[Massplanners] Tree Protection & Nat. Resource Protection Bylaws

[Town Administration]

So, I was thinking about the angst that a lot of us have been feeling about the inability to regulate (or deny) utility-scale solar in rural or wooded areas.

The whole 40A sec. 3 exemption not withstanding, how about an alternative approach to, instead, draft a conservation bylaw?  perhaps one that prohibits large-scale cutting of old-growth forest of more than (say) two acres without an approved plan for regrowth and replacement on the same land?

Respectfully,

- Doug.
-----------------------------
Douglas Finn, Administrative Assistant
Town of Westhampton
1 South Road
Westhampton, MA 01027
413-203-3086
________________________________
From: MassPlanners <massplanners-bounces at masscptc.org> on behalf of Richard McCarthy via MassPlanners <massplanners at masscptc.org>
Sent: Friday, July 1, 2022 11:39 AM
To: Laura Harbottle <lharbottle at doverma.gov>
Cc: massplanners at masscptc.org <massplanners at masscptc.org>
Subject: Re: [Massplanners] Tree Protection & Nat. Resource Protection Bylaws

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Laura,

How would you dealing with ground mounted solar?  I still struggle with clear cutting acres of woodland for ground mounted solar.  We have two woodland sites that were clear cut just doesn’t feel like a total gain environmental.  I would prefer strongly incentives for roofed mounted, solar canopies, 21E sites and placement and placement on existing impervious surfaces.

Just curious.

Richard McCarthy
Town Planner

Sent from my iPad

> On Jun 28, 2022, at 9:52 AM, Laura Harbottle via MassPlanners <massplanners at masscptc.org> wrote:
>
> 
> Good morning planners, natural resource nonprofits and consultants,
> The Town of Dover has received some modest funding to develop Tree Protection and Natural Resource Protection bylaws. The intent is to protect healthy, mature trees and wetland buffers, floodplains, native vegetation and similar resources on both public and private property. The Tree Protection could be zoning or a general bylaw, the Natural Resource Protection will most likely be a zoning bylaw.
>
> It would be helpful to receive information about for-profit and nonprofit firms who recently developed similar bylaws, including RFP's, costs, successes and lessons learned. It would be great to hear from Towns with bylaws where a process for monitoring and enforcement was identified.
>
> Thanks so much!
>
> Laura Harbottle AICP, CFM
> Interim Town Planner
> 5 Springdale Ave.
> Dover, MA  02030
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