Presentation on Independent Plum Island Sand Migration Study, September 24th
September 19, 2008
When: Wednesday, September 24th, from 6:00 to 8:00 pmWhere: Newbury Elementary School Auditorium, Hanover Street, Newbury
A local Plum Island resident, Michael Morris, will give a public presentation on the results of his independent, five month long study of the sand migration patterns on Plum Island this Wednesday, September 24th, from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the Newbury Elementary School Auditorium.
Wednesday’s presentation, called “Unlocking the Mystery to Beach Erosion at Plum Island,” will be divided into two segments with a 15-minute break in between. Refreshments will also be served.
An article by Victor Tine in the Daily News of Newburyport provides an overview the study undertaken by Mr. Morris.
Some of the interesting findings of the study by Mr. Morris are:
- He believes that the net migration of sand along Plum Island’s shoreline is in a northerly direction, a departure from the conventional wisdom that it flows southward.
- He believes that two separate streams of sand are migrating toward Plum Island Center. One stream is moving south from the mouth of the Merrimack River along a submerged offshore sand bar, while another stream is flowing north from the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge’s dune system.
Berry Picking Permits Now Required at Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
August 27, 2008
Did you know that you can pick cranberries and beach plums at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge?
Well, you can, but you need to obtain a free permit before you do. The permit may be obtained free of charge at the Refuge headquarters and visitor center located at 6 Plum Island Turnpike, Newburyport or at the Refuge entrance gatehouse on Sunset Avenue, Newbury. Failing to obtain a permit prior to berry picking may result in a citation and fine.
2nd Annual Plum Island House Tour, Saturday, September 6th
August 23, 2008
The organizers of the tour are renting three buses (47 seats per bus). All participants on the tour, to deal with the logistics of Plum Island roads, must ride the bus; you can’t follow along in your car.
Check out Beach-house hopping: PI Taxpayers Association gears up for tour
by M. Renee Buckley in the latest online edition of The Newburyport Current for more detailed information about the Plum Island House Tour and how the proceeds from the event will be used to support Island related projects such as snow fencing to help prevent beach erosion, planting beach grass, purchasing Mobi-Mats, a patented, environmentally friendly and removable walkway, to help preserve the beach by keeping people on dedicated trails and out of the dunes.
Annual Plum Island House Tour, Saturday, September 6th
August 19, 2008
Where: Meet at Plum Island Center for 9:30 a.m. departure
Cost: Tickets are $25 per person
Tickets for the annual Plum Island House Tour, Sponsored by Plum Island Taxpayers and Associates, are now on sale.
Only 141 tickets will be sold, the capacity of three 47-passenger buses that will transport patrons to the six houses that will featured in this year’s tour.
Purchase your tickets now as they will sell out fast. Tickets are $25 per person and may be obtained by calling 978-462-9802.
Read more
Thursday Evening Birding At Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
August 10, 2008
When: Thursday, August 14, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., for ages 8 and olderWhere: Meet at Parking Lot #1of Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
Accompany refuge volunteer Sue McGrath for a guided bird walk exploring this important bird area.
We’ll discuss the birds and see a variety of birds that nest on the refuge. Interpretive materials are provided. All skill levels are welcome, including children age 8 and older accompanied by an adult.
Dress for the weather and wear sturdy, walking shoes. Meet at the refuge at the parking lot 1.
All programs are free. But space is limited, and advanced registration is required unless otherwise indicated. Call 978-465-5753 to register. Registration is not complete until you receive confirmation from a staff member. Note that outdoor programs may be canceled if there is inclement weather. Visit the Web for more information, visit the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge website.
Surfing Cape Ann to Southern Maine
June 12, 2008
There is a growing and dedicated base of local surfers in the Greater Newburyport region with easy access to surf shops and beaches ranging from Cape Ann and Nahant to our south to the beaches of southern Maine to our north.
Evidence of a surfing niche can be found in Newburyport if you are observant. You will notice more cars than you realize with surfboards on their roof racks driving through downtown and on High Street. If you want a surfing magazine, you can find one at Fowle’s on State Street.
You can surf and/or watch local surfers at the beaches of Plum Island and Salisbury and Seabrook. Good Harbor Beach on Cape Ann is a good beach for surfing. Nahant Beach in Lynn/Nahant also attracts many surfers.
New Hampshire’s North Beach, just north of Hampton Beach, is a very popular year round surfing beach, even during winter weekends. If you go a little further north to southern Maine, you can access some great surfing beaches in York, Ogunquit, Wells and Kennebunk.
If you are a beginner surfer or have an interest in taking up surfing, read the article by Laura Dolce on Seacostonline.com. Her article provides surfing tips and identifies the basics of surfing that you need to know to enjoy surfing in this part of New England.
Related Resources:
Plum Island Lighthouse Open From 1 to 4 p.m., Sunday, June 1st
June 1, 2008
The weather is perfect today in Greater Newburyport.
If you’re in the Newburyport/Plum Island area today, stop in and take a free tour of Newburyport Harbor Light on Plum Island Point from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Plum Island Point is located on the North End of Plum Island near the mouth of the Merrimac River.
The Friends of Plum Island Light are opening the lighthouse for the first tour of 2008 season. Newburyport Harbor Light, located at the northern tip of the island, will be open today from 1 to 4 p.m.
On clear days, the lighthouse offers views as far off as Cape Ann and the Isles of Shoals. You can also see Mt. Agamenticus in York, Maine. There is a short ladder to climb to the top, so sneakers are required. Children must be at least 5 years old and 42 inches tall to travel to the top.
Tours are free. However, donations to support the Friends of Plum Island Light, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and restoring the lighthouse, are appreciated.
Tough Week For Beach Restoration Efforts on Nantucket and Winthrop
April 27, 2008
Sconset Beach Preservation Fund’s Beach Replenishment Plan Loses By Large Margin
On the Island of Nantucket, the Sconset Beach Preservation Fund’s (SBPF) proposed beach nourishment project was soundly defeated in a non-binding question in last Tuesday’s election on the Island.
According to an article in the Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror by Jason Graziadei, 84 percent of the voters who answered the ballot question voted against the SBPF’s plan to dredge 1.8 million cubic yards of sand from a shoal off the eastern shore of the island and dump it along the Sconset bluff in order to save the homes there from coastal erosion.
SBPF’s plan has been hotly contested from the outset by some Island fisherman and residents who believe that the scope of the beach restoration effort will destroy the fishery off the Sconset bluff. The proposed beach replenishment effort, according to the Coalition for Responsible Coastal Management, a group formed to oppose the SBPF’s current plan, would cover 275 acres of cobble bottom and would cause irreparable damage to the fishery off the bluff.
The SBPF beach replenishment plan has become a hot button issue on Nantucket. The resounding defeat of the proposed plan by the voters should be sufficient cause for the non-profit organization to reexamine the scope of its plans and work more closely with Island fishermen and residents opposed to the current plan to come up with a more viable solution.
See the following resources for more information on the erosion issues on Nantucket Island:
- Sconset Beach Project Rejected By Huge Margin
- Sconset Beach Preservation Fund (SBOF)
- Coalition for Responsible Coastal Management
Army Corps denies permit for Winthrop beach restoration
A little closer to Newburyport, the Town of Winthrop received the news from the US Army Corps. of Engineers on April 23, 2008 that the Corps. has denied the state a permit to dredge 500,000 cubic yards of sand from the ocean bottom to bolster 37 acres of the eroded Winthrop Beach shoreline. Local residents have been blaming erosion for causing the flooding problems in the area.
In a written statement, Brigadier General Todd T. Semonite, the North Atlantic Division commander of the Corps, said that the decision was made “due to public interest factors and the availability of less environmentally damaging alternatives.”
According to an April 23, 2008 article in the Boston Globe, the project would have entailed dredging up sand eight miles offshore and then hauling it by barge to the Winthrop shoreline because it would have taken years to truck the sand through the town’s narrow residential streets.
The Winthrop beach restoration effort had heavy opposition from the National Marine Fisheries Service in Gloucester, MA.
For more information, read the following article in the Boston Globe:
Fortunately for residents and property owners of Plum Island, there doesn’t appear to be a significant base of opposition to the beach restoration of Plum Island at the current time.
Plum Island Beach Erosion Report On WBZ-TV Boston
April 14, 2008
Ms. Hager talked to some local Plum Island residents including Ron Barrett, the president of the Plum Island Taxpayer’s Association, Doug Packer of the Newbury Conservation Commission and Mayor John Moak of Newburyport.
The headline that is on the WBZTV.com website for the report may be worded a little too strong, “Storms Threaten To Wash Plum Island Out To Sea.”
It looked like Plum Island weathered the latest batch of bad weather that come through our region late Friday night and Saturday without significant damage.
Related Website: WBZTV.com
Successful Fundraiser For Plum Island Foundation
April 4, 2008
The foundation has raised $35,000 of the amount it needs to formally retain the services of Mr. Marlowe’s Washington, D.C. lobbying firm, Marlow & Company. The lobbying firm has been very successful in helping municipalities work through the maze of Federal and Congressional bureaucracies and ultimately in obtaining funding for local beach replenishment efforts.
Mayor John Moak’s quote in Mr. Tine’s article concisely summarizes why the efforts of the Plum Island Foundation are needed and vital to the Plum Island community.
“In politics, we talk about issues, and talk about issues, and talk about issues,” he said. “You in the Plum Island Foundation took the next step.” — Mayor John Moak
Unfortunately Mayor Moak is right on the mark with his comments as they are true. Talking is not a solution. Taking action is the only solution. That is why the Plum Island Foundation was created. The political model for obtaining funding appropriations in Congress is not the same one that worked 10 or 20 years ago. Now it takes forever to get the Federal government to respond to any funding-related issue in a timely manner.
Utilizing the professional services of a skilled consulting firm like Marlowe & Company, which specializes in beach replenishment efforts and knows how to most effectively garner support for the clients they represent in Washington, seems like a no-brainer and a necessity.
Related Websites and Information:
Situated on the ocean, Newburyport holds a host of opportunity for the visitor. But instead of traditional hotels, consider Massachusetts timeshares. Resorts offer sumptuous ensuite appointments and amenities not available in hotels. Rent timeshare for an unforgettable vacation experience.
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