Hatfield Conservation Commission Tables Marijuana Farm Wetlands Application

HATFIELD — January 27, 2022 — Hatfield Conservation Commission tables marijuana farm wetlands application, orders site visit. The commission voted unanimously Thursday to continue a request for determination of applicability filed by Swarovski Brothers LLC, which proposes a marijuana cultivation facility on land off Straits Road, to its February 10 meeting. Engineer Chris Chamberlain of Berkshire Design Group argued that culvert replacement and access road improvements qualify as normal maintenance of agricultural land under 310 CMR 10.04, and that cannabis cultivation constitutes agriculture under the state Wetlands Protection Act — a position the DEP confirmed it has issued no guidance on. Commission Chair Bob Hennessey said he lacked enough information to issue a negative determination on buffer-zone work that includes a gravel road running as close as 58 feet from flagged wetlands, a building, a septic system, and a parking lot, and cited missing plan notes that failed to export from the applicant's CAD file. The applicants offered to withdraw the building, septic, and parking lot from the current request; Hennessey said a revised, re-noticed plan would be required. Consultant Jared Glansberger said delays of weeks could cost the project its 2022 Cannabis Control Commission licensing window.