LAND STEWARDSHIP ZONING

WBNERR utilizes DCR’s Land Stewardship Zoning Guidelines to consistently direct land management policy on Reserve lands. The three zone designations guide the level of activity allowed in various areas of the Reserve and assist Reserve staff with balancing research, education and recreation activities with resource protection by restricting inappropriate activities and directing higher impact activities away from more sensitive areas. Structures and activities associated with research, education, stewardship, facilities management and recreation are limited based on zone. Zone 1 designated areas are comparable to the NOAA NERRS “core area” designation. Zone 2 and Zone 3 areas combined are comparable to the NOAA NERRS “buffer area” designation.

DCR defines the three zones as follows.

Zone 1 is the most restrictive zone. This zone includes unique, exemplary and highly sensitive resources and landscapes that require special management approaches and practices to protect and preserve the special features and values identified in the specific Resource Management Plan. Examples of these resources include rare species habitat identified by the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program as being highly sensitive to human activities, fragile archaeological or cultural sites, and unique or exemplary natural communities. Management objectives emphasize protecting these areas from potentially adverse disturbances and impacts. Research and education activities are permitted in Zone 1 but with careful supervision from Reserve staff to ensure protection of sensitive resources. The Reserve includes 459 acres designated Zone 1, or “core area”.

Zone 2 includes areas containing typical yet important natural and cultural resources on which common forestry practices and dispersed recreational activities can be practiced at sustainable levels that do not degrade these resources and that hold potential for improving their ecological health, productivity and/or protection through active management. Examples include terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems characterized by a diversity of wildlife and plant habitats, rare species habitat that is compatible with sustainable forestry and dispersed recreation, agricultural resources, and resilient cultural sites and landscapes. Zone 2 areas may be actively managed provided that the management activities are consistent with the approved Resource Management Plan for the property. The Reserve includes 803 acres designated Zone 2.

Zone 3 includes constructed or developed administrative, maintenance and recreation sites, structures and resilient landscapes which accommodate concentrated use by recreational visitors and require intensive maintenance by DCR staff. Examples include areas developed and deemed appropriate for park headquarters and maintenance areas, parking lots, swimming pools and skating rinks, paved bikeways, swimming beaches, campgrounds, playgrounds and athletic fields, parkways, golf courses, picnic areas and pavilions, concessions, and areas assessed to be suitable for those uses. The Reserve includes 24 acres designated Zone 3, which combined with the 803 acres designated Zone 2 make up a “buffer area” of 827 acres.

Significant Feature Overlays supplement the three land stewardship zones to identify specific resource features. These significant features are generally identified through an inventory process or research and are formally designated. The purpose of these overlays is to provide more precise management guidance for identified resources and to recognize, maintain, protect or preserve unique and significant features, regardless of the zone in which they occur. Examples of significant feature overlays include Forest Reserves, areas subject to public drinking water regulations, or areas subject to historic preservation restrictions. The types of Significant Feature Overlays applied to the WBNERR lands include Protected Species Habitat Areas (which are based on the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program Priority Habitat maps) and Cultural Resource Areas (for historic and archaelogical values).

The Protected Species Habitat Area Significant Feature Overlays apply to several different Reserve properties for protection of habitat of a variety of protected rare plant and animal species. Protected Species Habitat Overlays are designated at the Headquarters Area, Quashnet River Area, Abigail Brook Area, South Cape Beach Area, and Washburn Island. Management activities within these overlay areas are done with consultation from staff of the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (NHESP). A Protected Species Habitat Overlay is located at the Headquarters Area because of the presence of the federally endangered plant Agalinis Acuta. Public access is limited from this area year round, a specific mowing regime (mowing only in December and June) is applied, and annual monitoring is performed. South Cape Beach and Washburn Island contain Protected Species Habitat Overlays for federally and state listed nesting shorebirds. Public access is limited from these locations with symbolic fencing and signage during the nesting season. Pets are restricted from the vicinity between April and September. Reserve staff and volunteers monitor nesting activity daily, educate visitors and recreational users, and when appropriate set up predator exclosure devices to protect nest sites. Protected Species Habitat Overlays at the Abigail Brook Area and the Quashnet River Area are designated for an assemblage of moths and butterflies that are rare within Massachusetts. These species are dependent on early successional habitat in coastal pine barren and pine-oak woodland habitats. Management activities for these locations, such as selective cutting and prescribed burning, are being evaluated with input from NHESP.

The Cultural Resource Area Significant Feature Overlays apply to the entirety of the Headquarters Area, Childs River Area, and Washburn Island. This designation exists on Washburn Island because of documented prehistoric Native American sites and the historic remains on the island (including World War II era military remains). The designation exists at the Headquarters and Childs River Areas because of documented prehistoric Native American sites and the National Historic Register landmarks associated with the Sargent Estate (now the headquarters facilities) and the Waquoit Village National Historic District. Any proposed major projects and development activities will be reviewed by a DCR cultural resource expert.

The area of the Reserve that has been designated as the Waquoit Bay Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) should also be considered a Significant Feature Overlay. This overlay is not shown as such on the series of Figures 9-14 showing Land Stewardship Zoning. However, the boundary of the ACEC is shown on Figure 15, and the specific ACEC regulatory performance standards and requirements are described on pages 84 through 89.

General management guidelines for each of the three management zones are included in the Land Stewardship Zoning Guidelines (see Appendix D). WBNERR staff participated in the development of the guidelines and will manage Reserve lands accordingly. A brief description of how Land Stewardship Zoning is applied to Reserve lands and waters follows.

Headquarters and Childs River Areas
The Headquarters Area (Figure 9) includes all of the Reserve’s buildings, including the visitor center, office, laboratory, classroom, meeting and maintenance space, as well as associated parking lots and boat and equipment storage areas. Because of the structures and facilities necessary to accommodate concentrated use by Reserve staff, these developed areas are classified Zone 3. The wooded area north and east of the carriage house is also listed as Zone 3 because it is a potential location for construction of the new Coastal Training Center building. This area is a relatively resilient landscape immediately adjacent to the concentrated intensive use area of the other facilities, but a thorough ecological and archaeological site assessment must be conducted prior to work activities for such development. The land immediately adjacent to the entrance road at the Headquarters property is managed for its rare coastal sandplain vegetation community and is, therefore, classified as Zone 1. This area contains several rare species of note including the Federally endangered sandplain gerardia (Agalinis acuta). All wetlands (salt and fresh) on the entire Reserve, as delineated by Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection maps, are classified as Zone 1 because of their demonstrated importance to the value of the Waquoit Bay estuarine ecosystem. This designation includes the salt marsh and salt pond located in the southwest corner of the Headquarters property. The remainder of the Headquarters property, composed of mixed pine/oak woodland, and the mixed pine/oak woodland on the nearby Childs River property are classified as Zone 2. Wetlands along the Childs River are classified as Zone 1. The entire extent of both these areas is covered by a Significant Feature Overlay for Cultural Resources. Both areas are included within the federally designated Waquoit Village National Historic Register District and there are important documented prehistoric archeological sites in the vicinity. A Significant Feature Overlay for Protected Species Habitat covers part of the Zone 1 area of the Headquarters property. The overlay is based on MA NHESP 2005 Priority Habitat Maps.

South Cape Beach Area
The state beach parking lot and the beach immediately in front (south) of the parking lot are classified as Zone 3 because they are necessary to accommodate intense, concentrated use (Figure 10). With the exception of this Zone 3 area, all beach, dune, barrier habitat and wetland (fresh and salt as delineated by Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection maps) are classified as Zone 1 because of their value to protected species and demonstrated importance to the coastal and estuarine ecosystem. The Zone 1 area includes the extensive salt marshes around Sage Lot Pond, the extensive fresh marsh north of Flat Pond, and vernal pools. All other areas composed of mixed pine/oak woodland are classified as Zone 2. Paved access roads leading to both the state beach area and the town beach inholding fall within the Zone 2 area. Much of the South Cape Beach Area, including the land classified as Zone 3, is covered by a Significant Feature Overlay for Protected Species Habitat for shorebirds including piping plover (Charadrius melodus) and least tern (Sterna antillarum). This overlay is based on MA NHESP Priority Habitat maps.

Washburn Island
On Washburn Island (Figure 11), all beach, dune, barrier habitat and wetland (salt and fresh, including vernal pools, as delineated by Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection maps) are classified as Zone 1 because of their value to protected species (including piping plover and least tern) and demonstrated importance to the coastal and estuarine ecosystem. All other lands, primarily composed of mixed pine/oak woodlands, are classified as Zone 2. This Zone 2 is subject to habitat management which includes activities such as selective thinning and prescribed burning. The Washburn Island camping area is located within this Zone 2 area. Despite its popularity and regular use during summer, the camping sites are limited in number, dispersed and primitive in nature. Portions of the southern part of the island are covered by a Significant Feature Overlay for Protected Species Habitat for shorebirds, including piping plover (Charadrius melodus) and least tern (Sterna antillarum). This overlay is based on MA NHESP Priority Habitat maps. The entirety of Washburn Island is covered by a Significant Feature Overlay for Cultural Resources due to its significant colonial and military history, as well as the presence of important prehistoric archaeological sites.

Quashnet River Area (including the 10 acre satellite “Phinney Property”)
A 300 foot strip on either side of the Quashnet River (Figure 12) is classified as Zone 1 in recognition of the unique and valuable aquatic resources associated with the river. The Quashnet is home to one of the last remaining populations of native sea-run brook trout populations in the United States. It also contains runs of other important migratory fish including alewife and blueback herring and American eel. This stretch of river is the location of a long term habitat restoration project and all activities related to this effort are acceptable within the Zone 1 area (see “Current Restoration Projects,” p. 99). Other wetlands and vernal pools dot this property and are classified as Zone 1. The remainder of the land, primarily composed of mixed pine/oak woodland is classified as Zone 2 and is subject to upland habitat management including selective thinning and prescribed fire. A small area in the northwest corner of this property is covered by a Significant Feature Overlay for Protected Species, based on MA NHESP maps. The southern boundary of this property abuts the Waquoit Village National Historic Register District at the former site of an historic mill dam.

Abigail Brook Area
The entirety of the Abigail Brook property (Figure 13) is comprised of mixed pine/oak woodland and is classified as Zone 2. A small portion of the northern part of the property is covered by a Significant Feature Overlay for Protected Species, based on MA NHESP maps.

North Quashnet Area
The entirety of the North Quashnet property (Figure 14) is comprised of mixed pine/oak woodland and is classified as Zone 2. There are no Significant Feature Overlays covering this property.