China planners OK permit application for Branch Mills dam

by Mary Grow

At their May 23 meeting, China Planning Board members unanimously approved a permit application related to the planned rebuilding of the dam in Branch Mills, on the West Branch of the Sheepscot River.

Codes Officer Nicholas French said the application is to move more than 100 cubic yards of earth, an activity that requires a planning board permit when located in the shoreland district.

The application was filed by the Brunswick-based Atlantic Salmon Federation (ASF); it was presented to the China board by Melissa Cote, Sheepscot River watershed manager for the Midcoast Conservancy, headquartered in Edgecomb. Accompanying paperwork says the Branch Pond dam, aka Dinsmore dam, is owned by the Brewer-based Maine Council Atlantic Salmon Federation, which has authorized ASF to rebuild the dam.

ASF’s summary on the first page of the application to the planning board says the project is “To repair the Branch Pond Dam to comply with state dam safety standards and operate correctly to meet the water level order, construct a fishway for native migratory fish to access their historic habitat, replacement of the dry fire hydrant so that it functions, create a hand-carry boat ramp for recreation and emergencies, improvements to gravel parking area for public access, security fencing and plantings for stabilization.”

The application says the property is about half an acre around the dam on both sides of the Sheepscot. The dam is more than 200 years old, the application says, “and does not meet safety requirements and cannot operate to handle flood events nor meet water level order.”

The Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) classified the dam as a “significant hazard” in October 1981, and the Maine Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) has reaffirmed the finding, while no “significant repairs” have been made.

The water level order was issued by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (MDEP) in October 2014 at the request of Branch Pond residents. The dam controls the pond’s water level.

Kleinschmidt Associates, of Pittsfield, has been working on engineering plans for the last five years. Repair work includes new gates and fill along the shore.

An Alaska SteepPass Fishway (made by Sheepscot Machine Works, in Newcastle, according to the company’s website) will help alewives and perhaps other migratory fish species go upstream to historic spawning grounds. A “gated plunge pool” will facilitate autumn downstream migration.

The application says the dry fire hydrant doesn’t work; a 2022 inspection team that included Palermo and China fire chiefs found it “was never constructed properly decades ago and needed to be completely replaced.”

The project needs other approvals and permits besides China’s. The application references historic preservation, endangered species (Atlantic salmon and Northern Long-Eared Bats), and permit applications being reviewed by the MDEP and the ACE.

The written application, and Cote in her presentation, emphasized consultation with affected residents and groups, like the Branch Pond Association; with local officials; and with state and federal agencies. A recent example was the May 6 public meeting in the Grange Hall, in Branch Mills. Cote said about 35 people attended, and there was “no negative feedback.”

Planning board continues preparing new section of land development code

After their May 23 permit approval for the Branch Mills dam work, China Planning Board members returned to their ongoing project, preparing a new section of China’s Land Development Code that, if approved by voters, would regulate solar installations in town.

Working from a draft that currently has 13 sections, they got part way into section 6 at their May 9 meeting and into section 7 on May 23.

The first three sections are standard: title, authority and purpose. Following sections involve defining types of installations covered and developing standards, complex processes board members discussed in detail.

The good news is that Section 13, when they get to it, has a single sentence: “The Ordinance becomes effective on [insert date].”

Board members intend to develop a draft in the next couple months and ask China select board members to present it to town voters on Nov. 8.

The board’s first June meeting would have fallen on June 13, Election Day. The reschedule date, as of May 30, was Thursday, June 15.