The Tisbury select board voted unanimously Wednesday to impose an immediate moratorium on anchoring in Lake Tashmoo until the town has developed a policy to reduce the number of visiting boats.
The Tisbury select board voted unanimously Wednesday to impose an immediate moratorium on anchoring in Lake Tashmoo until the town has developed a policy to reduce the number of visiting boats.
The temporary ban was proposed last month by town officials concerned about the health of the estuary.
“I see it as a quality of life issue and an environmental issue,” board member John Cahill said at Wednesday’s meeting.
Opponents of the open-ended ban included Matt Hobart, who chairs the waterways committee that endorsed the moratorium but spoke on his own account Wednesday.
“[It’s] six to eight weekends a year … a very small window of time,” Mr. Hobart said of the busy summer season when off-Island vessels crowd the estuary.
To protect eelgrass, the bottom-growing plant that nourishes marine life, anchoring in Lake Tashmoo has been limited since late 2016 to two designated areas where an earlier survey had found little to no eelgrass.
But a more recent survey by the Massachusetts Department of Marine Fisheries used advanced technology to draw a different conclusion, harbormaster John Crocker said Wednesday.
“They found eelgrass, not everywhere, but practically everywhere,” said Mr. Crocker, who noted that it’s not unusual to see 90 visiting vessels in one anchoring area.
“Do we still not want to anchor in eelgrass? I think the answer to that question is yes,” he said.
To allow some continued access for visiting boaters, Mr. Crocker proposed the town provide six mooring posts that could each accommodate up to three vessels rafted together.
“[The pilings] don’t have to be all clustered in one place. I think it makes sense to spread them out,” Mr. Crocker said.
“We are still restricting the amount of boats .. but we are still allowing some,” he added.
The board also had concerns about high nitrogen levels harming eelgrass. Lake Tashmoo does not have a pump-out station or vessel for human waste from boats.
“If your boat doesn’t have a sealed head [toilet], then there’s only one place that you’re going to urinate and that’s into Tashmoo,” select board chair Roy Cutrer said. “Urine is nitrogen … To have that large body of boats in the summer, I think is a mistake on our part.”
A third source of discontent was the impact of summer boating revelry on homeowners along Lake Tashmoo’s shores, many of whom have complained of being disturbed by noise and crowded out of their own sailing and swimming activities.
MacAleer Schilcher, a longtime sailor on the estuary and newly-declared candidate for select board, said an outright ban was going too far.
“If you want some relief to the homeowners, ban anchoring on weekends,” said Mr. Schilcher, who also submitted 20 pages of testimony.
Mr. Schilcher and fellow boater Lynne Fraker both pushed the select board to appoint a committee to recommend new rules for visiting vessels, but town administrator Jay Grande said he would work with Mr. Crocker, the waterways committee and the water resources committee to develop a policy.
“Nothing’s going to happen,” a dejected Ms. Fraker said, after the meeting adjourned.
Among other business Wednesday, the select board voted to increase the size of the water resource committee from five to seven members, appointing Sheri Caseau, John Best and Gerard Hokanson to fill the two new seats and an existing vacancy.
The board also approved the warrants for Tisbury’s special and annual town meetings April 25, and will meet March 29 to sign the warrants.
Comments
Bravo, good idea. We simply
Lorraine EdgartownBravo, good idea. We simply have to start husbanding our resources in a better manner. As a lifelong sail boater I want to carefully enjoy the life of boating, but we must take care.
It is not true that more
Lynne Fraker Vineyard HavenIt is not true that more eelgrass was found in the Anchorage area and the Harbormaster knows that. It is exactly the same as 2016. Very little eelgrass, the boats are not the problem.This is so mean spirited when a reduced size anchorage with a process of permits could easily and quickly be established to see how that would work. Eelgrass will not grow until water quality improves. TWI claims to be the savior of every blade of eelgrass. TWI even submitted a letter asking the Select Board not listen to the Waterways Committee. That’s really low. Tashmoo does not belong to those that live there. Their lifestyle is in question? In fact, those homes are the real reason for water quality problems. Not boats. The lack of management of Tashmoo, in all areas, including the anchorage, by the Natural Resources Dept created a void, filled by TWI and their donors. Follow the money. The Select Board has given an opportunity to come up with a solid plan, quickly, based on suggestions presented to them, which may lift the moratorium. But the process to do this and who, is a question given to the Town Administrator, who has made his support of a moratorium clear. It’s not over yet. It was also pointed out that even Cape Pogue has a small anchorage.
I'm thrilled our town finally
Ted VHI'm thrilled our town finally has leaders who actually lead.
I was rather disappointed at
Brad Vineyard HavenI was rather disappointed at yesterday’s meeting. After hearing 6-8 people share their opinion's opposing a full ban on all anchoring in Lake Tashmoo and offering other alternatives the public comment was closed. Then a select board member read a previously written document word for word which took about 3- minutes reflecting his view that all anchoring should be prohibited. He then made a motion to enact a ban on all anchoring beginning today.
Why even offer public comment if you’re not even going to consider how the public feels. Where’s the democracy?
amen
Marie O'Hara Oak Bluffsamen
Financing a pump station
George Stein OBFinancing a pump station seems to be on the horizon. Federally protected wetlands can acquire funding if the congressman makes an attempt.
Tashmoo has a pump-out boat -
Carl Oak BluffsTashmoo has a pump-out boat - it used to come around every day (several times) on summer weekends, offering free pump-outs and enforcing mooring limitations. It was operated by a harbormaster staff member, and they would limit the number of boats on raft-ups, answer questions, and enforce noise limits. They may have even been called the 'fun police', but they are a constant and visible presence in the lake.
If every single visiting boater were to relieve themselves in the lake they still wouldn't come close to the amount of effluent released by one of the huge homes on the shoreline in a single day.
This is nothing more than the rich local residents wanting the filthy commoners out of their sight. Be gone, day boaters. Take your families, your friends, and your joyful laughter somewhere else.
How sad that an Island
John Vineyard HavenHow sad that an Island constantly touting its maritime heritage outlaws anchoring, a time-honored tradition that is one of the great pleasures of owning a boat. When I first visited the Island by boat more than 40 years ago I anchored in Tashmoo and enjoyed the peace and quiet and beautiful surroundings. Every credible study points out that the main source of pollution in Tashmoo and all waters around the Island is runoff from roads and property, along with inadequate septic systems. Any miniscule amounts contributed by visiting boaters is dwarfed by the continuous, year-round pollution from surrounding properties and roads. Why pick on the transient anchored boats? Because apparently some consider Tashmoo to be their own private property, even though most likely their own property is contributing significant pollution. Is it legal for the town to shut down navigation on a federally regulated body of water that receives significant state and federal funding to maintain its channel? If anchored boats are such a problem what about the fleet of local boats on moorings and at docks that vastly outnumbers any visitors? I have personally observed the damage mooring blocks and chains do to eel grass--much greater than any normally anchored pleasure boat that is there for only a few days.
For nearly 20 years, I have
Adrian Johnson Mystic, CTFor nearly 20 years, I have been renting a home in VH for a few weeks in the summer and anchoring my smaller boat in Tashmoo in the permitted areas. It is truly disheartening to read this, that because of the wishes of waterfront property owners, enjoyment of the waters by non-mooring holding locals and transients is cut-off completely. There are clearly ways of allowing transient use of Tashmoo without damaging eel grass, as the many current moorings do not have a significant effect. Day-use floats with helical moorings and transient moorings in the southern portions of the lake are some of those, which the town could generate some revenue in the mean time. To me this reads as another power grab by a few wealthy individuals that somehow got the ear of the harbor master and select board, common of a more fundamental problem with our society as a whole. I am not a resident and I am sure this news will be a surprise to my friends whom I rent a house from, as well as many others who depend on the seasonal tourism dollars that poor into MV by the people who come to the island to share in it's beauty and spirit. Yet another blow to the boating industry as a whole, which I am personally fully dependent on in both my professional and personal life.
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