Sweet Water Trust: Recent Grants

Established in 1992, Sweet Water Trust is a foundation whose mission is to support land conservation by awarding grants, owning land, and holding conservation restrictions. In recent years, the Trust has “focused on large, landscape-scale conservation projects, often supported with major, multi-year grants. While we still expect to make a few smaller grants each year, all projects must meet the criteria set out in our grant guidelines. One particularly important requirement is that the land's wilderness qualities be protected by a conservation easement or equivalent permanent legal instrument.”

With assets of more than $25 million, Sweet Water Trust has awarded more than 600 grants, including distributions to:

•  Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissions, $5,000 in 2001, for support of training program for commissioners

•  Orenda Wildlife Land Trust, $5,000 in 2001, toward acquisition of 50-acre Mercy Lowe Property in Mashpee

•  The Nature Conservancy (Massachusetts Chapter), $2,000 in 2002, for support of Massachusetts poll to assess citizen attitudes toward conservation and their willingness to pay for increased land protection.

•  Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies, $10,000 in 2003, for support of a study to develop protocols for ecological restoration of salt marshes on the Lower Cape

•  Massachusetts Audubon Society, $5,000 in 2003, for support of an intern to assist in comprehensive invasive plant survey of Mass Audubon sanctuaries

•  Orenda Wildlife Land Trust, $3,100 in 2003, for support of stewardship and management of the trust's properties

•  Barnstable Land Trust, $15,000 in 2004, toward purchase of 42-acre Furman Property

•  Massachusetts Audubon Society, $5,000 in 2004, for support of a conservation easement training manual

Town of Mashpee Interpretive Nature Tours

The Mashpee Conservation Commission is continuing its schedule of free naturalist-guided tours of the town’s conservation areas this summer. Tours usually last for about one to one-and-a-half hours and all ages are welcome.

The complete schedule for July and August 2008 is available on the Conservation Commission’s webpage, but here are some selected events:

•  Monday, July 7th, Besse Bog Conservation Area Hike
•  Wednesday, July 16th, Trees of the Woodlands
•  Monday, July 28th, Wild Edible and Poisonous Plants
•  Thursday, August 7th, Animal Tracking
•  Saturday, August 23rd, Sunrise at South Cape Beach

Mashpee Delays Decision on Quashnet Bogs

“Mashpee Puts off Decision on Fate of Quashnet”
Cape Cod Times, June 13, 2008
By Stephanie Vosk

MASHPEE -- The future of the Quashnet cranberry bogs will have to wait.

The town's conservation commission planned yesterday to again hold off on deciding what will become of six bogs that have not been used since the late 1990s.

The bogs have been out of commission since they were found to be contaminated with ethylene dibromide, or EDB, from the Otis Air National Guard Base. ... ©

Read the full article in the Cape Cod Times.

Mashpee Conservation Commission Delays Vote on Quashnet Bogs

“Mashpee Board Delays Vote on Quashnet Bogs”
Cape Cod Times, May 30, 2008
By Stephanie Vosk

MASHPEE -- The conservation commission last night delayed its vote on the future of the Quashnet bogs so the panel could review newly received information. ...

The panel was set to choose between farming and restoration last night, but will now take up the issue again June 12. ©

Read the full article in the Cape Cod Times.

Related article:

•  "Quashnet Future May Be Settled,"
     Cape Cod Times, May 29, 2008

Mashpee Accepts State Conservation Restriction on Purchase of 80 Acres

“To Close Land Deal, Mashpee Accepts State Restrictions”
Cape Cod Times, June 3, 2008
By Stephanie Vosk

MASHPEE -- The 80 acres off Route 130 that Mashpee voters agreed to buy this spring may be open to the public in about a month.

Town officials are working with the St. Vincent's Home Corp. to close on the $3.1 million sale. ...

... voters went ahead and approved a $2.1 million debt exclusion ...

To cover the additional cost, the town will use $500,000 in Community Preservation Act funding and another $500,000 from the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, which comes with a conservation restriction. ... ©

Read the full article in the Cape Cod Times.

Related articles:

•  "Mashpee Passes $2.1M Debt Exclusion,”
     Cape Cod Times, May 11, 2008

•  “Mashpee Residents Spurn Official Advice,”
     Cape Cod Times, May 6, 2008

•  “Did we say $2.1M? We meant $2.6M,”
     Cape Cod Times, April 25, 2008

National Fish and Wildlife Foundation: The Nature of Learning Grants

Last week, Philanthropy News Digest reported that the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation is seeking applications from organizations interested in initiating The Nature of Learning program in their communities:

“ The Nature of Learning is a community-based environmental education initiative of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service National Wildlife Refuge System that seeks to use National Wildlife Refuges as outdoor classrooms to promote a greater understanding of local conservation issues; encourage an interdisciplinary approach to learning that seeks to enhance student academic achievement; utilize field experiences and student-led stewardship projects to connect classroom lessons to real-world issues; and involve a partnership among local schools, community groups, natural resource professionals, and local businesses.

Programs must involve a partnership among a local school(s), community group (e.g., Refuge Support Group), and National Wildlife Refuge. Programs must promote an understanding of local conservation issues, improve scientific literacy, and conform to appropriate academic standards of learning. Preference will be given to start-up programs that can demonstrate a commitment to sustaining the program over time.

First year start-up grants are available for up to $10,000 each. Second year follow-up grants of up to $5,000 each are available to support continued implementation of The Nature of Learning program.”

The deadline for submitting an application is June 16, 2008. Visit the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation web site for more information and the complete Request for Proposals.

Note that Cape Cod and the Islands have four National Wildlife Refuges:

•  Mashpee National Wildlife Refuge
•  Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge
•  Nantucket National Wildlife Refuge
•  Nomans Land Island National Wildlife Refuge

For some background information and perspective on the state of funding for our National Wildlife Refuges, please read the following pieces:

•  “America’s 548 National Wildlife Refuges Under-Funded By 43 Percent,” a press release issued May 22, 2008, by the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement

•  Restoring America's Wildlife Refuges 2008: A Plan to Solve the Refuge System Funding Crisis, a report by the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (May 2008)

•  Restoring Our Refuges: a Plan for Massachusetts, a fact sheet prepared by the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (2008)

Future of the Quashnet Bogs in Mashpee

“Quashnet Future May Be Settled”
Cape Cod Times, May 29, 2008
By Stephanie Vosk

MASHPEE -- The conservation commission has been bogged down by the issue for over a year.

But it's decision time ... Tonight, the seven-member commission is expected to vote on the future of the Quashnet cranberry bogs.

Two main options are being considered -- find a grower to repair and cultivate the bogs or forgo the berry business and restore the Quashnet River ...

From the late 1990s until 2006, the Air Force paid the town for berries from the six bogs contaminated by ethylene dibromide, or EDB, from the Otis Air National Guard Base. ...

Since then, four of the six Quashnet Bogs have tested completely free of EDB, and the last two have only minimal traces ... ©

Read the full article in the Cape Cod Times.

Senator Kerry Announces Grant for Waquoit Bay

"Kerry Announces $550K Grant for Waquoit Bay Study"
Falmouth Bulletin, May 20, 2008

FALMOUTH -- U.S. Senator John Kerry, D-Massachusetts, has announced that the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve will receive $550,000 from the Department of Commerce.

The funding will be used for operations and management research, monitoring, education and resource protection programs for the reserve. ...

Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve was designated in 1988 and encompasses approximately 2,700 acres of open water, salt marsh, salt ponds and adjacent uplands in the towns of Falmouth and Mashpee. ©

Read the full article in the Falmouth Bulletin.

Fields Pond Foundation: Recent Grants

Established in 1993 and based in Waltham, Mass., the Fields Pond Foundation provides “financial assistance to nature and land conservation organizations that are community-based and that serve to increase environmental awareness by involving local residents in conservation issues.”

Over the past several years, the Foundation has awarded grants totaling more than $100,000 to a number of private conservation organizations to assist in land acquisitions on the Cape, including:

•  Barnstable Land Trust, $8,000 in 2006, toward acquisition of 23-acre forest parcel at Cordwood Road, linking Almy Atlantic White Cedar Swamp and Eagle Pond in Cotuit

•  Barnstable Land Trust, $4,000 in 2004, toward Hot Bottom Road Pathway project

•  Barnstable Land Trust, $7,000 in 2004, toward acquisition of Bone Hill Farm, a gateway parcel to Mass Audubon’s Long Pasture Wildlife Sanctuary

•  Brewster Conservation Trust, $5,000 in 2006, toward protection of pitch pine and mixed oak waterfront parcel on Pine Pond

•  Friends of Pleasant Bay, $10,000 in 2006, toward protection of Eelman’s Point, providing public access to Pleasant Bay in Orleans

•  Harwich Conservation Trust, $3,000 in 2006, toward construction of new trail for William & Barbara Land Hacker Wildlife Sanctuary

•  Harwich Conservation Trust, $10,000 in 2003, toward acquisition of 42-acre parcel on shoreline of Monomoy River at Pleasant Bay

•  Massachusetts Audubon Society, $12,000 in 2003, toward acquisition of six acres to Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary in Wellfleet

•  The Nature Conservancy, $12,000 in 2005, toward acquisition of five parcels at Sandy Neck

•  The Nature Conservancy, $7,000 in 2002, toward acquisition of Furman Tract on Sandy Neck in Barnstable

•  The Nature Conservancy, $12,000 in 2001, toward acquisition of 18 acres at Sandy Neck in East Sandwich

•  Orenda Wildlife Trust, $6,000 in 2001, toward Dawson acquisition on Cape Cod

•  Orenda Wildlife Trust, $3,000 in 2001, toward Mercy Lowe acquisition in Mashpee

•  Orleans Conservation Trust, $8,000 in 2004, toward acquisition of Brooks Property, a seven-acre parcel connecting two freshwater ponds

•  The 300 Committee, $8,000 in 2007, toward acquisition and protection of River Bend Farm on Coonamesett River in Falmouth

•  The 300 Committee, $6,000 in 2005, toward acquisition of 8-acre parcel on Quashnet River in Falmouth

•  The 300 Committee, $7,000 in 2003, toward acquisition of Toner Parcel in Falmouth

•  Truro Conservation Trust, $10,000 in 2005, toward acquisition and protection of Poor Hill, overlooking Pamet Harbor

•  Wellfleet Conservation Trust, $7,000 in 2005, toward acquisition of Whale Bone Point, a gateway to waterfront conservation lands

All information taken directly from the Foundation’s Form 990-PF’s.

Mashpee Passes $2.1 Million Debt Exclusion for Property off Route 130

"Mashpee Passes $2.1M Debt Exclusion"
Cape Cod Times, May 11, 2008
By Stephanie Vosk

MASHPEE -- Mashpee voters yesterday gave final approval to a $2.1 million debt exclusion to buy an 80-acre property. ...

The property, which abuts Route 130 and Mashpee-Wakeby Pond, is owned by the St. Vincent's Home Corporation. The town will pay $3.1 million to purchase the land, with $500,000 drawn from Community Preservation Act funding and $500,000 from the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife covering the remainder of the price.

The state money comes with a conservation restriction, which will prevent the town from developing the vacant land.

Town officials were hoping to forgo that grant, and instead ask voters to approve a $2.6 million debt exclusion, but a clerical error led to a misprint on the town meeting warrant. ... ©

Read the full article in the Cape Cod Times.

Related articles:

•  “Mashpee Residents Spurn Official Advice,”
     Cape Cod Times, May 6, 2008

•  “Did we say $2.1M? We meant $2.6M,”
     Cape Cod Times, April 25, 2008

Eastham, Harwich and Mashpee Voters to Consider Conservation Articles on May 5th

Several conservation measures are slated for discussion at annual town meetings on Monday, May 5, 2008.

In Eastham, voters will consider warrant Article 18, which asks for approval of a beach conservation restriction required by the Cape Cod Commission to mitigate the environmental impacts of a proposed ocean beach project that includes construction of a 4-acre, 250-space parking lot. If voters do not approve the conservation restriction, the project cannot continue. The Eastham Board of Selectmen and the Finance Committee recommend approval of Article 18.

The Association to Preserve Cape Cod opposes the beach project and recommends that Eastham residents vote against Article 18. Eastham Citizens for Responsible Coastal Development, whose website has a neat collection of documents and newspaper articles about the issue, also opposes Article 18. For a short summary of the entire matter, read "Eastham Divided Over Beach," Cape Cod Times, May 1, 2008.

In Harwich, town meeting will ponder warrant Article 40, “To see if the Town will ... acquire by gift, by purchase, by eminent domain, or otherwise, for open space purposes ... all or a portion of the land owned now or formerly by James Marceline, known and numbered as 0 Queen Anne Road and … containing five (5) acres of land ... and to transfer from Community Preservation Act funds, the sum of money for such acquisition ...” Unfortunately, the estimated cost has not been determined and the Harwich Finance Committee recommends this article be indefinitely postponed.

In Mashpee, residents will discuss warrant Article 10 and Article 11. Article 10 “would authorize the Board of Selectmen to acquire 78.67 acres located on Route 130. Funding for this acquisition will require the use of CPC [Community Preservation Committee] funds, Self Help Funds, Land & Water Conservation Funds, and a $2,146,800 debt exclusion.” For more details, read “Did We Say $2.1M? We Meant $2.6M,” Cape Cod Times, April 25, 2008. The Mashpee Board of Selectmen does not recommend approval of this article.

Article 11 “would authorize the Board of Selectmen to purchase, on behalf of the Conservation Commission, a 1.09 acre parcel on Meetinghouse Road, which is adjacent to existing conservation land owned by the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife on the Mashpee River. The purchase would be paid for with funds from the Conservation Commission’s Acquisition of Lands and Maintenance Account." The Mashpee Board of Selectmen and the Finance Committee recommend approval of this article.

Mashpee: $2.1 Million? We Meant $2.6 Million

"Did We Say $2.1M? We Meant $2.6M"
Cape Cod Times, April 25, 2008
By Stephanie Vosk

MASHPEE -- A paved trail meanders through the heavily wooded area, leading the way to Mashpee-Wakeby Pond.

"This is what I saw when I was a kid. This is what it looked like all over Mashpee," said Selectman George "Chuckie" Green, who led finance and community preservation committee members on a tour of the 80-acre property off Route 130 earlier this month.

Green and fellow Selectman Wayne Taylor want the town to buy the vacant land through a debt exclusion at town meeting in May. But a clerical error that led to a misprint on the warrant may hold up or even derail the process ...

The warrant article asks voters to approve a $2.1 million debt exclusion, but the town needs $2.6 million ... ©

Read the full article in the Cape Cod Times.

Read Article 10 of the Mashpee Annual Town Meeting Warrant.