Erving Conservation Commission Ratifies Three Storm Emergency Certifications Unanimously

ERVING -- August 3, 2021, Erving Conservation Commission ratified three emergency flood-repair certifications and rescinded one incomplete order at its August 3 meeting. Chair David Brewer acknowledged he had written the original July 20 certification "on the hood of the truck" without proper scope language, authorizing repair and replacement when only repair is permissible; the commission voted unanimously to rescind it and replace it with two corrected certifications covering North Street riprap work and Swamp Road bridge demolition, both running July 28 through August 25. A third certification for Wheelock Street, also after-the-fact, passed four to one, with Commissioner Mike Schaefer abstaining over timing concerns. The commission also issued a unanimous Negative Determination of Applicability for a town sidewalk project on Central, Park, Gun, and Pratt Streets, finding that small sections near the Millers River riverfront area involve only remove-and-replace work and will not alter protected resources, subject to a condition requiring best-practice erosion controls around stormwater inlets.