OPINION: Protect Wareham’s and Onset’s drinking water
Wicked Local
Greetings fellow citizens. I write to you today to correct some misinformation in an opinion piece in the Wareham Courier regarding the proposed rezoning article to be considered by Wareham voters at a Special Town Meeting this Saturday, April 10, (“Opinion: Selectman Teitelbaum says beware of misinformation” April 6).
As a citizen of this Town and Wareham Land Trust president, I attended every Planning Board meeting regarding the proposed rezoning of East Wareham since the meetings began on Nov. 30, 2020 and I have submitted letters expressing our concerns to the Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board. By attending all these Planning Board meetings, I have seen this proposal change from acreage that was roughly one quarter of the town (from Charge Pond Road and Route 25 north and east to Plymouth) to 963 acres and now to 756 acres.
OPINION/Protect Wareham’s natural resources, vote ‘No’ on Article 1
Wicked Local
Jocelyn Forbush is acting president and CEO of The Trustees of Reservations
While responsible economic development is a must for every community, we’re asking Wareham residents to vote “No” on Article 1 because rezoning these 700-plus acres potentially threatens the town’s drinking water, rare species habitat, local wildlife, and outdoor recreational opportunities, which many residents enjoy.
The most important reason to oppose this effort to create a “Hospitality, Recreation, and Entertainment Overlay District” at the April 10 Special Town Meeting is that it threatens to permanently damage Wareham’s drinking water supply. This land is home to the Plymouth-Carver Sole Source Aquifer Wareham’s only source of clean drinking water. Dense commercial development not only means increased water withdrawals that the region can’t absorb, but also the threat of groundwater contamina