The Muddy River
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Brookline GreenSpace Alliance is a non-profit membership organization dedicated to the enhancement of open space PLACE in Brookline by supporting Fall 2009 citizens in caring for their green spaces. The Muddy River: Engineering Nature by Kate Bowditch, Hydrologist Grassroots support for a green community “…the unsightly, foul-smelling, mud-bordered waterways have become… places of surpassing In this issue beauty.” From A History of Brookline, Massachusetts by John William Denehy, 1905 Engineering & his August, as Hurricane Bill swung Conventional engineering might have had Hydrology on an uncertain course towards New us give up on the tranquil stream. In order TEngland, the Muddy River’s flood to control the occasional but serious floods, Flood of 1996 watch team went onto alert. Though the reduce erosion and protect property, many Contaminated Water river was at its lowest flow levels of the year, cities and towns have chosen to enclose its eroded banks exposed and its surface streams in concrete culverts, often burying The Restoration stagnant, the flood team knew what few them altogether -- as we did to the Village Project residents think about: the Muddy River can Urban Hydrology change from a trickling tributary to a violent Friends Insert 1.2 inches of rain – which in Brookline flood in a matter of hours. might occur several times per year – gener- BGSA presents a photo exhibition When it rains, stormwater runoff from about ates over 32,000 gallons of water per acre. “Hidden Spaces, Public Places” two thirds of Brookline’s 6.8 square miles Brookline is over 4,300 acres, much of it Hunneman Hall, Main Branch of the flows directly into the Muddy River through paved over with roads and buildings and Brookline Public Library. underground pipes; millions of gallons of driveways, generating tens of millions of water pour into the river from a handful of gallons of stormwater runoff in even a mod- Opening Reception storm drain outfalls. Over time, thanks in erate storm. It should come as no surprise Monday, Nov. 2, 5:30 PM large part to those surges of stormwater, the that the elevation of the Muddy River can Presentation and Refreshments river has become choked with sediment, rise three to four feet in a matter of hours. debris and vegetation, reducing its ability to carry floodwaters quickly out to the Charles River and Boston Harbor. The same Brook which once flowed from as far as sediment and debris have polluted the river, Cleveland Circle all the way through town damaging habitats and allowing contami- to what is now Leverett Pond. In the past, nants to build up. politicians and engineers thought these were the best solutions and generations of Managing the Muddy River so it can safely civil engineers became expert at sizing pipes handle these enormous storm flows and and designing concrete stream channels. still survive as a tranquil, healthy stream in Along the way, natural streams and wetlands between storms is a tremendous challenge, were lost, and larger rivers that could not be and one we have been gradually losing over buried or culverted gradually deteriorated the past twenty years. as pollution and occasional floods destroyed continued on page 6 PLACE is published twice a year, in spring and fall, by Brookline GreenSpace Alliance 370 Washington Street, Brookline, MA 02445 Tel: 617.277.4777 Web: brooklinegreenspace.org Board Members Officers Recollections of the Muddy River Flood Executive Director’s Statement Arlene Mattison, President by Edward Hsieh Anita Johnson, Vice President October 1996 Marian Lazar, V.P.-Publications Deirdre Buckley, Secretary by Deborah Rivers, LEED Accredited Architect his issue of PLACE is focused on one park night in 1996 to find it knee deep with water. He Ron Brown, Treasurer in our town, the Emerald Necklace. We also recounts how many times he remembers Directors have a world-famous park system in our being shocked that he could see the bottom of the Tony Andreadis s I started this article on a rainy Sep- restored Green Line service crawled through the T Harry Bohrs town to enjoy…….and to care for. river at Riverway Park. It was ironic to him that a Kate Bowditch tember Saturday, I thought back to tunnels for several months with subterranean D. Ernest Cook that weekend almost 13 years ago, in flag persons. I am fairly new to town, but it seems that many in river so seemingly shallow could so suddenly trash Anne Covert A his basement. He does not need reminders of how Rob Daves October 1996, where it rained approximately 9 At work, one of our clients, Wentworth Institute town –new and old- need reminding of the impor- Mary Dewart important the Emerald Necklace is to flood control Betsy Shure Gross inches in 3 days. On Saturday of that weekend, of Technology, had recently opened a new Com- tance of the system and the commitments and Hugh Mattison as we drove into the Fenway area on a routine responsibility our Town has to the park system. We and public health, and how badly it needs repair. Merelice puter Center designed by my firm. Located on Ryan Pace errand we noticed that the Muddy River had need to be reminded that the Emerald Necklace Riverway Park has received proportionally less Fred Perry the ground floor, it was flooded as were many Linda Phelke overflowed its banks closing off a lane of the was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the first money in Town funds than any other park, and Deborah Rivers other ground floor spaces in the various institu- Lucy Robb Riverway. This did not seem that unusual, as it tions which comprise the Colleges of the Fenway American landscape architect, noted for Central delayed maintenance in the Emerald Necklace had Gregg Shapiro is a low-lying area and there had already been Park in New York, who turned what was once an severe consequences. This November, Brookline Ronny Sydney including Northeastern University, Wheelock Don Weitzman quite a bit of rain. It continued to rain, heavy at unhealthy swamp into an enjoyable watershed Town Meeting must vote YES on appropriations Bruce Wolff College and Simmons College. The Colleges of times, for the rest of the day and all day Sunday. system; and that Olmsted-designed parks are so for restoring the Carlton Street Footbridge a Advisors the Fenway have been very supportive of the Michael Berger important to our state that the 1984 and 1987 MA historic element whose reopening was commit- Michael Dukakis The surprise came on Monday morning as I Muddy River Restoration project because of Corliss Engle Open Space environmental bond bills commit- ted to in all previous agreements. Then the Town Frances Shedd Fisher headed to work. When I got to the Green Line its flood control provisions. Part of the origi- Chobee Hoy station at Brookline Hills, I found out that we nal concept of the Muddy River as envisioned ted $32 million to a state-wide Olmsted Historic can consult with the Massachusetts Historic Member Organizations were being bused to Copley because the tun- by Fredrick Law Olmsted was to act as a flood Landscape Preservation Program. Commission and apply for grants to subsidize Brookline Farmers’ Market Bridge work. If it is what we want as a commu- Brookline Soccer Club nel leading to Kenmore station, and the sta- plain; because the system had not been properly After years of neglect, the Town of Brookline and Brookline Village Coalition nity, the Restoration Project will move ahead. Brookline Youth Baseball tion itself, were flooded. The MBTA had lost maintained, this time it could not handle the City of Boston approved an Emerald Necklace Campaign to Preserve St. Aidan’s Remembering previous commitments, we should Chestnut Hill Garden Club its institutional memory of the dam that could amount of rain that fell. Fenway institutions, Master Plan in 1989 and that Master Plan is the Chestnut Hill Village Alliance have been placed across the tunnel portal at the Brookline homeowners, T riders, and taxpayers guiding source for the rehabilitation and restora- keep our part of the agreements with Boston and Climate Change Action Brookline the State government and invest in the Muddy Fisher Hill Association Fenway station allowing the same surplus water all paid the price. tion of the Muddy River parks in the Emerald Friends of Billy Ward Playground River Parks. The citizens of Brookline deserve Friends of Boylston Playground Assoc. that caused the Riverway to flood to make its New controls are in place in the Fenway, but to Necklace. We need to remember that the Town Friends of Brookline Reservoir of Brookline Board of Selectmen signed a having the necessary work done to undo years of Friends of Carlton Street Footbridge way through the tunnel to flood Kenmore sta- avoid the far reaching consequences of floods Friends of Corey Hill Park tion. The flood was not discovered until the first Memorandum of Understanding over a decade neglect because now the water is polluted, much Friends of Cypress Field like that in 1996, the Muddy River Project needs parkland shabby, and the possibility of flooding is Friends of Dane Park trip Monday morning when an outbound driver to move forward and widen the river bed in ago agreeing to cooperate to ensure the success of a Friends of Emerson Garden real. Friends of Fairsted reached a low point in the tunnel and encoun- Brookline and Boston by removing invasive restoration project, and that other memoranda of Friends of Griggs Park agreement and understanding followed; and that So, it is good to focus on our own piece of the Friends of Hall’s Pond tered water.