere with boat navigation?
▪ Are there any liability issues for the Town?
▪ Is the seed that is collected removed from the Harbor?
▪ Is the seed sold?
▪ Is any seed that is collected returned to the wild?
▪ Has there been any pathology testing done in the Cove?
▪ Does the removal of spat from the Cove by these devices have a negative
impact on the wild fishery?
▪ Why can’t growers put these collection devices on their own grants which
have already been shown to be non-productive and devoid of eel grass?
Please let us know if this topic is of interest and when you might be able to
meet to discuss it. We currently hold business meetings on the first and third
Wednesday of each month at 4:00pm. It is critical to hear from you before
we begin our discussion of the proper permitting requirements. We look
forward to your anticipated participation.
Yours,
Hillary Greenberg
cc: Shellfish Department Shellfish Advisory Board Conservation
Commission