HomeMy Public PortalAboutBCRMP SummaryTO: Brewster Select Board
FROM: Brewster Coastal Committee
DATE: April 22, 2019 – Earth Day
RE: Draft Phase I Coastal Resource Management Plan
In 2014 the Brewster Select Board (BSB) created the Coastal Committee (BCC) with the
following charge:
(1) Assess the coastal processes, natural resources, existing uses and management practices
on Brewster’s Cape Cod Bay shore, including critical areas of the bay shore, those that
support important human uses or habitat, and those that are vulnerable to the effects of
erosion or upland development;
(2) Identify a range of alternatives to address future management of the coastal resources of
Brewster’s bay shore; including public access to the bay, alternatives to onsite parking lots;
and measures to address rising sea levels and increases in storm intensity, such as retreat and
relocation; and
(3) Recommend on-going, immediate (1-3 year), short-term (4-6 year) and long- term (6+
years) actions; and ways of securing funding, including changes to current means of
generating revenue or new sources of revenue for coastal management and protection.
The BSB modified the BCC charge in 2017, requiring the development of a coastal resource
management plan (CRMP) drawing on the consensus-based Brewster Coastal Adaptation
Strategy (CAS). The 2017 charge also directed the CC to:
(4) Integrate robust public participation in all phases of its work
(5) Coordinate planning and implementation across institutional boundaries, including
incorporation of climate change and adaptation strategies into policies, plans and regulations
(6) Monitor changing coastal conditions and evolving community needs
(7) Monitor and evaluate implemented adaptation strategies
The Coastal Committee is here tonight with a draft Phase I CRMP and requests BSB
approval of its release for public review and comment. The CRMP is intended to provide
vision and policy direction for future management of Brewster’s coastal resources. In so
doing, the CRMP will assist the Town in meeting the diverse access needs of the
community and adapting to coastal change.
The goals of this Phase I CRMP are to:
Increase the resiliency of public landings and beaches
Preserve the ecosystem services provided by healthy coastal wetland resources
Provide access for water dependent activities
Preserve peak-season access to public beaches and landings
Protect vulnerable infrastructure, visual access, and sense of place threatened by
changing conditions
The Phase I CRMP complements the Brewster Vision Plan. Implementation of many of the
priority actions would help the Town realize the Coastal Management purposes in the Vision
Plan. Many of the priority actions are appropriate for state coastal resiliency grant funding.
The development of some of the information, analyses and recommendations included in the
CRMP were funded by two state grants Brewster applied for and received. Town meeting
approved funds to support our consultant- Carole Ridley- to work with the Committee and
Town staff to develop this draft CRMP. The Cape Cod Commission provided GIS support in
developing the resource maps.
The dynamic nature of the coastal system and the forces shaping it dictates that management
actions be flexible and adaptable to the dynamic nature of the system, changes in community
needs, and innovations in science and technology.
In recognition of the adaptive management approach, the CRMP is envisioned to be a multi-
phase effort. This Phase 1 report of the CRMP is intended to:
identify and describe the priority management challenges to be addressed,
recommend management actions to address those management challenges, and
suggest implementation steps necessary to pursue recommended management
actions.
Further research and analysis of coastal resources trends and conditions will be necessary in
subsequent phases to implement and update the CRMP.
The Phase I CRMP includes 27 recommendations, many with sub-recommendations. These
are all ranked by priority: immediate (1-3 year), short-term (4-6 year) and long- term (6+
years) actions. Immediate priorities include:
• adopt long-term coastal management resiliency strategies ( i.e. preserve coastal dunes
and marshes, managed retreat of infrastructure)
• ensure consistency with other planning efforts, i.e. Vision Plan, hazard mitigation plan
• evaluate policy and regulatory changes to Town’s wetlands protection bylaw and
regulations
• expand efforts to increase public awareness of the importance of healthy coastal
resources and natural coastal processes and need to protect these resource areas.
• update Town’s commercial aquaculture regulations
• undertake assessment of economic benefits to the community from expanded shellfish
and aquaculture opportunities
• continue to assess and monitor peak season beach demand (field observations,
surveys)
• work with Planning Board and other stakeholders to evaluate changes to local zoning
and regulations to preserve scale, character and resource protection
• develop and implement a stormwater management bylaw/low impact development
zoning bylaw as part of compliance with federal stormwater permit.
If you agree that this draft Phase I CRMP is ready for public review, the comment period
would begin tomorrow, April 23nd and close on Thursday, May 23rd. The draft CRMP will be
posted on the Town website along with a comment form that can be completed on-line.
Paper copies will be available at the Town Offices and the DNR office.