Pepperell Conservation Commission Approves Invasive Plant Removal at Kias Parker Conservation Area

PEPPERELL — March 15, 2022 — Pepperell Conservation Commission unanimously approves invasive plant removal at Kias Parker and hears pitch for Agricultural Commission collaboration. The commission voted at its March 15 meeting to issue a negative determination for a project at the former dog pound at 31 Oak Hill Street, allowing hand-removal of woody invasives — including buckthorn and honeysuckle — and eventual native planting within the 100-foot buffer zone of an intermittent stream, using grant funding rather than the conservation budget. Agricultural Commission Chair Cheryl Rosoff then presented a case for joint work on farmland preservation, highlighting Pepperell's status as the first Middlesex County town to achieve farmlands of local importance soil designation under a NRCS agreement — a change that, she showed, can lift a parcel's federal preservation eligibility from 23 percent to 83 percent and opens the door to USDA Agricultural Conservation Easement Program funding unavailable through the state's APR program. The commission also continued a public hearing on a notice of intent by Joshua Burel for work at 27 Peard Street within the Squannassit Area of Critical Environmental Concern, to April 5, pending DEP confirmation of amended tree-removal and planting materials.