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Water Resources and the Urban Environment, Lower Charles River Watershed, Massachusetts, 1630–2005

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Water Resources and the Urban Environment, Lower Charles River Watershed, Massachusetts, 1630–2005 Water Resources and the Urban Environment, Lower Charles River Watershed, Massachusetts, 1630–2005 By Peter K. Weiskel, Lora K. Barlow and Tomas W. Smieszek In cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection Circular 1280 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Department of the Interior Gale A. Norton, Secretary U.S. Geological Survey Charles G. Groat, Director U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2005 For sale by U.S. Geological Survey, Information Services Box 25286, Denver Federal Center Denver, CO 80225 For more information about the USGS and its products: Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov/ Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report. Suggested citation: Weiskel, P.K., Barlow, L.K., Smieszek, T.W., 2005, Water resources and the urban environment, lower Charles River watershed, Massachusetts, 1630–2005: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1280, 46 p. iii Contents Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………… 1 Purpose and Scope ……………………………………………………………………… 2 Previous Investigations ………………………………………………………………… 2 Landscape History …………………………………………………………………………… 11 Bedrock Geology ………………………………………………………………………… 11 Surficial Geology ………………………………………………………………………… 11 Human Alteration of the Landscape …………………………………………………… 12 Filling of Back Bay ………………………………………………………………… 12 Other Landmaking Projects ………………………………………………………… 12 Water Resources ……………………………………………………………………………… 17 Surface-Water Resources ……………………………………………………………… 17 Streams …………………………………………………………………………… 17 Charles River ………………………………………………………………… 17 Stony Brook …………………………………………………………………… 20 Muddy River ………………………………………………………………… 20 Laundry Brook ………………………………………………………………… 21 Faneuil Brook ………………………………………………………………… 22 Other Streams ………………………………………………………………… 22 Ponds, Reservoirs, and Wetlands ………………………………………………… 26 Ground-Water Resources ……………………………………………………………… 27 Water and the Urban Environment …………………………………………………………… 28 Hydrologic Effects of Urbanization ……………………………………………………… 29 Factors Controlling Runoff and Recharge ………………………………………… 29 Runoff Quality ……………………………………………………………………… 32 Water Supply and Sewage Disposal …………………………………………………… 33 The Colonial Era …………………………………………………………………… 33 Public-Water Supply in the Modern Era …………………………………………… 34 Public-Sewage Collection and Disposal in the Modern Era ……………………… 34 The Main Drainage Works …………………………………………………… 35 The Back Bay Fens Sanitary Improvement …………………………………… 38 The 1908 Charles River Dam ………………………………………………… 40 Recent History ………………………………………………………………… 41 Summary ……………………………………………………………………………………… 42 Acknowledgments …………………………………………………………………………… 44 References Cited ……………………………………………………………………………… 44 iv Figures 1–10. Maps showing: 1. Location and major tributary watersheds of the lower Charles River, Massachusetts, 2004 ………………………………………………………… 4 2. A plan of the town of Boston and its environs, with the lines, batteries, and encampments of the British and American armies, 1776 ……………… 5 3. Lower Charles River watershed, 1852 ……………………………………… 7 4. Lower Charles River watershed, 1885–86 …………………………………… 8 5. Water resources of the lower Charles River watershed …………………… 10 6. Topography of the lower Charles River watershed ………………………… 13 7. Simplified bedrock geology of the lower Charles River watershed ………… 14 8. Surficial deposits of the lower Charles River watershed …………………… 15 9. The estimated 1630 Boston shoreline, overlying a 1999 orthophotograph of Boston and surrounding areas …………………………………………… 16 10. Land-use types in the lower Charles River watershed, 2002 ………………… 19 11. Photograph showing the culverting of Stony Brook at Forest Hills, about 1905 … 21 12. Map showing major tributary watersheds and small watershed areas of the lower Charles River ………………………………………………………… 23 13–16. Graphs showing: 13. Population of Boston, 1790 to 2000 ………………………………………… 29 14. A, Average monthly precipitation and evaporation from surface-water bodies in the lower Charles River watershed; B, average monthly temperature, city of Boston; C, average annual rainfall, simulated runoff, simulated evapotranspiration, and simulated recharge in the lower Charles River watershed …………………………………………………………… 30 15. A, Rainfall measured in 15-minute increments at the Watertown Dam during a storm, July 27–28, 2000; B, streamflow per unit watershed area during this storm at stream-gaging stations in the multifamily, Faneuil Brook, Laundry Brook, and Charles River watersheds; C, surficial deposits; D, average slope; and E, impervious surface area in the Laundry Brook, Faneuil Brook, and multifamily watersheds ………………………………………………… 31 16. Boxplots showing quality of runoff in the Charles River at Watertown, and in major tributary streams of the lower Charles River watershed during wet-weather events, 2000: A, fecal coliform; B, total phosphorus; C, total recoverable lead …………………………………………………………… 33 17. Lithograph of the Boston Water Celebration on Boston Common, October 25, 1848 ………………………………………………………………… 34 18. Map showing the Main Drainage Works sewage-collection system, Boston, 1884 ……………………………………………………………………… 36 19. Schematic of combined-sewer overflow (CSO) under dry-and wet-weather conditions ………………………………………………………………………… 38 20. Map showing the confluence of Stony Brook, Muddy River, and the Charles River, as it existed in the early 19th century, and the subsequently constructed area of the Back Bay Fens, about 1903 ………………………………………………… 39 21. Photograph showing the seawall and tidal flats on the Boston side of the lower Charles River, northern Back Bay, about 1900 ……………………………… 41 v Tables 1. Named tributaries of the lower Charles River, Massachusetts. ………………… 18 2. Characteristics of watersheds that drain directly to the lower Charles River ……………………………………………………………………… 24 3. Ponds, reservoirs, and wetlands of the lower Charles River watershed. ………… 27 Conversion Factors, Datums, and Abbreviations Multiply By To obtain acre 0.4047 hectare (ha) cubic foot per second (ft3/s) 0.02832 cubic meter per second (m3/s) cubic foot per second per square 0.01093 cubic meter per second per square mile [(ft3/s)/mi2] kilometer [(m3/s)/km2] foot (ft) 0.3048 meter (m) foot per second (ft/s) 0.3048 meter per second (m/s) inch (in.) 25.4 millimeter (mm) inch per month (in/mo) 25.4 millimeter per month (mm/mo) inch per year (in/yr) 25.4 millimeter per year (mm/yr) mile (mi) 1.609 kilometer (km) million gallons (Mgal) 3,785 cubic meter (m3) million gallons per day (Mgal/d) 0.04381 cubic meter per second (m3/s) square mile (mi2) 259.0 hectare (ha) square mile (mi2) 2.590 square kilometer (km2) Temperature in degrees Celsius (°C) may be converted to degrees Fahrenheit (°F) as follows: °F = (1.8 × °C) + 32 Temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (°F) may be converted to degrees Celsius (°C) as follows: °C = (°F - 32) / 1.8 Vertical coordinate information is referenced to the North American Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD 29). Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83). Concentrations of chemical constituents in water are given either in milligrams per liter (mg/L) or micrograms per liter (µg/L). BWSC Boston Water and Sewer Commission CRWA Charles River Watershed Association MWRA Massachusetts Water Resources Authority USEPA U.S. Environmental Protection Agency USGS U.S. Geological Survey Courtesy of T.C. Weiskel Weiskel Courtesy of T.C. Eel fishing, Back Bay section of the lower Charles River, about 1845. The causeway in the background was built for the Boston & Worcester Railroad, which began serving passengers in 1835. Water Resources and the Urban Environment, Lower Charles River Watershed, Massachusetts, 1630–2005 By Peter K. Weiskel, Lora K. Barlow, and Tomas W. Smieszek for example, were culverted, or placed into tunnels, Introduction and many of the ponds and freshwater wetlands in the watershed were filled to facilitate urban development. The Charles River, one of the Nation’s most One additional legacy of the river’s long human historically significant rivers, flows through the center of history is pollution from industry and sewage. By the Boston metropolitan region in eastern Massachusetts 1875, a total of 43 mills were operating along the (fig. 1). The lower Charles River, downstream of the lower Charles River between Watertown Dam and original head of tide in Watertown, was originally a Boston Harbor (Charles River Watershed Association, productive estuary and important source of fish and 2004a). Thousands of gallons of untreated sewage and shellfish for the Native Americans of the region. This industrial wastewater entered the river daily through portion of the river has an exceptionally long and gravity drains, posing a major threat to public health colorful human history. In 1615, the explorer Captain (City of Boston, 1878). Concerted efforts to address John Smith gave the river its modern name, in honor the sewage problem began in the late 1870s. By the of young Prince Charles of England. In 1617–18, the 1960s, the water quality of the river was significantly Native American community of the watershed was improved, yet still not suitable for swimming, fishing, decimated by an epidemic, after having continuously or even boating under most conditions.
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