Pier plan fuels concern over oysters' survival

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• NORWALK -- Shellfish officials said they are concerned that a recent pier permit issued by the state Department of Environmental Protection will damage fragile oyster beds.
• The permit allows a property owner off Seaside Place in East Norwalk to build a fixed pier, ramp and floating dock that officials say will jut out 82 feet into Norwalk Harbor and the city's famed oyster beds.
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• John Frank, chairman of the Norwalk Shellfish Commission, said the structures will be in a part of the harbor where commercial shellfishermen frequently dredge for oysters. The dock also will likely rest on the bottom of the shoreline during low tides, potentially hurting the city's oyster population, he said."In this case, it's one of the few places in Norwalk where we can get oysters, and we're willing to fight for it," Frank said.
• Oysters have been on the decline in Norwalk for a number of years since being hit by two parasites, MSX and Dermo, in 1997. The parasites destroyed state beds, killing about nine out of 10 oysters.
• Shellfishermen watched the state's oyster bushels drop from a high of 894,000 in 1992 to a low of 24,000 bushels in 2004.
• Oyster beds have just begun to recover from the epidemic and are showing signs of a robust year, said Norm Bloom Jr., who owns Norm Bloom & Son shellfish company.
• "The oysters are doing good. Everything we have is living, so the more areas and beds we can protect, the better it will be," Bloom said.
• David Evans of 11 Seaside Place submitted his plan for the dock to the Norwalk Harbor Commission and Norwalk Shellfish Commission last year. Both agencies rejected the plans because the dock would lie on city shellfish beds at ebb tide and harm the beds, harbor officials said. From there, his plans were submitted for review to the DEP, the state agency that issues pier permits.
• DEP officials revised the plans so that the dock structure would not hurt the city's oyster population, said Dennis Schain, an agency spokesman. The tentative plan, called a notice of tentative agreement, was released by the DEP on Nov. 22 and included a 40-day comment period. Members of the city's Shellfish and Harbor Management commissions submitted several suggestions Dec. 29 on ways to improve the plan.
• DEP officials took Norwalk harbor officials' comments into consideration as they modified the plan to create a pier that would not hurt shellfish beds, Schain said. "We believe the approved structure will allow for a dock at this property while protecting important resources, including shellfish," Schain said.
• Charles Evans, director of the Office of Long Island Sound Programs, said in a letter announcing approval of the structure that several modifications were made to the plan. The revisions reduce the length of the fixed pier, trimming the entire structure by about 15 feet.
• The DEP issued the permit to David Evans on April 10 but did not seek input from Norwalk officials on the final version of the plan, Harbor Management Commission Chairman Tony Mobilia said. "We are upset because we didn't get a chance to review this permit since the plan was revised and we never got to see the revision of the application," Mobilia said. "We usually have a chance to review it and, in this case, that did not happen." Mobilia plans to discuss the effect the pier will have on Norwalk Harbor with the Harbor Management Commission at its meeting Wednesday evening.
• "We don't want to stop the guy from getting a dock," Frank said. "He has a beautiful location in a subdivision that has been there for about 100 years. No one has ever had a dock there because there's no water at low tide, but you can't fault him for thinking he could improve his property if he could do it." But Frank said his commission has an obligation to ensure minimal damage. Schain said Norwalk officials can do little now that the permit has been issued besides file an appeal as an "aggrieved party" with the state Superior Court.
• Frank said he wants to see whether Norwalk officials can stop the pier from being built or help the shorefront owner revise his dock plans with a more environmentally friendly design. Frank would rather see a 25-foot pier installed with a boat lift, an alternative he said will protect the oysters.
• "I think they made a mistake, and if we go about it right, I think it can be reconciled without a lot of ceremony and without anybody being embarrassed," he said. [Stamford Advocate, by Alison Damast]