IPSWICH – If the old adage – ‘it takes a village’ – is true, the Great Salt Marsh may have enough villagers to repel the threats to its ecosystem.
A group of stakeholders was brought together last month by state Rep. Kristin Kassner, D-Hamilton, with Gov. Maura Healey, Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, and several state legislators to discuss threats facing the Great Marsh.
At 16,000 acres, the Great Marsh is the largest saltmarsh in New England, providing diverse wildlife habitat, water filtration, storm buffering and carbon sequestration.
It is predicted that rising sea levels will drown the Great Marsh between 2070 and 2100 if nothing is done now to raise its elevation. Centuries of farming the marsh for salt hay have resulted in man-made irrigation canals that are causing the marsh to sink in many places.
Permitting is a major obstacle to marsh restoration. Pre-existing Wetlands Restriction Orders, which are effectively obsolete, prevent restoration.
Kassner has introduced legislation to allow restoration projects to continue if properly permitted by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. The bill has been approved by the Committee on the Environment and Natural Resources as well as the Steering Committee and is now in the third reading of the House.
“The funding is in place, the plan is approved, we’re ready to go,” Kassner said. “This restoration project is crucial to the climate resiliency of the region. Together we can get this done.”
The Trustees of the Reservations hosted the leaders of Massachusetts at the Crane Estate. Audubon Society, Trustees, Essex County Greenbelt Association, Mass Wildlife, and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (F&WS) representatives discussed their experiences and plans with state leaders, including Commissioner Tom O’Shea of the Department of Fish & Game, Commissioner Bonnie Heiple of the Department of Environmental Protection, and Sarah Peake, a Senior Advisor for Intergovernmental Affairs.
Also attending the meeting were Sen. Bruce Tarr, R-Gloucester, who chairs the Marsh Revitalization Task Force; Rep. Tom Walsh, D-Peabody; Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante, D-Gloucester; Rep. Kathleen LaNatra, D-Kingston, Rep. Tram Nguyen, D-Andover, and Rep. Dawne Shand, D-Newburyport.
Four landowners own approximately half of the marsh area: the Trustees, MassWildlife, Greenbelt and USFWS. These organizations, along with Mass Audubon, are committed to marsh restoration.
A wetland restoration plan was developed by the Trustees to heal marsh hydrology. Phase I of the project was completed on 85 acres and phase II is currently underway on 273 acres. After monitoring results show the technique is working, the company is securing permits for a 1,005-acre project that will scale this work significantly.
Mass Audubon and Greenbelt are also collaborating with the state on restoring 229 acres at the Rough Meadows site in Rowley. F&WS recently received permits to restore it.
“The hope was to bring together all of the partners to experience the Great Marsh and discuss the importance of collaboration to continue to work to successfully restore this unique and special ecosystem,” Kassner said.
There was a discussion led by the Essex County Greenbelt Association’s President Katie Theoharides, Coastal Ecologist Russ Hopping and vice president of conservation and resilience Cynthia Dittbrenner.
Also joining the discussion were Northeast Wetland Restoration’s Geoff Wilson; Mass Wildlife Deputy Director Eve Schluter, USFWS Biologist Nancy Pau, IRWA Executive Director Erin Bonney Casey and Zachary Calderon; MVPC Executive Director Jerrard Whitten; MAPC Government Affairs Specialist Georgia Barlow; Kelly Bovio, District Director for U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton; Essex Town Administrator Brendhan Zubricki, Essex Select Board Member Peter Phippen, and Ipswich SelectBoard members Micheal Dougherty and Carl Surpitski.
“Our salt marshes are so critical to our state’s nation-leading biodiversity, and we depend on them to meet our climate goals, ensure clean water and healthy habitats, strengthen coastal resilience and grow our blue economy,” Healey said. “The Great Marsh is the largest remaining salt marsh in New England. We’re so lucky to have this brilliant resource here in Ipswich, and we have an obligation to protect it. I’m grateful to Representative Kassner for bringing us all together to talk about solutions.”
“The recovery of the Great Marsh is essential if we’re going to address the negative impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss, and we need to act now to lower every barrier to its recovery, including antiquated permitting requirements that slow our ability to restore the Marsh,” O’Neill said.
Theoharides said the work the Trustees of the Reservation has done to restore the marsh’s hydrological function is critical to the fight against climate change, as oceans rise and storms intensify.
