The planners expect that Mother Nature will repopulate the floodplain with salt-tolerant vegetation. Unforeseen circumstances, however, could cause this anticipated restorative process to fail, as occurred with the Sesuit Creek Habitat Restoration in Dennis.
The vegetation management plan calls for physically removing the dead freshwater vegetation by "cutting, chipping, burning, and targeted herbicide application." Burning brush and branches is mentioned, along with "natural decomposition." Tools will include "chain saws, mowers, brush hogs, or larger, wheeled or treaded machines that cut and chip." Recreation on the Herring River will be disrupted.
Vegetation management details are disclosed in the 2022 Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act (WPA) Notice of Intent (NOI) filed with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Focus will be on the removal of 179 acres of shrublands and 126 acres of woodlands. Methods will include mowing with a machine-mounted "Bush Hog" and a full-tree mulcher like the one shown here.
Click on the image to see how the 126 acres of woodlands adjacent to the Herring River are being cleared to make way for saltmarsh grass. While watching the video, think about the birds nesting in the trees and on the ground and the rodents and reptiles who were inhabiting the woodlands floor.
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