MassWildlife permits Makepeace to kill rare species, destroy about 350 acres of habitat for fake bogs, strip mines & solar
Since 2010, MassWildlife, working hand-in-hand with A.D. Makepeace, is responsible for giving out permits to kill rare plants and animals and destroy their habitats.
MassWildlife is giving these permits under the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act.
We have done extensive research on these projects and MassWildlife permits. Records from Public Records Requests are here.
Since 2010, A.D. Makepeace has been playing shell games with the permits. Some of them require the company to put land in conservation in exchange for killing rare species. Others require funding a “pine barrens” fund at MassWildlife. MassWildlife has spent most of this time chasing Makepeace down to make it keep its legal obligations.
MassWildlife refuses to give a clear explanation of whether Makepeace is in compliance with the permits. It double-dips on conservation acres using the same acres for different projects. Instead of donating the land, Makepeace sells it to MassWildlife. The public pays for the conservation land — paying Makepeace so it can make a deal to kill rare species and destroy habitat!
In 2021 MassWildlife even extended a Take Permit for Makepeace’s fake bog project at 46 Federal Road that has obliterated the endangered species habitat Makepeace was supposed to protect! Here is the letter:
There are 220 species of plants and animals in the Pine Barrens ecosystem that are protected under MESA. This includes the federally endangered Red Bellied Turtle, also known as the the Northern Cooter. By destroying habitat, Makepeace kills unknown numbers of rare plants and animals, wiping out entire habitats.
Species killed, entire habitats wiped out
MassWildlife gave Makepeace permits to kill these species protected under the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act as special concern, threatened or endangered.
Eastern Box Turtle
Barren’s Dagger Moth
Frosted Elfin (moth)
Gerhard’s Underwing Moth
Melsheimer’s Sack Bearer (moth)
Persuis Duskywing (butterfly)
Slender Clearwind Sphinx (moth)
Pine Swallow Moth
Northern Tiger Beetle
Cow Path Tiger Beetle
Fake bogs, strip mines & solar projects
MassWildlife is complicit in Makepeace’s scheme claiming it is building cranberry bogs and reservoirs when it is really just doing sand and gravel extraction. Here are the sites where MassWildlife gave Makepeace permits
Two fake bog projects given Take Permits by MassWildlife
46 Federal Road, Carver, 2011 Take permit for Eastern Box Turtle habitat to build cranberry bog and reservoir. 10 years later bog not build, active strip mine instead.
Frogfoot area, Tihonet Road, Plymouth. 2014, 136 acres of fake bogs. See the MassWildlife Take Permit here.
At least six strip mine and solar projects given Take Permits by MassWildlife
160 Tihonet Road, Wareham 50 acres sand mining & solar. Take permit for TEN SPECIES, including 2 endangered species, 2014 to present. MassWildlife REDREW the Priority Habitat to cut out the area destroyed by Makepeace’s solar project! See the Take Permit below.
71 Charlotte Furnace Road, Wareham 42 acres sand mining & solar. MassWildlife take permit for Eastern Box Turtle & “Turtle Protection Plan”*
196 Tremont Street, Carver 20 acres solar, 2021, Eastern Box Turtle habitat*
299 Farm to Market Road, Wareham 13 acres solar, Eastern Box Turtle habitat*
77 Farm to Market Road, Wareham, 24 acres for solar, Eastern Box Turtle habitat*
276 Federal Road, Carver, 79 acres, strip mine and solar (“Tihonet West Solar”)
*Source: Makepeace SWCA Letter, March 2021 below
200 acres of proposed ground mounted solar and strip mining threaten last intact forested lands, Indigenous sites, biodiversity in Wareham
Makepeace and Borrego Solar have 15 megawatts of ground mounted solar proposed in Wareham. They segmented the projects into three sites to be able to qualify for Massachusetts “SMART” solar subsidies. These three sites will impact almost 200 acres of pristine forested lands in the Atlantic Coastal Pine Barrens ecoregion. The projects will “take” rare species. Once again Makepeace is playing a shell game with mitigation and MassWildlife is going along. MassWildlife should NOT issue these take permits!