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| The cut was opened on August 15th by the Town as part of their programmatic opening of the Pond to the Ocean. The August opening is one of the most critical, as it provides flushing during a time of high water temperatures, increased recreational activities, and peak usage of septic systems at seasonal homes. Following a highly successful March opening that lasted almost 2 ½ months, this one is so far off to a good start. The next opening is planned for October prior to resumption of dredging in November.
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| Hello Everyone -
I will be out on the beach to meet for beach clean-up, but here is your shorebird update for today. Please note on the map in the area marked "plovers and chicks" with red lines. We now have two sets of Piping plover chicks foraging with their parents. Please steer clear of this area with boats and please keep your dogs away from this area. Both PIPL pairs have 3 chicks. The PIPL chicks using the west end of the fenced area are still very small - just a few days old. The PIPL family using the east end of the area have chicks that are 20 days old - so just a week from flying. Someone stepped on and killed a 20 day old Piping plover chick at Chilmark pond a couple of weeks ago - so Please pay attention when you are on the beach. We Can't guarantee the plovers will always be within their fenced area. They may be on the pond shore or the outer beach, depending on the tides. So, pay attention when you are anywhere near the red zone. The plovers will make distress calls when you are near their chicks. If you hear it, or see an adult pretending to have a broken wing. STOP. look. Carefully move towards the water and away from the birds. The nest at the west end will be hatching around the 20th of July. On July 13th - we have a crew of people to help us remove the low predator fencing in the middle area of the beach. We will stack it and wait to remove it until the plover chicks are fledged so we can use an ATV to carry loads. Bring your binoculars to your beach clean up so you can enjoy seeing the plovers and their chicks from a distance. They are fun to watch. Hope to meet some of you this morning. As always, we thank you for your support and cooperation. Cheers to some much needed rain! Luanne -- Luanne Johnson Director/Wildlife Biologist BiodiversityWorks PO Box 557 Edgartown, MA 02539 (508) 685-2578 biodiversityworks@gmail.com |
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Hello All -
 Bird nesting activity at Edgartown Great Pond. PLEASE LEASH YOUR DOGS AND TAKE THEM TO THE OUTER BEACH AWAY FROM NESTING AREAS. *Green lines from pond to ocean are good access paths to the outer beach. Green lines on outer beach are all fine for your beach recreation (please no kite flying near the birds though) *The pink lines (Predator fence) are low fencing we placed to deter skunks from a large nesting area. You may cross over the fencing. *Yellow areas have nests and chicks within, and people should not be in these areas. *Red line indicates where the Piping plovers may be foraging with their chicks on the pond shore - so please watch and listen if you land a boat in that area. We cannot always predict where they will go with their chicks. As of yesterday, the Piping plovers still have 3 chicks. Another PIPL nest is due to hatch around July 5th, and the newest nest at the western end will hatch around July 20th. A Vehicle came from the west and drove all over the beach and into the plover chick habitat on friday night, but luckily did not crush any chicks. The beach is closed to vehicles and is posted as such at Little Job's Neck Pond (west of EGP). A pair of Oystercatchers are thinking about nesting between the two predator fences, and a plover is in that area as well. On the outer beach, near the cut area, a piping plover was foraging and resting, so I gave them an area there in case they are thinking of nesting. The Plover nest at the Landbank side of the cut area will be hatching in the next couple of weeks. I will try to update you all when I get some information from Julie Russell about that nest. As always, thank you for your support and cooperation. If you would like to see the plover chicks, don't hesitate to ask us to meet you on the beach. We visit every other day and are happy to meet you and show them to you in our spotting scope or binoculars. There are so many grey seals offshore. It is amazing! I counted 22 in a group the other day, and yesterday, some were floating in the surf with their noses pointed up to the sky. I wish I had a photo of them. I'm seeing many river otter tracks along the pond shore and out to the beach. The kits/pups from this year are big enough to be traveling with mom, so be mindful and watch for them when you are on the pond in the mornings and afternoons with motor boats. Thank you, Luanne -- Luanne Johnson Director/Wildlife Biologist BiodiversityWorks PO Box 557 Edgartown, MA 02539 (508) 685-2578 biodiversityworks@gmail.com |
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| Dear Edgartown Great Pond Residents and Advocates:
Thank you for cooperating with us to monitor and protect the beach-nesting birds at Edgartown Great Pond. We wanted to take a moment and provide you with an update for Memorial Day weekend for the area we monitor, which is everything West of the cut. Winter storms have created a lot of new nesting habitat for Piping Plovers, Least Terns, and American Oystercatchers, which all require sandy, open habitat with sparse vegetation. With the cold, wet, spring, the birds are nesting a bit later than usual. Currently, migrant shorebirds are happily ‘tanking up’ along the pond shoreline for their journey north to their arctic nesting grounds. I have included pictures of some of the current regulars at the end of the update. Liz Baldwin and I welcome opportunities to show people the birds in our spotting scope so don’t hesitate to email or call us at the phone or email below to set up a time to meet on the beach. We may need to put in a large, fenced area to protect nesting terns in June, and we would appreciate any volunteers who are available to help with that project. Call or email if you have time to assist us. Here is the nesting update as of 29 May: Piping Plovers - 4 pairs are actively nesting - 2 pairs are incubating (due to hatch mid-June and end of June) - 2 pairs are beginning to lay eggs American Oystercatchers - 3 pairs are actively nesting - 1 pair lost a nest to gulls. They are courting and preparing to re-nest - 1 pair are incubating in a backdune area - 1 pair are courting and preparing to nest Least Terns – arriving and preparing to nest. They do not seem interested in the area near the cut right now, rather, an area near the middle of the beach. All areas with posts and rope and signs are active nesting areas, so please try to keep your activity on the beach away from these posted areas. There is still plenty of room for people to enjoy a day at the beach. Also, if you hear or see oystercatchers, plovers or terns that are calling and seem distressed near you, consider moving to a different area. It has been difficult to determine where some of the birds will settle. Until they lay eggs, we don’t know exactly where to place posts and rope and signs. Please consider following these guidelines to protect the birds on your beach visits: • If you bring your dog to the beach, please keep it close to you and under your command at all times. It is best if dogs are away from fenced nesting areas. Most birds are feeding on the pond shoreline, and will continue to do so until the pond level rises to cover the shoreline. Then, the outer beach will become a favored feeding area for the birds. • Please do not fly kites over the area where the birds are nesting and feeding as they think kites are falcons/predatory birds and become very distressed. • Please do not linger at the fencing watching the birds, unless you know they are remaining on their nests. If the birds remain off of the eggs for too long, the eggs can overheat in the sun. It is best to enjoy the birds from a distance with binoculars. (pictures coming shortly) Thank you for your cooperation and support. Luanne Johnson Liz Baldwin Director/Wildlife Biologist Asst. Director/Wildlife Biologist BiodiversityWorks PO Box 557 Edgartown, MA 02539 (508) 685-2578 biodiversityworks@gmail.com |
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 Nessie began operating in the Edgartown Great Pond on Monday, November 1st following three lengthy and productive openings of the pond since it last operated in March. Tony Gramkowski and Tracy Benware of Aquamarine Dredge are the operators and split their time operating the Dredge and monitoring the outflow pipe; only two people are required to operate the dredge. This year, Steve Ewing, the owner of Aquamarine, will be adding a third person to train as an operator to provide the operation flexibility and redundancy.
 The plan is to operate the dredge for approximately four weeks, cutting and widening the channel through the delta that forms as a result of the openings. The Dredge will typically be operated Monday through Friday, an occasional Saturday as well. Should a major storm hit, the dredge will be quickly moved to the safety and protection of Slough Cove as it has in the past. |
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| Edgartown Great Pond was opened to the sea on October 12th. Today, after more than two weeks, it remains open, but is likely to close within the next day or so.
Steve Ewing and his team from Aquamarine will be launching Nessie within the next few days and plan to begin dredging early the week of November 1st. Stay tuned for updates on the dredging progress! |
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By Tom Wallace
 The Great Pond Foundation recently hosted a Get-to-Know Nessie festival on Edgartown Great Pond. Underwritten by an anonymous patron, this event gave donors and neighbors a chance to see firsthand the portable dredge that has been acquired to assist the town of Edgartown with its efforts to preserve Edgartown Great Pond.
While Nessie has already operated twice in the pond, and will do so again during the winter months, few people have had an opportunity to see her. Nessie is used to cut a channel through the shallow sandbars inside the barrier beach of Edgartown Great Pond so that openings to the sea will be more effective in exchanging high-nitrogen pond water with fresh ocean water. Neighbors around the pond and at the barrier beach were given an opportunity to visit her spaceship-like control panel while she toured a show-and-tell program. Anne Mazar, a seasonal resident, commented: “It was helpful to actually touch and feel the dredge and discuss some of the other projects currently underway on the pond.” This dredge is unique. She needs only 20 inches of water to operate, making her ideal for the shallow waters of the pond. She can be launched from a specialized boat trailer, increasing efficiency in putting in and taking out of the pond. The entire launch process does not require a crane or any other heavy equipment. Nessie is operated by Tracy Benware and Tony Gramkowski of Aquamarine, a company owned and operated by Steve Ewing. Steve has spent his life operating heavy equipment in Vineyard waters and has served this Island as a leader in environmental management. The Massachusetts Estuaries Project is a comprehensive, multi-year study to assess the rapidly declining health of bays, harbors, and ponds in Southeastern Massachusetts. One of the first reports completed was of the Edgartown Great Pond, found to be under stress and requiring immediate action if it is to be saved. An increasing volume of nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, is affecting water quality and encouraging invasive weed and algal growth. This can destroy productive shellfish beds, damage the diverse habitat and restrict recreational uses now provided by the pond. The project has recommended specific remedial actions for the town to respond to this serious threat. One is to increase the number of homes in the watershed connected to the municipal wastewater treatment facility. Another is more regular and effective openings of the pond to the sea. Four times each year, under the direction of shellfish constable and biologist Paul Bagnall, a cut is made through the barrier beach, opening the pond to the sea and exchanging high-nitrogen pond water with fresh ocean water. During each opening, a large volume of sand is deposited into the pond, making successive openings less effective. Dredging can provide an extremely effective solution to this problem. In March, Nessie operated for two weeks, dredging a channel through a large delta sandbar that had built up in recent years, pumping sand out and renourishing the barrier beach. The following month, the pond was opened and remained so for over three weeks — the longest in almost 20 years. Enhanced openings have already had a positive effect on water quality, particularly during this unusually hot summer when many ponds throughout the Cape and Islands suffered high bacterial concentrations and large algal mats. Mr. Bagnall found it remarkable that the water quality remained good in the pond throughout the hot, sunny summer. In these difficult economic times, the Great Pond Foundation raised almost $800,000 from property owners around the pond to acquire Nessie and partner with the town in protecting the pond. While dredging is extremely important, it is only one of many tools being used to improve the water quality. For example, the foundation is working with the Nature Conservancy and private property owners to manage nonnative, invasive phragmites infesting areas of the shoreline. Foundation interns have provided valuable assistance to the highly successful oyster restoration project managed by the Martha’s Vineyard Shellfish Group. Oysters are an extraordinary resource in keeping the pond healthy, as each individual oyster can cleanse up to 15 gallons of water every day. A circulation study is being conducted to identify additional areas within the pond where dredging could improve circulation and water quality, particularly in upper coves. Research and testing is being done on harvesting algae and preventing recurrence of the frightening massive algae invasion that occurred during the summer of 2008. Since completion in 1996 of the modern wastewater treatment facility in Edgartown, there has been concern and uncertainty about underground effluent from the old plant moving toward the pond. Monitoring and testing is now being done on a regular basis to determine the size and location of this plume. This all adds up to a full plate, and the foundation is now passing the hat to meet an operating budget for this year of $320,000. The goal is 100 per cent participation by riparian owners, and everyone who cares about this important and beautiful resource is encouraged to make a taxdeductible contribution. To learn more about the foundation or to make a donation, please visit greatpondfoundation.org or send your contribution to: Great Pond Foundation, P.O. Box 2005, Edgartown, MA 02539. © 2010 Vineyard Gazette |
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Saturday, July 2nd, 2010
 With light southerlies blowing , a field of 9 craft of varying class & design, and representing several communities around the Pond, competed for the coveted EGP Trophy, ending in an unprecedented two way tie for first place. Liz Potter, with first mate Joe Bower, steered their new Sturdy-Cat to handily take the first two of three races. Apparently unaware of a third race in the series, they sailed to the Cut, eagerly anticipating the post-race festivities and award ceremonies. This left the field wide open to perennial contender Martha Cohan (who last year suffered a series of disasters: capsizing, near-drowning of her faithful crew - her dog - and a mast impaled in the soft bottom of the pond). Having finished 2nd in each of the series thus far, she easily took a first in the third. Race officials, calling on Solomon-like wisdom, declared a tie, leaving the winners to arrange sharing of the trophy during the coming year. A post-race barbecue with a mini-keg and other beverages appropriate to the occasion preceded the award ceremonies and drew a record number of participants. The race course,officiating and beach festivities was supervised by Jeremy Henderson, EGPYC Commodore, and his first mate Catherine Samuels, assisted by a number of BoldWater residents. |
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| Don't be surprised if you see oranges floating across the Pond this summer! Or an occasional red plume of water. (No, it's NOT 'red tide'). What you're seeing is the work of our consulting hydrologist Craig Saunders assisted by our Science and Education Coordinator, Bob Woodruff, engaged in Phase I of a two-year study of currents in the Pond. They will be experimenting with the use of oranges (a very effective tool for tracing currents because they float with little of their mass above the water - thus unaffected by wind). The red dye is fluoroscein, widely used for circulation studies in both water bodies and humans and considered safe for both. The objective of the study is to learn how currents in the Pond are influenced by the pond being open; with a flood tide; with an ebbing tide; when closed; when windy; and when calm. In addition to using the new dredge for maintaining the channel through the delta on the pond side for the cut, we are going to need circulation studies of any areas within the pond that may need dredging in the future.
See the 2010 Annual Report for more details. |
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 As this is being written, veteran Edgartown shellfisherman William 'Boo' Bassett and GPF student intern Bruce Dew, a senior at Holy Cross, are hard at work capturing hundreds of thousands of oyster 'spat' recently hatched in the Pond. The young pinhead-sized oysters have just 'set' on some three hundred chicken wire cages filled with scallop shells for the oysters to cling to as they sit on the Pond bottom. When retrieved, Boo and his interns remove the spat-covered scallop shells and place them in large cages suspended on the familiar rafts located at strategic places in the Pond. This fall, when the oysters have reached the size of a quarter, they will be released into the Pond and hopefully will have a good chance of surviving to breeding size and age. The Oyster Restoration Project, now in its third year, is headed by Rick Karney, Director of the MV Shellfish Group, and is supported by a grant from the Jewish Communal Fund.
See the 2010 Annual Report for more details. |
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| A lot has happened over the past year, Nessie was built, delivered and operated...
Nessie was acquired to dredge the delta that forms inside the Edgartown Great Pond at the 'Cut'. Four times a year the Town of Edgartown 'cuts' the barrier beach, opening the Pond to the sea. This is done to flush the Pond and improve water quality.  One unfortunate byproduct of this important task is the introduction of sand into the Pond. Over time a large sand delta has been created that limits the productivity of each successive opening. Nessie's goal is to take a bite out of the delta to allow for a better exchange with the sea and improve the productivity of future openings.
In the early Spring of 2009, Tony Gramkowski of Aquamarine, Steve Ewing's company that operates the dredge, traveled to California to participate in the final assembly of the dredge at Keene Engineering. While the Foundation's intent was to send him for a week of familiarization, Keene Engineering was so impressed with his work, they asked him to stay for almost three months!  Tony now knows the dredge inside and out which will help in maintaining the equipment and troubleshooting any problems that may arise in the future.
The dredge was delivered to the Island in August and launched to undergo testing in the Pond on September 1, 2009. A crowd of riparian owners, Island residents and Edgartown officials were on-hand to christen and launch the dredge at Wilson's Landing. The launch was filmed and aired on MVTV Channel 13 and can be viewed here. The video also provides a narrative of why we are dredging and how it will help. In early March of this year, the time had finally arrived to dredge the delta. Steve and his team spent three weeks dredging the delta and pumping the sand to the barrier beach as nourishment.  While March storms at times made the operation difficult, Steve and his team felt that the project was a success but that wouldn't be truly known until the next cut and opening to the sea. In early May, the cut was made to the sea and the Pond was open. Through a combination of favorable tides, good weather and most importantly, the recent dredging of the delta, the Pond remained open for three weeks. This was the longest opening since the one that was created by Hurricane Bob in 1991.
Nessie will be back in the Pond in November to perform additional dredging of the delta with the hope that future openings will be equally as productive.  |
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