The City Council recently enacted stricter protections along the Copicut Reservoir in the Bioreserve, which a year ago became open to shoreline fishing for the first time.
The prohibited activities include swimming and boating, along with starting open fires, dumping and holding drinking parties.
The ordinance allows the Fall River Environmental Police to enforce regulations established by the Southeastern Massachusetts Bioreserve Agreement, according to Sara Riley, who with her husband Martin has lived on Copicut Road the past four years and has helped organize annual cleanups.
"Our aim is to guarantee no one uses the Bioreserve as a landfill,” Riley said. “It’s really not about catching people, it’s about preventing it.”
The ordinance increases fines to a level that will serve as a strong deterrent.
Under the ordinance, the environmental police can make criminal arrests with fines up to $5,000, along with issuing non-criminal summonses. Previously, fines ranged from $100 to $300.
The Copicut Reservoir [...]

Original post by Michael Holtzman