Berlin Conservation Commission Approves Wheeler Pond Dam Order of Conditions With Amendments

BERLIN — March 18, 2026 — Berlin Conservation Commission approves amended order of conditions for Wheeler Pond Dam Restoration Project. The commission voted unanimously Wednesday to approve the order of conditions under DEP file number 107-0280, making several amendments during the meeting including clarifying that a July-through-October window applies to invasive-species mitigation work rather than monitoring observations, requiring jute wattles for erosion controls, and softening a dewatering-notification requirement from a hard three-week deadline to a stated goal. Members described the project as the largest the commission has ever overseen and noted the order of conditions was unusual enough to include a table of contents. The board also voted unanimously to authorize staff to add confirmed community-outreach language to a letter of support for a Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness grant application by Interfluve, an ecological restoration firm, with proposed outreach events including a public day-of-dam-removal event at the project site. A member flagged a new concern on Randall Road where a pipe discharging an estimated 8 to 12 gallons per minute of silty water from a new residential development may be blocking a culvert and reaching nearby wetlands, with further site inspection planned.