Edgartown conservation officials are taking new measures to protect shorebirds after the New Year's Day Breach washed away the tern population's favorite nesting spot on Norton Point.

A proposed shorebird conservation restriction could hamper oversand vehicle (OSV) access on the Island and across the state.

A man trapped in a deep hole at Norton Point Beach Thursday was rescued with the help of highway department equipment after he became buried in the sand, officials said. No one was injured during the incident.

A vehicle closure to protect piping plovers may be imminent at Norton Point beach in Edgartown.

The action comes against a backdrop in which Dukes County Sheriff Michael A. McCormack has agreed to take on beach management for the county.

Two piping plover nests have been found on the beach, about 400 yards from the western end at Katama. Another nest has been found on State Beach.

County manager E. Winn Davis said Wednesday he had been advised by Robert Culbert, a consultant to the county, that the plovers may hatch by the end of this week.

Favorable tides may help in the removal of a 71-foot abandoned sea scalloper that has been stranded on Norton Point Beach for nearly two weeks, raising concerns about the environmental effects both on the beach and on the coastal birds nesting nearby.

The New Bedford vessel Midnight Rider could be removed as early as Thursday, with officials looking at astronomical high tides this week to help with its removal.

Heavy surf caused by Hurricane Bill brought “closed to swimming” signs to south-facing Island beaches all weekend, sanctions surfers cheerfully ducked. What the storm left was additional erosion, though the bigger loss may be economic, as many visiting boaters took off when they heard the warnings broadcast last week.

The ocean-facing beach around the treacherous breach at Norton Point Beach on the Chappaquiddick side was closed to swimmers yesterday following a fatality over the weekend.