NANTUCKET – The Town of Nantucket, working with the Nantucket Pond Coalition, has received new pond management permits from the Army Corps of Engineers.
The permits will allow the town to modify management options of two Great Ponds on the island.
The Natural Resources Department held two public forums on pond management in 2018 and 2019 to receive public input on management of the areas.
After the forums, the department presented Pond Management Principles to the Select Board in August 2019, which were approved. The town then applied for new permits for both Miacomet and Sesachacha Ponds.
The purpose of drawdown in Sesachacha and Hummock Ponds is to allow exchange of seawater and increased salinity to support estuarine processes like fish spawning and oyster culture.
The current interpretation of the permits allows flood control as part of the management of those ponds as needed.
The permits also allow drawdown dates to coincide with the running of river herring, along with the option to undertake additional dredging at Sesachacha if it is necessary to lower the water level.
Actions will be adjusted to avoid any impact to endangered species, including piping plovers.
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