Middlebury panel accepts Avalon Farms pond maintenance application, asks for written answers to 39 questions

The Town of Middlebury Conservation Commission on Feb. 24 unanimously approved a correction to the Nov. 28, 2023 meeting minutes and accepted an application from Avalon Farms for annual pond maintenance, but required the applicant to return next month with written answers to 39 questions about ecological impacts and alternatives.

Chairman Paul Bowler called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. The commission voted to approve the Nov. 25, 2025 meeting minutes and then approved an amendment to remove the name "Ryan Faber" from the Nov. 28, 2023 minutes following a written request from Ryan Faber stating he had not attended that meeting; the amendment was moved by Joe Bernardi and seconded by Joseph Martino and carried unanimously.

Matt Vogt, representing New England Aquatic Services, described a mechanical pond-management plan for the Avalon Farms homeowners association for an approximately 2.5-acre shallow pond. The contractor proposed hydro-raking with an amphibious tracked machine (a Truxor) fitted with a grapple to remove both above-ground lily pads and below-ground rhizomes, transfer vegetation to a floating harvester for shoreline off-loading, and dispose of plant material off-site in accordance with regulations. The firm estimated annual operations of roughly 5–15 days, removing an estimated 7,500–20,000 square feet of lily-pad coverage per year during the initial multi-year effort and targeting a long-term residual coverage near 5,000–8,000 square feet at the far northern edge of the pond.

Commissioners emphasized environmental safeguards. The contractor said it would monitor turbidity and deploy a turbidity curtain if crews observed large amounts of turbidity. The New England Aquatic Services plan states that muck or bottom sediment would not be targeted for removal and that the timing of work would be scheduled seasonally (May–December as appropriate). The plan framed mechanical removal as a way to reduce organic sediment accumulation and postpone more intrusive dredging.

Vice Chairman Curt Bosco handed the applicant a 39-question checklist and moved that New England Aquatic Services return at the next Conservation Commission meeting with written responses; Mary Barton seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. The checklist covers purpose and alternatives analysis (asking whether removal addresses aesthetic concerns or documented ecological impairment), pond trophic status and water-quality data, species identification (native versus invasive), nutrient sources and fertilizer practices within 100 feet of the pond, mapping and assessment of the feeder stream across Christian Road, proposed monitoring schedules and benchmarks, habitat and state-listed-species considerations, and whether less-impactful watershed controls were considered before in-pond disturbance.

The commission separately voted to accept the application (motion by George Tzepos; seconded by Mary Barton; unanimous). The minutes record that the commission expects a written follow-up addressing the listed concerns before approving any field work beyond minimal preparatory activities.

The meeting adjourned at 7:24 p.m. Recording clerk Jennifer Atkinson filed the minutes, which remain subject to formal approval at a subsequent meeting.