IWWC
Inland Wetland and Watercourse Commission
40 Old Farms Road Willington, CT 06279
February 24, 2020 – 7:30 PM
Meeting Minutes
Members Present:
Patrick Lord
Tess Gutowski
Dave Schreiber
Members Not Present:
Mark Drobney
Also Present:
Michael D’Amato- Zoning Agent
Ashley Stephens- Assistant Land Use Agent
Roll call
D. Schreiber called the meeting to order at 7:32 PM.
Public Hearing:
IW-19-10 Adopt Amendments to Town of Willington Inland Wetlands and Watercourse Forest Practices Regulations (table and continue to 3/23/20)
This application is going to be tabled and continued to the 3/23/20 meeting because the state has not returned comments on the regulations. M. D’Amato said he talked with N. Zito from the state who said overall they were happy with the regulations and had a few comments that can be discussed at the next meeting once he receives the draft back.
New Business:
T. Gutowski made a motion to move new business to old business as it was in the wrong section of agenda.
D. Schreiber seconded the motion.
All in favor. Motion approved.
Application to be received
IW-19-13 Home site with construction within wetland upland review area for 190 Ruby Rd. Applicant: Justin Daigle
Application was received and will be discussed at the next meeting.
Old Business:
IW-20-01 Selective Timber Harvest at 103 Tinkerville Rd (Map 40 Lot 32) Applicant: Joseph R. Theroux
IW-20-05 Selective Timber Harvest with Wetland Review within wetlands and upland review area at 103 Tinkerville Rd (Map 40 Lot 32)
Applicant: Joseph R. Theroux
M.D’Amato stated that he and A. Stephens walked the site of 103 Tinkerville Rd. He stated how they saw the markings on the trees, limits were marked, and they went on both sides of the river. Where the majority of the work is going to be down on the right side of the river, where there is a low spot, and it comes back up before you get to the river so debris should never make it into the river. It was stated the area is fairly rocky and stable so there should be no issues with the timber harvest.
T. Gutowski asked what the crossings were like. M. D’Amato stated there were minimal crossings with a minimal distance to cross. The crossings would be kept up off ground as much as possible so things can still move below and he could get back onto the land quickly. There was discussion on how the property is set up, where the wetlands are and where the majority of the activity is going to occur. J. Theroux stated the property was harvested once about 40 years ago.
P. Lord asked what the 1 and 2 stood for on the map that was provided with the application. J. Theroux said they are for stand designations that are stated in the regulations. Stand 1 is for mixed hardwoods and stand 2 is a mix of pine and hardwood.
There was discussion on how M. D’Amato created a second application for 103 Tinkerville Rd, IW-20-1 & IW-20-5 to have one as a timber harvest and wetlands application respectively. When submitted, there was not a separate application for timber harvest because the computer system was down. There now are two separate applications. The information submitted for 103 Tinkerville supports both applications.
IW-20-5 wetlands application for 103 Tinkerville Rd was looked at first. There was discussion on what will be impacting the wetlands, which is only the crossings that are listed on this application in yellow.
T. Gutowski asked if it would it affect the Fenton River. M. D’Amato stated that he didn’t see how it would affect the river or uplands because the bank is higher. J. Theroux stated that there are very few trees that will be harvested near the river and there are no skid marks near the river.
T. Gutowski asked if there is any need for silt fencing or hay bales. M. D’Amato stated that he didn’t see any place where silt fencing would be useful, and the applicant would put something in at the road to catch mud. J. Theroux stated that he proposes hay bales if necessary if sediment gets into crossing site but there shouldn’t be that problem, but it is proposed in the application if necessary.
T. Gutowski asked the applicant when they would start this activity. J. Theroux stated if there were perfect conditions, he could start tomorrow finish in a month, but that isn’t reality with how wet it is and there isn’t any frozen ground. The site will get started but with rain and the temperatures, it could be this summer before it is finished depending upon weather conditions.
T. Gutowski asked how far the river is from tree cutting is. M. D’Amato stated it was a fair distance and it is stable ground. J. Theroux stated that it is between 100 and 200 feet. The western side of the property is sand and gravel deposits, with glacial outwashes on left and the right side is more forestry.
P. Lord asked where the main equipment will be gassed. J. Theroux stated it will be away from the wetlands and in the main landing area but chainsaws will be refueled in the woods.
P. Lord asked if there are setbacks from the Fenton River. T. Gutowski stated the setback is 150 feet from the Fenton River.
P. Lord stated his concern that the applicant will need to use of B&P’s to limit sediment loading into the Fenton. It was stated that the upland review area doesn’t make it to the river and the crossings don’t go into the Fenton, so the applicant shouldn’t have anything to worry about.
P. Lord asked the applicant if they would recommend corduroy and timber matting. J. Theroux stated that it depends upon stream channels, but he recommends the log corduroy.
There was discussion on the different SC’s on the map and where they lead to with J. Theroux and the commission.
P. Lord made a motion to approve:
IW-20-05 Selective Timber Harvest within Wetland Review Area at 103 Tinkerville Rd (Map 40 Lot 32) Applicant: Joseph R. Theroux based on the narrative provided with application with the B & P’s, operational plan submitted and as discussed.
T. Gutowski seconded motion.
All in favor. Motion approved.
D. Schreiber made a motion to accept.
P. Lord made a motion to approve:
IW-20-01 Forestry Application Selective Timber Harvest at 103 Tinkerville Rd (Map 40 Lot 32) Applicant: Joseph R. Theroux per operational plan submitted to commission.
T. Gutowski seconded the motion.
All in favor. Motion approved.
Approval of minutes:
P. Lord made a motion to approve the minutes from 1-27-2020 meeting.
T. Gutowski seconded the motion.
All in favor. Motion approved.
Correspondence
No correspondence.
Staff report and Discussion
The Commission discussed the new applications between the wetlands and timber harvest applications online and how they will work. There should be the same materials for both applications, but now when someone applies for a timber harvest, they will be asked specifically if there are wetlands that will be affected when performing the timber harvest. If the answer is yes, a wetlands application with specific questions for how many wetlands will be affected will automatically be added on top of the timber harvest.
M. D’Amato will look to see if there is a way to differentiate the applications for timber harvest and wetlands applications because they will both be titled IW because they are both for the IWWC as of right now.
M. D’Amato stated he talked to the lawyer about fees within the regulations and it was stated that the commission could waive fees for certain reasons, under the umbrella, that the commission would be waiving the wetlands fee. Attorney said we could, because we’re saying the fees will be waived based on that.
T. Gutowski thought the fees for wetlands application in conjunction with a timber harvest application should be requested to be waived by the applicant because there may be more extensive wetlands that the fee would cover and that she does not believe the forestry regulations should reference wetlands fees
There was discussion on whether the applicant should have to petition waiving the fee for wetlands if they’re applying for a timber harvest with a wetlands application.
M. D’Amato stated he thought the attorney would be more comfortable with an across the board waiver rather than an ad hock waiver. But the difference is the application has to be paid before they come to the commission. The applicant has to pay to be able to come to the meeting. M. D’Amato stated it should either be that the fees are waived for everyone submitting a wetlands application with a timber harvest application, or for no one. It gets risky if you allow some to be waived based on the Commissions rulings and not others especially since the same Commission is looking at the application for wetlands and timber harvest applications.
M. D’Amato will talk to the lawyer and N. Zito to see what other towns do and what may be best. He will also get their opinion on the jurisdictional fee. Timber harvest is an as of right entity in the state of CT.
Adjournment
Meeting adjourned at 8:54pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Ashley Stephens