The Wetlands Bylaw Committee established at Fall Town Meeting in October 2015 is off to a good start.

Committee member Kenny Baptiste said the group of eight went over various aspects of the bylaw, which Selectmen had deemed as too restrictive in early October. Though the bylaw was slated to be deleted, if a deletion passed Town Meeting vote, it was saved at the last minute by Selectman Peter Teitelbaum’s proposal to create a committee that would study the bylaw and find ways to make it less restrictive, while maintaining its environmental friendliness.

Massachusetts law states that residents and business owners must file notices of intent, when they wish to build within 100 feet of a wetland, and that they may build up to, but not past, the wetland line. The town’s bylaw differs in that residents must leave at least 30 feet between the end of any proposed construction and the beginning of a wetland line on their property, and business owners must leave at least 50 feet.

Baptiste is also the Conservation Commission’s Chairman. He said the group hasn’t yet gotten everything in motion, but said the committee is still “gathering intelligence,” and ironing out any misunderstandings those who are not as familiar with the bylaw may have.

“We were just getting a feel for what people have to deal with every day, and how we can … adjust it to make [Conservation Agent David Pichette’s] job a little easier, easier for the public to understand, and make it easier for people to do their projects,” Baptiste said.

Baptiste said he is also planning to have a discussion with the rest of the Conservation Commission Jan. 14, to “get their input, put it all together, and see what we come up with.”

As far as moving forward, Baptiste said the committee will need to come up with a rough draft of a new bylaw, and get it OK-ed by an engineer and the town’s attorney, Richard Bowen.

"There was progress," Baptiste said.