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Fall 2014: Grassland Habitat

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Fall 2014: Grassland Habitat Grassland Habitat Managing the ecosystem of Wachusett’s North Dike Ken MacKenzie, DCR Wildlife Biologist A kestrel nest box stands sentry in the middle of Wachusett Reservoir’s North Dike. DCR has started managing a portion of the dike’s expanse as habitat for several breeding birds. uring the construction of the Wachusett Dam (completed in 1906), some areas of new shoreline required fortifi- Dcation with earth and stone dikes to ensure a safe and stable container for the 65 billion gallons of water soon to be stored in the reservoir. The North and South Dikes, located on either side of the dam, comprise 2.5 miles of shoreline, averaging just over 380 feet in width and covering 116 acres. The history of these earthen berms’ management is very interesting, as is their modern function as wildlife habitat for uncommon migra- tory birds. The dikes have gone through many the dikes have become grasslands, transformations over the years. From kept open by mowing on an irregular 1916 until about 1936 the land was schedule. leased as hay fields. In 1940, the Due to damage inflicted in 2005 by North Dike was planted with red Hurricane Katrina to New Orleans, pine and arborvitae. A December the Federal Emergency Management 1973 storm destroyed most of the red Agency (FEMA) devised new guide- pine, and by February of 1974 it was lines for dikes and dams. The revised all removed. Once again, the land FEMA guidelines consider trees and was leased to local farmers for corn, other woody plants growing on earthen wheat, soybeans and hay. Agriculture dams and dikes a safety issue. Not only NUMBER 32 ceased in 1997 because the crops were do they interfere with safety inspec- Fall 2014 attracting geese, which degrade water tions, but decaying roots could create quality. The following year, 3,000 seepage paths or internal erosion. Massachusetts Department seedlings of red oak, white oak and Trees and woody brush can also attract of Conservation and Recreation sugar maple were planted. Unfortu- burrowing animals, which can cause Division of Water Supply Protection nately, most of the seedlings did not structural or hydraulic problems. As a www.mass.gov/dcr/watersupply survive that dry summer. Since then, Continued on Page 4 2 Downstream • Fall 2014 Maintenance at Quabbin’s Winsor Dam How do they mow that steep slope? By Scott Campbell, DCR Regional Engineer, Quabbin Reservoir insor Dam and the Good- nough Dike, constructed Wbetween 1935 and 1939, are two earthen dam structures that together impound about 412 billion gallons of water from the Swift River Valley and Ware River Diversion. Winsor Dam, the larger of the two structures, spans 2,640 feet in length and rises 170 feet above the original bed of the Swift River. Goodnough Dike is only slightly smaller, span- ning 2,140 feet and rising 135 feet above the original bed of Beaver Brook. Combined, the two structures contain more than 55 acres of grassed landscape areas, roughly eight acres of In This Issue: Working With Nature 1 A slippery slope? This view of the back of Quabbin Reservoir’s Winsor Dam shows the Grassland habitat on the Wachusett dikes daunting task facing the mower (in the center of the picture). It takes two days to mow the whole face of the dam. Winsor Dam 2 Maintaining Quabbin Reservoir’s dam rip rap stone embankment, and more cover that is easily inspected and resis- than two miles of drainage ditches and tant to erosion. As many homeowners Dam Inspections 3 DWSP efforts to keep their dams safe subsurface piping. The varied land- could personally attest to, challenges scapes and positions present unique to maintaining a healthy turf cover are Kids Corner 7 challenges with maintaining stable and many, including competing weeds, The dam and dike crossword vegetated conditions that support the soil drought, and nutrient deficiencies Then and Now 8 function and performance of the dams. to name a few. These conditions are Metropolitan Water Works meets the Labor crews stationed at the only made worse on steeply sloping Digital Commonwealth Quabbin Administration Building in grounds such as those that occupy the Photo/Image Credits Belchertown are charged with caring downstream embankments of the two Page 1 Ken MacKenzie for the grounds and landscapes associ- structures whose grades approach 50% Page 2 Top - Quabbin Visitors Center Bottom - Jim Taylor ated with the dam and dike. Regular (i.e., 1 on 2 - rise to run). It is a daunt- Page 3 Jim Taylor Page 4 Ken MacKenzie and Jim Taylor maintenance duties include brush ing task to operate equipment that can Page 5 Ken MacKenzie (all) Page 6 Top - Quabbin Visitors Center cutting, ditch and catch basin cleaning, traverse these steep slopes. Bottom - Ed Connor Page 7 Top - Kris Keevan leaf collection and removal, clearing of To overcome these inherent chal- Bottom - Joy Trahan-Liptak snow from driveways and general lawn lenges and dangers, DCR and its Page 8 Massachusetts State Archives maintenance. One of the more daunt- predecessors have employed numer- ing tasks is the regular mowing of the ous tools and equipment, including the predominately grassed landscape that use of manual scythes, conventional covers much of the embankment slopes farm tractors, and specialized slope and toe areas of the dam. tilting mowers. Annual Reports made A healthy, dense cover of low between 1939 and 1945 also make growing grass is the preferred vegeta- reference to an experimental goat tive cover for earthen dams because it grazing program that was employed Taking a walk on the North Dike. offers a maintainable, stable vegetative Continued on Page 6 Downstream • Fall 2014 3 Dam Inspections and Maintenance DCR’s efforts to keep them safe and secure By Joel Zimmerman, DCR Regional Planner, Bill Moulton, DCR Regional Engineer, Wachusett Reservoir, and Ed Connor, DCR Civil Engineer hen you say dams and What’s the difference between a dam and a dike? watershed management, Dams and dikes have similar functions: to hold back water. The difference? A dam has one thinks immediately of active features, such as a spillway to send excess water on its way downstream, as W well as control structures, like intakes, valves and gates. A dike merely functions as Winsor or Wachusett dams – magnifi- cent feats of engineering holding back an impounding ‘shoreline’, keeping water in place. There are a variety of dam and dike designs. These cross-section diagrams of the Wachusett Dam, Wachusett Dikes, and billions of gallons of water. Did you Quabbin Reservoir’s Winsor Dam are common designs used in the New England area. know, however, that DCR’s Division of Crest Water Supply Protection also has care WACHUSETT DAM Water Line and control of 28 other dams, most of The Wachusett Dam utilizes a rubble and concrete core, with a Stone Facing them very small, throughout the water- ‘key’ reaching down to bedrock. Upstream Side Downstream shed system? Engineers based at the The dam is encased on both sides Rubble Core Side Quabbin and Wachusett field offices with concrete and cut stone con- Reservoir Floor Heel Toe inspect and maintain these structures, struction. Key keeping them in compliance with all Bedrock Wachusett’s North and South Dikes federal and state regulations. are constructed of layers of fill and WACHUSETT DIKES Dam maintenance is an expensive silt excavated during construction Crest venture. MWRA utilizes its Capital of the reservoir, bermed up to a flat Water Line Improvement Program (CIP) to budget top and faced with stone rip-rap on Rip-Rap Face the reservoir side. “Fill” the significant funds - more than $20 Reservoir Floor million since 2005 - required for nec- The Winsor Dam at the Quab- essary infrastructure rehabilitation and bin Reservoir is more elaborately constructed, with a concrete improvements to the four largest dams WINSOR DAM caisson wall set on bedrock, rising and two dikes in the watershed system Upstream Side Downstream up through the center of the dam. – Winsor (Quabbin), Wachusett, Side This wall is further encased on both Fill ‘Shoulder’ Sudbury, and Foss Dams, as well as sides by a clay core and fill is used Crest Soil the North and South Dikes at Wachu- as a ‘shoulder’ to give the dam its Water Line Dressing sett Reservoir. All other expenses are shape. The reservoir side of the Rip-Rap & dam is faced with rip-rap near the Stone Facing covered by DCR’s Watershed Manage- top, graduating to finer crushed Clay Core Reservoir Floor ment annual budget. stone beneath the water’s surface. Heel Toe State Dam Safety regulations, 302 The back of the dam is dressed Concrete Caisson Wall Key CMR 10.00, are administered by with topsoil and maintained turf. Bedrock the Office of Dam Safety, which is a separate section within DCR. These regulations classify dams into four - Reservoir Watch - sizes: large, intermediate, small, and Reservoir levels and 6-month precipitation System-wide 6-month Water Usage non-jurisdictional. Dams are also clas- Reservoir Quabbin Wachusett sified by hazard type: (in million gallons per day) Minimum 524.95′ 388.1′ March to August 2014 % Full 90.7% 86.4% Hazard Inspection 250 228.99 227.33 Classification Description Frequency Date(s) 3/3/14 3/10/14 218.93 192.44 192.9 High Failure will likely Two years 3/12/14 200 181.48 (Class I) cause loss of life and serious 150 damage. Maximum 529.26′ 391.06′ Significant Failure may cause Five years 100 (Class (II) loss of life and % Full 98.6% 92.1% damage. Date(s) 5/28/14 5/3/14 50 Low Failure may cause Ten years (Class III) minimal property damage and loss of 0 life is not expected.
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