JAY – Selectmen unanimously voted to not create new ordinances for Parker Pond, which serves as a source of drinking water, instead deciding to revisit the issue in 10 months.
Doug Burdo, who serves as the superintendent of the Livermore Falls Water Department, wanted an ordinance enacted for the pond. Parker Pond, in addition to being a popular recreation area, is a backup for Moose Hill Pond. Moose Hill in Livermore Falls, serves as the primary source of water for the water department.
Burdo wanted the ordinance to protect the pond’s water quality by forbidding the fueling of gas-powered engines, the use of motorboats and ice fishing augers, and possibly other activities. Burdo had previously attempted to get a similar ordinance enacted in 2004.
“We need to take care of that pond,” Burdo told the board. “It’s a source of water.”
Burdo said that the quality of the water in Parker Pond was fine, but he wanted to prevent chemical contaminants from entering his water system. While the water is run through a filtration system, those filters only remove biological matter such as bacteria, not chemical pollutants such as gasoline.
However, selectmen were unwilling to act on the issue due to the lack of access to the pond by the public. While the body of water itself is open to the public, access can only be gained by permission of landowners, usually on foot. There is no public park or boat landing.
Because of this, selectmen noted that ordinances regulating use were largely irrelevant, as many people simply couldn’t get to the water.
“I don’t want to come up with ordinances, just for the sake of making one,” Selectman Stephen McCourt said.
Both selectmen and residents said that the lack of public access to the pond was disappointing. Selectmen have previously met with landowners on the subject, but the area remains largely isolated from the public.
Selectmen voted to revisit the issue in October 2009, possibly with concrete data from the water department on the pond’s water quality.
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In other business, selectmen approved lowering the cap on the environmental permitting reserve fund from $1 million to $800,000. That account, currently consisting of $900,000, is funded through permits and fees filed with the town by businesses for environmental issues.
The money is used by the town to fund the town’s environmental code enforcement officer, consultants, supplies and the work of the planning board. If the fund reaches or exceeds the cap, no fees are collected for that year.
Environmental Code Administrator Shiloh Ring said that the town used roughly $200,000 from the account in any given year. If the cap isn’t reached, the town typically takes in $300,000 through the permitting process, mostly from the Verso Paper Company.
The remainder of the fund is held in reserve in case some environmentally-related legal action needs to be taken.
While selectmen did approve the lowering of the cap, the change would need to be approved by Jay voters at a town meeting.
