Group Urges Town To Protect Habitats

AMENIA — The town of Amenia contains unique habitats that should be protected from both small- and large-scale development.

That was the gist of a presentation made by members of the environmental research group Hudsonia at the Town Board’s meeting Jan. 11.

Hudsonia has been studying the town’s habitats for 10 months.

Biologist Kristen Bell and Executive Director Erik Kiviat, presented the group’s findings at the meeting.

"Amenia has amazing biological resources. It has habitats that are uncommon elsewhere in Dutchess County," said Bell, who noted that 92 percent of town land is biologically significant.

Bell compared Amenia to the town of East Fishkill, which has lost nearly half of its habitats due to development.

"Amenia is in a better position to make better development decisions," the biologist said.

In Bell’s eyes, some of Amenia’s best features are its large supply of limey bedrock and Stockbridge marble, which support plant life, as well as thousands of acres of forests that support bears, mountain lions and bobcats.

The town’s hayfields support songbirds and butterflies and fens, or freshwater-fed wetlands, provide a home for many plants, as well as invertebrates such as bog turtles, the two said.

"Fens are common habitats in Amenia. There are 83 here and that’s just an estimate. But just because they’re common here doesn’t mean they’re not important," Bell said.

Wassaic Creek, Webatuck Creek and Ten Mile River provides Amenia with "lots of really great wetlands," Bell said.

"These are some of the biological resources that make Amenia so special. But in order to protect a habitat, you need to protect the area around it," the biologist said.

Bell suggested that the town establish "conservation zones" to protect a habitat’s flora and fauna.

The biologist suggested the town take into account which habitats support what animals, what the creatures require from that habitat and where they breed in order to designate the conservation zones.

For example, if the town wants to protect the bog turtle, it could set up a 2,500-foot zone around a fen.

Bell suggested that the town ask developers to conduct a rare species study if they want to develop on a fen, or any of Amenia’s important habitats.

According to Bell, these precautions will aid the town in "managing property with biodiversity in mind."

One way of achieving this is through conservation easements, or large stretches of land that are undevelopable by law.

Bell said she looks forward to working with town committees such as the Planning Board, the Conservation Advisory Council (CAC) and the Comprehensive Plan Implementation Committee (CPIC) in the future.

"We could set up a couple of workshops," she said.

After the presentation, Bell and Kiviat fielded question from the audience.

"Is there any connection you use between these areas and the way taxation takes place?" asked Sharon Kroeger, a resident of the Leedsville hamlet of Amenia.

"We don’t have an answer for that right now," Kiviat responded. "But a lot of habitats ... are in wetlands that are protected by federal or state regulations. You might be able to get a break on property tax if you have wetlands that are essentially undevelopable. But it’s pretty much a question of local policy and we don’t know how it plays out."

"The town of Amenia does not recognize easements as tax deductible," Allan Shope, a Wassaic resident, interjected.

"But you can revisit rules and regulations," Kiviat suggested.