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Workshop with renowned planner Randall Arendt – Photo by Mark Archambault

Protecting Our Communities and Our Natural Resources through Land Use Planning

Land use planning is the process by which communities decide how their land should be used, both in the present day and in the future. By planning for development, communities can protect their drinking water and other important natural resources and simultaneously guide their business and residential development to areas that are not environmentally sensitive.

Aerial view in the Squannassit sub-basinIn New England, most land use planning takes place at the municipal level through the oversight and guidance of Planning Boards, with state limits on the types of activities Planning Boards can regulate. Local land use planning should be guided by a central document, usually called the Master Plan or Comprehensive Plan, which takes the long view, from five to ten years or beyond. Once adopted, a Master or Comprehensive Plan can be used to develop zoning ordinances or bylaws—the code of requirements governing how land in a community can be used. View an example of a Master Plan—Town of Groton Master Plan. Strong limits can be placed on how environmentally sensitive lands, such as wetlands, floodplains, and steep slopes, can be used. Local Conservation Commissions often have a large degree of oversight on proposed uses of wetlands and floodplains.

The NRWA introduces its watershed communities to the more innovative, environmentally-friendly forms of zoning and regulations. Some of these planning tools come under the name of Smart Growth, which is a planning philosophy that seeks to minimize human impacts on the land while still providing for needed development. The NRWA also assists with Low Impact Development and Stormwater Management, Open Space Plans, and drafting of protective Bylaws, Ordinances, and Regulations. NRWA also offers professional workshops for land use planners, developers, engineers, and municipal officials to offer an opportunity to learn about the latest land use innovations and to network with colleagues facing similar development challenges.

For more information on NRWA’s land use projects, please contact Mark Archambault, NRWA Smart Growth Circuit Rider, at (978) 448-0299, or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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A mechanical harvester removes tons of water chestnuts from the Nashua River

Fighting Invasive Water Chestnut Infestations

The exotic water chestnut (trapa natans) was first discovered in the Pepperell Pond impoundment on the Nashua River (on the Pepperell/Groton line) in the late 1990’s. At roughly the same time, the plants were found in the Nashua River upstream of Mine Falls Dam in Nashua, New Hampshire.

An impenetrable mat of water chestnuts on Pepperell PondInvasive water chestnut plants create an impenetrable mat of growth that makes the river inaccessible to boating and fishing. Their growth replaces ecologically critical native plant species. When the dense mats die off in the fall, they sink and decay, which depletes oxygen levels vital to fish, destroying native fish habitat with resulting negative impact on fish populations.

As part of its work to maintain water quality, and to protect our waterways for habitat and recreation, the NRWA in early years of the infestation, helped to organize hand-pulling efforts from canoes and kayaks in Pepperell Pond. However, the exponential way in which water chestnut grows (each seed can produce up to 120 new plants) soon deemed hand-pulling ineffective in controlling its spread. By 2005, approximately 45 acres of the Pepperell impoundment were 100% covered in the plant. The NRWA and its partners worked to find funding.

Volunteers harvest water chestnuts by hand - Photo by Ray ManomaitisIn 2008, the Town of Pepperell contracted with the NRWA to manage a grant from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation to mechanically harvest the plants. During the summers of 2008 and 2009, approximately 2,780 tons of plants were removed from the river by a private contractor. Because seeds can exist up to 12 years in sediment, harvesting needs to take place continuously for approximately 5 years before the plants can finally be controlled by hand-pulling. Funding for mechanical harvesting has not been available since 2009. NRWA continues to seek sources of funding while hosting hand-pull events with volunteers to check the spread of the plant into new regions. View a slideshow of the 2012 volunteer chestnut pull created by Denise Hurt.

Water chestnut was first documented as scattered patches above Mine Falls Dam in Nashua, New Hampshire in 1998.  By 2001, approximately 14 acres of the plant covered the area just upstream of the boat ramp at the dam.  In 2012 and 2013, the City of Nashua contracted with Aquatic Control Technologies, Inc. to harvest the plants.  Extensive harvesting during he summer months removed much of the standing growth.  Since then hand removal by volunteers has kept the water chestnut plants in check.

For more information on water chestnuts or hand-pull events or NRWA’s work to control water chestnuts, please contact Martha Morgan, NRWA Water Programs Director, at (978) 448-0299, or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.