Heritage Pines board details Environmental Solutions plan to trim wetland edge at NWRA-33

Chair Kathleen Lonergan read an amended scope of work from Environmental Solutions (ES) describing the cleanup planned for wetland area NWRA-33. The scope notes ES will "remove and dispose of several dead or dying bushes around the perimeter and wetland NWRA-33, specifically including the two dead oak and maple tree branches, southwest portion of the area, adjacent to water lilies." The Board said that work will proceed under the amended ES proposal previously approved by the District.

District Manager Chuck Adams explained ES’s method relies on more handwork and selective herbicide use, which the Board expects will be more aesthetically pleasing for yards adjacent to the wetland. Chair Lonergan and staff emphasized a boundary constraint: nothing larger than 5 inches in diameter can be removed from the wetland without further engineering determination, and the District Engineer — not present at the meeting — will need to inspect and authorize any larger removals. Grounds Superintendent Tim Gatz was assigned to follow up where residents flagged specific trees for investigation.

Why it matters: the work targets invasive vines and dead plant material that residents have said affect property edges and sightlines. The Board distinguished ES’s selective, hand‑work approach from a forestry‑mulching approach discussed for other areas, and authorized staff to proceed with the ES‑scope areas as amended.