The Oyster Pond Environmental Trust Newsletter Fall 1995
OPET, P.O. Box 496, Woods Hole, MA 02543-0496
OPET is having reprinted the study of Oyster Pond by oceanographic methods written by Pond resident and oceanographer, K.O. Emery. This classic, long since out of print, is being re-issued and brought up-to-date with the assistance of K.O. Emery, Brian Howes and Stanley Hart.
Publication, scheduled very soon, is being undertaken to provide the community with background on the history and current status of Oyster Pond and its environs. Current plans are to sell it at www.amazon.com.
All work and no play makes for a dull summer. Not us! OPET was a significant presence in the Quissett July Fourth Parade. Marchers sported a new OPET T-shirt, carried a banner, walking or riding in Bill Kerfoot's truck. We expect to see an even larger OPET presence next summer!
As mentioned in the Committee reports, OPET plans to take over the effort to purchase an undevdoped piece of property at the head of the pond. This property is currently owned by Salt Pond Bird Sanctuaries, Inc., and has a remaining mortgage of about $100,000. It is strategically located, and OPET hopes that it can be the starting point for preserving the one section of open land immediately adjacent to the pond.
The parcel, shown in gray in the drawing at the right, is 7.5 acres of undeveloped land. OPET considers this parcel to be of critical importance in its drive to preservee what remains of open space around the pond. It and a larger adjacent piece are the only unbuilt parcels near the pond.
Our hope is to retire the mortgage as soon as possible. Contributions are urgently needed, and until OPET gains tax exempt status should be made to Salt Pond Areas Bird Sanctuaries, Inc., so that your contributions will be tax exempt.
In the last few decades many houses have been built around Oyster pond. These households put nutrients into the pond: fertilizers, detergents and waste products All contribute to a huge new nutrient source to the pond. These nutrients support algae blooms. The algae die off, sink to the bottom of the pond and decay, eating up the oxygen on the bottom of the pond and leading to an ever increasing layer of muck. Solutions to this problem require reducing the input of nutrients, and increasing the flushing of nutrients out of the pond.
Use less fertilizer, use detergents sparingly, and work against further building in the Oyster Pond watershed.
The more people we have actively involved in tryng to solve the problems of Oyster Pond, the better chance we have of solving them. We need financial help in trying to reduce development, political help to allow us to make the changes to the pond that will make it healthy again, and organizational help to pass the word that all of us in the watershed have an influence on the pond! Help us find more members for OPET!
We get about 40" of rain a year directly onto the pond. About that much again reaches the pond by runoff and infiltration. About half of the total evaporates, and the rest runs off through the culvert connecting to Trunk River. This rate could exchange all of the water in Oyster pond in about three years. Unfortunately, because of the stratification of the pond, only the top layer is good water being well oxygenated, and the least salty, and that's the water that leaves by Trunk River. We keep the poor quality bottom water, and lose the nice stuff at the top.
Make the connection to Trunk River through a pipe that runs to the bottom of the first kettle hole! Water that goes out through the pipe must come from the bottom. Out goes the saline, de-oxygenated water, while the fresh oxygenated water stays! -- by Lon Hocker
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