New England Wildlife Centers seek funds to build dedicated oil‑spill response facility

Zach (New England Wildlife Centers) and Dr. Patel Fria described coastal wildlife rehabilitation and the centers’ growing role in oil‑spill and disaster response. The centers operate two hospitals (Weymouth and Barnstable/Cape) and treat roughly 220–225 species with veterinary staff and specialized teams.

Zach said the centers have built oil‑spill response capacity through grants that funded training, response kits and equipment; he cited the Muddy River oil spill in Boston (late last year) where crews captured about 50 oiled birds and were able to release 43. Dr. Patel Fria described the labor‑intensive rehabilitation process: washing and rinsing birds using precise Dawn concentrations, maintenance of feather quality for thermoregulation, and the need for isolation and testing when infectious diseases (e.g., avian influenza) are present.

The centers said they have approximately 40–50 on‑site response kits and have conducted hands‑on training for first responders and natural‑resource managers. They are raising funds for a specialized oil‑spill response building at the Cape hospital with washing bays, isolation rooms, warming capacity and containment systems; the project has broken ground plans for 2026 but remains about $500,000 short of the total budget.

MassDEP staff thanked the centers and invited further partnership and participation in upcoming meetings.