Conservation commission flags Aquidneck Island Watershed Plan for review despite tight comment deadline

Members of the Town of Middletown Conservation Commission discussed the Aquidneck Island Watershed Plan, a draft prepared by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, and agreed to circulate links and consider it at the commission’s next meeting.

Speaker 2 introduced the document as "right up our alley in terms of watershed" and said she would forward the link and include it in the minutes for members to review. She noted the plan is substantial — about 230 pages — and that the comment deadline was either imminent or already very near, limiting the commission’s ability to prepare a detailed response before the deadline.

Commission members agreed to add the watershed plan and other state-level documents (including recent state zoning and housing pass-downs referenced in the meeting) to the January agenda and to collect links so members can identify specific sections to discuss in advance. "So that's something I'd I'd propose to put on the agenda for next time," Speaker 2 said.

The commission discussed using the intervening weeks for members to read parts of the document and to surface items they think warrant commission input. Because the commission functions in an advisory capacity to the Planning Board, members noted they may need to coordinate timing with Planning Department and planning-board schedules to ensure comments are considered in the formal review process.