Littleton Conservation Commission issues enforcement orders over unpermitted Forge Pond dredging

LITTLETON -- January 20, 2026, Littleton Conservation Commission issues enforcement orders after unpermitted dredging removed roughly 70 cubic yards of muck from Forge Pond. Property owners Irving Matheson of 2 and 6 Blood Road and John Scott of 8 Blood Road acknowledged using a wheel loader during the pond's annual drawdown to remove accumulated sediment, leaves, and invasive plant material from the lakebed, hauling the material to off-site farm fields. Co-Chair Chase Gerbig called the operation a dredging project requiring Army Corps of Engineers authorization and a state water-quality certification, noting it exceeded the scope of the existing Friends of Forge Pond Order of Conditions, which permitted only suction-based removal up to 99 cubic yards, a limit already met. The commission voted 6-0 on each of two separate enforcement orders and directed no further work until Conservation Agent Tim Pearson coordinates a joint site visit with the Department of Environmental Protection once snow melts. The same meeting also produced unanimous endorsements of four Community Preservation Committee funding applications totaling $150,000 for herbicide treatment and lake management plans at Forge Pond and Long Lake.