sign in sign up
<<
Home , Boston Harbor, History of Massachusetts, Quincy Bay, Shawmut Peninsula

Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Regional Studies in Marine Science

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rsma

Boston Harbor, , , USA: Transformation from ‘the harbor of shame’ to a vibrant coastal resource ∗ J.L. Bowen , C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski, A.R. Hughes, S.B. Scyphers, K.R. Gilbert, S.G. Gorney, J. Slevin, K.A. Geigley Department of Marine and Environmental Sciences, Marine Science Center, Northeastern University, 430 Nahant Road, Nahant, MA 01908, USA h i g h l i g h t s

• receives millions of visitors per year, in part to enjoy its revitalized waterfront. • Massive wastewater treatment infrastructure restored water quality in Boston Harbor. • Current threats to the city include sea level rise, invasive species, habitat destruction, and continuing water quality challenges. • Visits to the Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park, which manages and protects harbor resources, has increased significantly since water quality in the Harbor improved. article info a b s t r a c t

Article history: Boston Harbor, an urban harbor located in Massachusetts, USA, has a long history of use and environmen- Received 9 August 2018 tal degradation, followed by extensive restoration efforts. The coastal resources of the region sustained Received in revised form 28 November 2018 native tribes for thousands of years prior to European settlement, and those resources sustained early Accepted 12 December 2018 settlers, allowing them to expand throughout the region. By the late 1600s, the city of Boston was the most Available online 15 December 2018 influential shipping and trading city in the new colonies. Continuous growth of the region throughout Keywords: the 18th and 19th centuries, however, strained those resources. Extensive areas of coastal were Boston filled for urban development, resident wastewater was disposed of in the Harbor, and industrialization Eelgrass of the waterfront resulted in additional point source contamination. By the 1980s, Boston Harbor was Waste treatment considered among the most polluted harbors in the country. Extensive efforts in recent years, however, Urban harbors have restored the water quality in the Harbor and revitalized the waterfront region. Below we describe the Sea level rise socio-economic and ecological resources of the region, explore the current threats Boston Harbor faces, Restoration and highlight two examples of actions that helped restore the Harbor to its current conditions. © 2018 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Contents

1. Introduction...... 2 2. Historical setting ...... 2 2.1. The pre-revolutionary war period (1600–1775)...... 2 2.2. Boston in the 19th century ...... 2 2.3. Boston: 1900s to Present ...... 3 3. Geophysical and ecological setting...... 4 4. Social and economic setting...... 5 5. Threats ...... 6 5.1. Climate change and associated sea level rise ...... 6 5.2. Invasive species ...... 6 5.3. Water quality...... 6 5.4. Habitat destruction ...... 7 6. Case studies of restoration success...... 7 6.1. Water quality improvement in boston harbor...... 7

∗ Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] (J.L. Bowen). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2018.100482 2352-4855/© 2018 Published by Elsevier B.V. J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482 1

6.2. Seagrass restoration in boston harbor ...... 8 7. Conclusions...... 10 Acknowledgments ...... 10 References ...... 10

the Peninsula, where there was an abundance of fresh- 1. Introduction water. In September 1630 the settlement at Boston was formally established (Hubbard, 1848) on the Shawmut Peninsula (Fig. 1). Boston, the capital city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts The abundance of fresh drinking water supplied by local rivers in the United States, evolved from a city with among the most pol- and a wealth of seafood from clam and mussel beds along the rich luted harbors in the country, to one with a bustling waterfront full coastline provided sustenance to the colonists as they built their of high-end real estate and a tourist industry that boasts millions livelihoods around the sea, becoming shipbuilders, merchants, sea- of visitors a year (Harr, 2005). Today nearly 5 million residents men, and fishers (Hubbard, 1848; Morison, 1921). Under the lead- that live in the Boston metropolitan area have a revitalized Boston ership of Governor Winthrop, ship building in the new colony waterfront to enjoy due to massive infrastructure projects that facilitated the establishment of trading routes between Boston and relocated a major highway below ground and pumped the city’s the Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam (now New York City), wastewater several km off shore. There are nearly 70 km of walk- and Boston quickly became the most important trading hub in the ing paths that border the harbor, including access to nine public colonies (Hubbard, 1848). Prosperity from trade led to unprece- beaches. A series of parks with fountains, public art installations, dented growth, and over the following century, the population and a carousel replaced the , a highway that bisected of the Massachusetts Colony grew to approximately 13,000, the town and separated much of the waterfront from the rest of surpassing that of all other English colonies combined. Although the city. During the summer, ferries run from downtown Boston a full one third of the labor force of the colony was employed by to eight of the islands associated with the Boston Harbor Islands the shipping trade (Morison, 1921), its affluence permitted other National and State Park. Commuter ferries connect cities both laborers to finance and build iconic structures facilitating trade, north and south of Boston to the center of the city. As a result of this religious practice, and governance (e.g., (1710), the Old revitalization and the booming growth of the tech and biomedical State House (1713), (1717), Old North Church (1723), sectors, the city is expected to grow at a rate surpassing 3% for and (1742)). the foreseeable future. Below we describe the historical setting The growing importance of Boston as a maritime trading hub that led to the current success of the Boston region, review the also led to the critical role of the city in the American Revolutionary coastal resources of the region, provide a snapshot into the socio- War. The economy of Boston in the mid 1700s was closely tied economic setting, detail some of the major threats that Boston to the exportation of fish, lumber, and agricultural products to Harbor faces, and end with two local case studies that can provide (McWilliams, 2007). Thus, in the 1760s, when Britain, in a model for urban ecosystem revitalization in other coastal cities. an attempt to profit from the success of the new colonies, im- posed a series of taxes on sugar, paper, and imports, it sowed the 2. Historical setting seeds of revolution (Knollenberg, 1975). The anger the colonists felt about taxation was intensified by the 1770 , 2.1. The pre-revolutionary war period (1600–1775) where British soldiers fired on and killed five colonists, further fueling hostilities with Britain and leading to the Prior to settlement by the British, the area surrounding the in 1773, where colonists threw 342 chests of tea off ships into modern city of Boston was home to the , part of the Boston Harbor, laying the foundation for the Revolutionary War Algonquin Native American tribe, who occupied the area since (Knollenberg, 1975). 2400 BC. Disease brought by early explorers to the area, however, decimated the Massachusett tribe, decreasing their population by 2.2. Boston in the 19th century 90%, even prior to permanent settlement by Europeans (Marr and Cathey, 2010). The Colony was established by After the Revolutionary War, Boston became one of the world’s British settlers in Plymouth MA in 1620, approximately 65 km centers for global shipping, built largely on the backs of a work- south of present-day downtown Boston. Although there is substan- force specialized for sailing and fishing, essential components of tial evidence for use of Boston Harbor by traders and trappers prior global trade during that era (Gleaser, 2005). The importance of to the establishment of the Plymouth settlement, the first recorded maritime trade in Boston also facilitated a population boom, with entry by Europeans into Boston Harbor was in the year 1621 scores of immigrants moving to the city throughout the 1800s. (Hubbard, 1848). The following year, Thomas Weston, a British The population of the city increased from 24,000 at the start of merchant adventurer, and a group of approximately 60 settlers the century to over 560,000 in 1900 (Kennedy, 1992), and much established the first settlement, named Wessagusset, on the south- of that expansion was due to a large influx of Irish and other ern end of Boston Harbor (Fig. 1). Poorly equipped, the majority of European immigrants in the 1840s and 1850s (Gleaser, 2005). To Wessagusset settlers returned to England by 1625 (Adams, 1905). accommodate this population expansion, Boston also undertook a Among those who persevered was Reverend William Blackstone massive expansion of the Shawmut Peninsula, growing the foot- (aka Blaxton), who settled, alone, as the first European to stake print of the city by reclaiming wetlands and expanding land area claim on what is now the Beacon Hill area of Boston. The Mas- (Fig. 1). Boston was once called Tremontaine, due to three large sachusetts Bay Colony, the second major settlement following hills (Mt. Vernon, Beacon Hill, and Pemberton Hill) that stood 50 the , was established in 1630 by Governor John m above sea level on the Shawmut Peninsula. These hills were Winthrop and comprised approximately 1000 people at the mouth later destroyed to provide fill and expand the footprint of the of the (Hubbard, 1848). The site of this settlement, city (Fig. 1) to accommodate its growing immigrant population. however, had little access to fresh drinking water, and as a re- Burgeoning populations also required Boston to lead the country in sult suffered considerable losses. Reverend Blackstone persuaded the development of rail transport. Work began on Boston railways Winthrop to move the Charles River settlement across the river to in 1831 and the Boston to Providence rail line opened in 1835. 2 J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482

Fig. 1. Map showing the land area surrounding Boston Harbor in 1630 (dark green) and today (light green). The city was founded on the Shawmut Peninsula, but throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, a tremendous degree of land reclamation occurred and the city expanded its footprint considerably. Map reproduction courtesy of the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library. The original settlement of Wessagusset is just south of the area shown on the map, as is the original Plymouth Colony. Winthrop’s original settlement was in the area labeled Charlestown on the map, but was later moved to the Shawmut Peninsula. (For interpretation of the references to color in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

By 1850, 9.5 million people and 2.5 million tons of freight were report by a commission appointed to study the issue of sewage being moved by train throughout Massachusetts (Puleo, 2010). pollution in Boston Harbor concluded that the city should im- This population expansion paved the way for Boston to transition plement primary treatment to remove solids and grease before from a sailing to a manufacturing town as steamships displaced disposal, but they did not recommend additional secondary treat- clipper ships in maritime trade (Gleaser, 2005). In 1898 Boston ment at the time (Rudnick, 2009), and primary treatment was not further expanded access to mass transit by completing the first implemented until the 1950s. Additional pulses of contaminants subway system (Puleo, 2010). exacerbated pollution in Boston Harbor in the early part of the 20th century. For example, in 1919, a storage tank holding 87,000 2.3. Boston: 1900s to Present m3 of molasses to be distilled by the Purity Distilling Company exploded, sending a wave of molasses 8 m high into the harbor. Creating land and expanding the city footprint allowed the The wave of molasses reached speeds of 50 km h−1 and killed 21 population of Boston to rapidly increase, but by the end of the people. The remaining molasses was washed into the harbor using 19th century, the waste generated by this growth created dif- fire boats, leaving the harbor stained brown until the following ficulties throughout the region. To tackle these challenges, the summer (Park, 1983). city built drainage systems to move waste to the outer harbor. At the start of the 20th century, the city of Boston had a popula- The Metropolitan Drainage Systems terminated at Deer Island in tion of 560,892. The population peaked in 1950 at 801,444 before the north and at in the south (Fig. 2; Rudnick, 2009) rapidly decreasing in the following decades (Kennedy, 1992). By and completion of both occurred between 1895–1904. The city 1980, the population of Boston had returned to levels consis- assumed that these drainages were sufficiently far offshore that tent with those at the start of the 20th century (562,994 people). the waste would be washed out to sea (Rudnick, 2009). A 1939 The massive exodus from Boston was mirrored in other cities J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482 3

Fig. 2. Map of Boston Harbor and Islands. Islands that are a part of the Harbor Islands National and State Park are identified in green. Map courtesy of the . Boston Harbor is located at 2◦20’18.00" N -70◦57’34.79" W. (For interpretation of the references to color in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.) around the country as suburbanization in the post WWII era re- of Boston. The harbor is bounded to the south by the Nantasket sulted in a massive movement of affluent people from within cities Peninsula and to the north by the town of Winthrop and Deer to surrounding suburban communities (Jackson, 1985). In recent Island (Fig. 2). The harbor is fed by several rivers, including the decades, however, Boston is once again showing positive growth, in the north, the Charles River in the west, and the driven by shifts away from manufacturing and toward technol- Neponset, Weir, and Weymouth Rivers in the south. The harbor ogy, education, healthcare, and finance (Gleaser, 2005). In 2016, exchanges water with Massachusetts Bay through two 15 m deep the population within the city limits of Boston was 673,180, an channels—Nantasket Roads in the south and President Roads in the increase of over 50,000 people since the 2010 census, according to north. Boston Harbor has a mean depth of 4.9 m and is a mesotidal ∼ the United States Census Bureau. Boston is also home to 150,000 system with an average tidal range of 2.7 m (Signell and Butman, college students that seasonally reside in the city, ballooning its 1992). The average flushing time of water in the harbor is approx- population when school is in session. Boston’s robust economy imately 10 days (Signell and Butman, 1992). Bottom sediments continues to attract new investment across these and other sectors, within Boston Harbor are predominantly fine-grain silts and sands so that its population will likely continue to grow in the com- ing decades. Much of this growth could come from the broader (Knebel et al., 1991). metropolitan Boston area, which was home to approximately 4.8 The modern shape of Boston Harbor resulted from periods of million people (including Boston proper) in 2017. intense glaciation during the Precambrian period. The last glacial The long history of maritime use, urbanization, and industri- retreat, approximately 15,000 years ago, resulted in several bays alization of Boston left its mark on Boston Harbor. In the 1980s within the broader Boston Harbor, including Dorchester Bay, the Boston Harbor was referred to as the ‘‘harbor of shame’’ and was Inner Harbor, , and (Thornberry-Ehrlich, among the most polluted harbors in the country (Dolin, 2004). In 2017). The harbor also contains 30 islands that constitute the 1995 the Charles River, a key tributary to Boston Harbor, received Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park (Fig. 2). The Har- a D rating by the US Environmental Protection Agency, indicating bor Islands are located within the Boston Basin and are unique it met boating standards only 39% of the time and swimming in that they are the only coastal drumlin archipelago in the US standards only 19% of the time. However, since the 1980s a massive (Thornberry-Ehrlich, 2017). Drumlin deposits, mounds of sedi- effort focused on cleaning up the harbor led to a transformation mentary material left behind by the retreat of glaciers, were subse- that would renew the harbor and play a major role in the city’s quently flooded as sea levels rose after glacial retreat, resulting in tourism industry. The Charles River’s water quality has resulted a harbor dotted with drumlin islands (Thornberry-Ehrlich, 2017). in it receiving a grade of A- in 2 of the past 5 years from the EPA, However, sea level rise and coastal erosion are causing these drum- and is among the cleanest urban watersheds in the US. In addition, lins to erode at rapid rates (Thornberry-Ehrlich, 2017). Massachusetts obtained a Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System The coastal landscape of Boston Harbor is naturally dominated (‘‘MS4’’) permit in July 2018, which strives to manage stormwater by large regions of and rocky shoreline, with smaller runoff, and thereby protect freshwater and coastal ecosystems areas of tidal flats and subtidal seagrass meadows (Fig. 3). His- across the state. torically, Boston Harbor was covered with extensive areas of salt 3. Geophysical and ecological setting marsh that have now largely been filled and converted to urban lands (Bromberg Gedan and Bertness, 2005). From the time they Boston Harbor is a 130 km2 tidally dominated embayment on first arrived, early European settlers used salt marsh vegetation as the western edge of Massachusetts Bay and adjacent to the city important livestock feed (Chapman, 1977). As populations grew, 4 J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482

Fig. 3. Habitat maps of the dominant coastal habitats in Boston Harbor. Map created with ArcGIS software by ERSI (Environmental Systems Resource Institute, ArcMap 10.4, www.ersi.com) using data from MassGIS (mass.gov/get-massgis-data). Seagrass polygons depicts 2012 seagrass distribution data collected by MassDEP Eelgrass Mapping Project. Rocky shoreline and salt marsh polygons obtained from Massachusetts CZM Shoreline Characterization datalayer. Tidal flat polygons obtained from MassGIS 1:25000 Hydrography datalayer. filling in of salt marshes increased exponentially to create land for (Ingersoll, 1881). Accounts from William Woods’s 1634 report industrial and residential development (Russell, 1976). Similarly, on natural resources in document immense oyster during this growth the amount of man-made hard structures along banks, with oysters in excess of 12 inches (30.5 cm) long that the shoreline of Boston Harbor increased dramatically through blocked navigation in the Mystic and Charles Rivers, and appear to construction of wharves, bulkheads, seawalls, revetments, and jet- have been of great importance to Bostonians of the time (Ingersoll, ties. Of the 92 km of ocean-facing in Boston Harbor, 19 km 1881). The high rate at which oyster beds in Boston Harbor were is armored with privately owned coastal structures, and another exploited is evident in the fact that oyster shell was used to pave 34 km of public lands is similarly armored (Fontenault et al., roads, as agricultural fertilizer, in mortar for buildings, and was 2013). By the time protection legislation was introduced converted to lime for gas purification. Furthermore, by 1818, the in the 1960s, an estimated 81% of salt marshes in Boston Harbor town of Boston enacted legislation to regulate disposal of the vast had already been destroyed (Chapman, 1977), (Bromberg Gedan quantities of oyster shell produced by shucking operations (Town and Bertness, 2005). Loss of salt marsh habitat also has cascading of Boston, 1818; Ingersoll, 1881). Under these laws, town officials negative effects on the extent of adjacent sea grass beds (Valiela designated areas for piling oyster shell and anyone caught leaving and Cole, 2002). oyster shell in streets, alleys or other public places was subject to Seagrass meadows are sensitive indicators of nutrient over- a two dollar fine (roughly $60 in 2018). Unfortunately, returning enrichment (Valiela and Cole, 2002), and the loss of seagrass area shells of shucked oysters to the seafloor to provide habitat for can be linked to both eutrophication and disease (Short et al., settling larval oysters was neither required nor common practice. 1993). In pre-industrial times, seagrasses were estimated to cover As astutely noted by Ingersoll (1881): ‘‘the spawn of the oyster over 6000 ha of Boston Harbor sediments but only ∼300 ha (∼5%) requires some clean, firm support to which to attach itself. The soft, remains today (Costello and Kenworthy, 2011). Nautical charts wet matting of sedimentation would not do at all, and all the ova from the mid 1800s to the 1920s document extensive eelgrass would drift out to sea or become the food for fishes, and in either meadows in the mouths of rivers and embayments that comprise case produce nothing’’. Compounding the detrimental effects of Boston Harbor (Cottam, 1934, 1935). Widespread eelgrass wast- overfishing, destructive harvesting practices, and declining water ing disease destroyed vast areas of seagrasses in much of the quality, was the failure to return oyster shell to the harbor. By 1850, US East Coast, including in coastal Massachusetts, in the 1930s oyster populations had dropped precipitously, and at present day, (Rasmussen, 1977). Much of this original seagrass area recovered are classified as functionally extinct in Boston Harbor (Beck et al., after the wasting disease but declined again shortly thereafter due to poor water quality in subsequent years (Valiela et al., 1992). 2011). Unlike salt marshes and seagrass meadows, the extent of naturally occurring rocky intertidal areas has remained relatively constant 4. Social and economic setting through time (Bell et al., 2005), Oysters, once bountiful in the shallow intertidal and subtidal As described above, Boston is among the oldest ports and cities sand and mud bottoms throughout Boston Harbor, have been in the United States and currently represents a major metropoli- reduced to functional extinction (<1% of historic abundance) in the tan area. In recent years, Boston’s accelerated rate of population Gulf of over the past centuries due primarily to overharvest- growth, at 6%, is double the national average. Boston is widely ing, reduced water quality, and habitat destruction (Kirby, 2004). considered a hub of education and innovation, and recent eco- Upon arriving in Massachusetts, the earliest explorers found first nomic growth has been unparalleled. The city’s recent ‘‘Resilience nations’ people well accustomed to consuming oysters and clams Strategy Report’’, which aims at reversing patterns of inequality, J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482 5 noted that one in three Boston children live in poverty and me- projections, the report estimates that long-term economic losses dian household income for non-white households (∼$31,000 to could exceed $1 Billion this century, and would directly impact $38,000 USD annually) continues to trail far behind white house- many residents and critical facilities. The report and other studies holds (∼$80,000). Boston’s rapid growth has also led to gentri- also showed that current and future flooding impacts are likely to fication of several historically working class neighborhoods. For be harshest on some of Boston’s most economically disadvantaged instance, from 2000–2014, median income increased by nearly 20% populations (Fig. 4; Kirshen et al., 2008; Climate Ready Boston, in the South Boston and South Boston Waterfront neighborhoods 2016). A major challenge facing Boston, which is rapidly expanding that recently underwent rapid redevelopment. and redeveloping its Seaport and other waterfront districts, is Boston and its people take tremendous pride in their identity how to protect people and property without reversing decades of as a historic fishing community and port (NOAA, 2007). Since at progress improving the environmental health of the harbor. least the 1600s, oysters and other shellfish have provided a source As Boston’s elected officials have increasingly prioritized cli- of food and cultural significance for coastal societies (Braun, 1974). mate preparedness, a recent effort involved assessing the merits Atlantic Cod is considered by many to be the most culturally signif- of various harbor barrier systems. As such, a report sponsored icant fishery for Boston’s past and present. With a 1.5-m wooden by the Boston Green Ribbon Commission and led by the Univer- effigy of a cod hanging inside the Massachusetts State House and sity of Massachusetts Boston Sustainable Solutions Lab concluded the namesake legacy for , the northeast cod fishery has that a barrier system was neither feasible nor financially sensible. supported cultural and provisioning ecosystem services for cen- Instead, the report called for greater emphasis on shore-based turies. Boston’s historic Fish Pier has been a lynchpin of seafood protection measures. Across the United States, and many other processing for more than a century with key species including cod, places globally, this parallels many ongoing coastal adaptation lobster, scallops, flounder, herring, and many others. At its peak conversations focused on assessing the costs, benefits, and trade- in the 1930s, more than 300 million pounds of fresh fish per year offs of traditional armoring strategies versus increasingly popular was landed at Boston’s historic fish pier (Hall-Arber et al., 2001). By nature-based strategies. Within Boston Harbor, artificial structures 1981, landings had fallen by more than 90% to 28 million pounds, currently define 94% of sheltered shorelines (Gittman et al., 2015). valued at approximately $12.4 million dollars ($34.5 million in While current policies typically restrict further armoring, imple- 2018 currency; NOAA, 2018). In recent years, the effects of cen- mentation of nature-based strategies has been slow to gain trac- turies of overfishing have resulted in multiple declarations of fish- tion even though they offer a cost-effective approach to increase ery failure and disaster, including the 1999 Northeast Multispecies ecosystem service delivery to communities (Sutton-Grier et al., Fisheries Failure (64 Federal Register 112 31542-31548, 1999) and 2018). the 2012 Groundfish Fishery Disaster Declaration (Brewer et al., 2017). As a result, landings have continued to dwindle, falling to 5.2. Invasive species 12.2 million pounds ($17 million in 2016), the last year reported by NOAA (2018). Indeed, this port, which once boasted among the Invasive species are a threat to the biodiversity and function of highest fisheries landings in the United States has, as of 2016, been native habitats in Boston Harbor, as they are worldwide. The plant surpassed by 64 other major US ports for fisheries landings value communities of the Boston Harbor Islands are highly invaded, with (NOAA, 2018). a recent survey documenting 215 native and 202 exotic species on Waterfront access around Boston Harbor is described positively the islands (Long et al., 2009). Larger islands have greater numbers by many but also with recognized areas for improvement. Boston’s of both native and exotic species, consistent with island biogeog- Harborwalk allows swimming, fishing, and biking in various lo- raphy theory (Long et al., 2009). However, the negative effect of cations and is supported by public and private landowners, in island isolation on species richness was weaker for exotics than addition to a dedicated nonprofit organization and Friends group. for natives, suggesting that exotic species have greater dispersal Boston’s Charlestown Navy Yard is recognized on the National ability, or are more likely to be dispersed by humans (Long et al., Register of Historic Places and currently supports a mix of industry, 2009). Eradication of invasive plant species is a major focus of man- residences, and maritime tourism (Gordon, 1999). While several agement efforts in the Boston Harbor Islands. Invasive species also waterfront areas of Boston Harbor have historically had very little threaten the marine habitats in Boston Harbor. Climate change, access to coastal waterways, in recent years, some post-industrial and warming winter temperatures in particular, facilitate marine parcels have been converted to public parks. However, a recent invaders in subtidal communities, including man-made structures case study on waterfront planning processes in a neighboring (Stachowicz et al., 2002). Warming waters are also contributing to city of Chelsea revealed that public officials typically prioritize range expansions of some fisheries (e.g., black sea bass; and the waterfront access when there are economic benefits, whereas local likely contraction of others (e.g., lobsters; Wahle et al., 2015). The residents’ priorities for public health and quality of life are less National Park Service and the Boston Harbor Islands have a long- explicitly targeted (Hollander and Soule, 2017). term monitoring program of invasive marine organisms in the Boston Harbor Islands in order to better document and understand 5. Threats their potential impacts.

5.1. Climate change and associated sea level rise 5.3. Water quality

Sea level rise (SLR) is a major concern for the future of Boston. Water quality threats to Boston Harbor include many forms Similar to other coastal cities that were developed or expanded of contamination. Wastewater contamination from decades of by filling wetlands, much of Boston is low lying and susceptible sewage disposal was a major contaminant that has now been to flooding. While these vulnerabilities are well recognized and largely rectified. Additional water quality concerns include non- adaptation planning has been aggressively pursued at state and point nutrient sources that can induce eutrophication, including local levels of government, significant challenges remain. For in- runoff to rivers from agricultural and lawn care practices, and the stance, the City of Boston recently released its ‘‘Climate Ready addition of nutrients from atmospheric sources derived from the Boston’’ report which describes a comprehensive, multi-year effort combustion of fossil fuels (Taylor, 2010). Although dramatically to better understand and prepare for the challenges of climate improved, continued occasional releases from the few remaining change (Climate Ready Boston, 2016). Among the most alarming Combined Sewer Overflows (CSO) continue to pose a threat to the 6 J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482

Fig. 4. Map from the Climate Ready Boston Explorer showing relationships among stormwater flooding from a 24 h rainfall event (shown in green), sea level rise and 10% coastal flood risk in 2050 (shown in blue), and socially vulnerable communities (shown in pink and purple). Social vulnerability is characterized at the community level by high proportions of lower income, disabled, limited English language, and people of color. (For interpretation of the references to color in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.) local water quality in Boston Harbor, although CSO discharges have uplands (234 acres), loss to open water (87 acres), and hydrological been reduced by 90% in recent years (Tucker et al., 2014). modifications resulting in conversion to other wetlands (37 acres) In addition to poor water quality resulting from sewage con- (Carlisle et al., 2005). Between 1971 and 1995, loss of salt marsh tamination, Boston Harbor historically had high concentrations area decreased dramatically (196 acres total; 115 to open water, of several additional contaminants, including polycyclic aromatic 46 to development) due to regulatory protection from Section 404 hydrocarbons (PAHs), heavy metals, and polychlorinated byphe- of the Clean Water Act (Carlisle et al., 2005). Despite regulatory nols (PCBs) that resulted from a combination of sewage disposal, protection from direct anthropogenic impacts (e.g., filling), indirect industrialization, and combustion processes in the city (Hunt and anthropogenic effects such as eutrophication and tidal restrictions Slone, 2010). In the 1980s, fish in the harbor had high incidences (e.g., culverts and dikes) continue to threaten urban salt marshes of fin rot and liver tumors (Murchelano and Wolke, 1985). Fortu- (Roman et al., 1984; Deegan et al., 2012). The resulting changes nately, there were considerable reductions in the metal content of to natural tidal hydrology can also increase the vulnerability of the surface sediments in Boston Harbor between 1977 and 1993 marshes to competition by invasive species and lower the health (Bothner et al., 1998), despite continuing to receive sewage sludge of salt marsh plants (Gulf of Maine Council, 2008). Such effects through that time. The initial decrease in metal contamination have been documented in Rumney Marsh, just north of the city was likely a result of decreased pollution from industrial point of Boston, where tidal restriction has contributed to a continued sources and decreased inputs from road runoff and sewer over- decline in salt marsh habitat since 1800 (Carlisle et al., 2005). flows (Bothner et al., 1998). More recently, assessments of sedi- Similar to salt marshes, seagrass habitats in Boston Harbor ment contamination indicate that these contaminants continue to continue to face threats despite increased regulatory protection. decrease in much of the harbor (Zago et al., 2001). Further, using Between 1996 and 2006, the eelgrass in Boston Harbor declined in mussels as indicators of the availability of contaminants showed acreage by 42% (Leschen et al., 2010). The Boston Harbor Project that the content of these compounds in mussel tissue continued was successful in improving almost all water quality parameters to decline through the 1990s and 2000s (Hunt and Slone, 2010), in the harbor (Taylor, 2006), and current water quality meets or though concentrations are still considered too high to allow for exceeds most of the known requirements for eelgrass (Batuik et al., commercial shellfish growing in Boston Harbor (Massachusetts 2000). Yet, long lasting physical and ecological changes to the Division of Marine Fisheries, 2013). harbor from centuries of degradation, and particularly lingering negative impacts on sediments, may be why eelgrass habitat has 5.4. Habitat destruction continued to decline in Boston Harbor in spite of improved water quality. Restoration of seagrass in Boston Harbor is described in The long history of urbanization has resulted in extensive de- more detail below. struction of coastal habitats in Boston Harbor. In the nineteenth century as the city underwent rapid expansion, hundreds of acres 6. Case studies of restoration success of salt marsh were filled to build commercial and residential prop- erties as well as transportation infrastructure (Roman, 2012). Salt 6.1. Water quality improvement in boston harbor marsh loss continued at a rapid rate into the first half of the twentieth century, during which time (1923) Logan International Boston Harbor was one of the most contaminated harbors in Airport was built on filled marsh land. Marsh loss continued, albeit the United States until over four billion dollars was invested in at a slightly slower rate, during the post-World War II population projects to treat wastewater generated by the metropolitan Boston boom: Over 1000 acres were lost between 1951 and 1971 due to area (Taylor, 2010). Remarkably, at its peak, the Deer Island and filling and development of wetlands (671 acres), loss to natural Nut Island wastewater pumping plants, both of which directly J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482 7 discharged waste into Boston Harbor, contributed approximately island system an integral part of the life of the surrounding com- 14 m3 s−1 and 7 m3 s−1 flows of sewage waste, respectively. munities and region, while improving public knowledge and access This volume is approximately equivalent to the entire freshwater for education, recreation, and tranquility within an urban area’’ discharge (20 m3 s−1) from three major rivers (Mystic, Charles, (Boston Harbor Islands Partnership, 2002). The crown jewel of the Neponset) that also drain into Boston Harbor (Signell and Butman, park is now the once forlorn Spectacle Island. The rebirth of Specta- 1992). Prior to the cleanup, the city discharged approximately cle Island was borne out of pragmatism. The massive amount of fill twelve billion gallons of raw or partially treated sewer waste that was removed during the needed a disposal location directly into the harbor. At its peak, the amount of nitrogen and and Spectacle was the choice. In total, nearly four million cubic phosphorus entering Boston Harbor was among the highest in the yards of dredged soil was used to cover the landfill. It was capped United States (Dettmann, 2001), with 90% of the loadings of total with clay and an additional 1–2 m of topsoil and planted with phosphorus (TP) and total nitrogen (TN) derived from the disposal grass, trees, and shrubs (Geroldi, 2017). Spectacle Island is only a of sewage sludge and wastewater into the harbor (Taylor, 2010), 20-minute ferry ride from Boston and now has several kilometers which resulted in it being referred to as ‘‘the harbor of shame’’ by of hiking trails, supervised swimming, a café, regular yoga classes local media (Harr, 2005). Historically, many of the 30 Boston Har- and jazz concerts, and weekly clambakes. Visitors to both Georges bor islands were considered a place for undesirables. For example, Island and Spectacle Island increased steadily between 2004 and Spectacle Island was a quarantine station for the sick in the 1700s 2014, with visitors to Spectacle Island increasing from zero to over and then the location of a horse rendering business in the 1800s. By 25,000 per summer since the park opened (Fig. 6). 1912, the city’s trash dump was located on Spectacle Island, where dumping continued until 1959. The island’s stench was so severe 6.2. Seagrass restoration in boston harbor that sailors reportedly used it to determine their approximate location in the Harbor (Snow, 1936). used to be Coincident with the water quality cleanup of the Boston Har- home to fish drying and smelting operations, (Sammarco, 1998). bor came an interest in restoring coastal habitats that had been This history, coupled with the intensively industrialized waterfront degraded or destroyed, including salt marshes and seagrasses. of much of Boston, resulted in a disconnect between the residents Seagrasses, in particular, are dependent on good water quality of the city and the ecological and cultural resources of the harbor and light availability (Dennison, 1987) and thus were extensively degraded during the years when raw sewage was being dumped and islands. directly into the harbor. In response to the water quality improve- In 1972, with the passage of the Clean Water Act, the dumping ments in Boston Harbor from 1991–2000, and the low likelihood of raw sewage into Boston Harbor became illegal, although the that seagrass could recover naturally in many parts of the harbor state applied for waivers claiming the discharge was sufficiently far due to limited extant sources of seed, Boston Harbor has been an off shore that secondary treatment was unnecessary (Dolin, 2004). area of active eelgrass restoration (Leschen et al., 2010). Eventually, a lawsuit sparked by the City Solicitor from the adjacent In one of the first seagrass restoration efforts in Boston Harbor, city of Quincy forced the city to begin the cleanup of Boston Harbor researchers at the Environmental Protection Agency, New England in earnest (Harr, 2005). After years of litigation, intense judicial Aquarium, and Massachusetts Audubon applied for a grant in 1995 oversight, and an investment of $3.7 billion in the Deer Island to transplant seagrass in the northern part of the harbor, in an- Waste Treatment plant and nearly another $1 billion in treatment ticipation of the completion of the harbor cleanup. The grant was for combined sewer overflows, the mandated cleanup of Boston awarded, but a delay in the completion of the outfall tunnel and Harbor was completed. The addition of secondary treatment and the ultimate diversion of the discharge resulted in the restoration the diversion of treated wastewater 15 km offshore resulted in a site being moved to World’s End, where a small area of the seagrass decrease of 89% in total suspended solids, 96% in particulate or- Zostera marina was planted in 1995 near an existing seagrass bed. ganic carbon, 82% of TN and 96% of TP (Taylor, 2010)(Fig. 5). Rates The transplants survived for the first several months, but it created of oxygen demand and fluxes of nutrients were also cut nearly conflicts with shellfishermen, and ultimately the effort failed. Fur- in half as a result of the diversion of wastewater (Tucker et al., thermore, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection 2014). Ongoing monitoring of the outfall location suggest that (MDEP) mapping efforts documented a 42% loss of seagrass acreage there are minimal adverse effects of the outfall in Massachusetts in Boston Harbor from 1996–2006 (Leschen et al., 2010). Bay (Nestler et al., 2011). In addition to the massive infrastructure Despite these initial setbacks, interest in seagrass restoration project to clean up discharge into Boston Harbor, another major in Boston Harbor continued. In 2005 and 2006, Massachusetts infrastructure project, known locally as ‘‘the Big Dig’’ occurred Division of Marine Fisheries (MDMF) conducted a seagrass restora- simultaneously. The goal of this project was to improve transit tion effort that included plantings at four harbor sites to mitigate through the city and to sink belowground a major highway artery losses associated with the construction of the HubLine natural gas that bisected the waterfront from the rest of town. Combined, pipeline (Leschen et al., 2010). After 3–4 years, all 4 sites had these two infrastructure projects vastly improved the urban wa- expanded in areal cover, particularly at Long Island and Peddocks terfront, connecting people to their coastal resources in ways that Island, resulting in the successful restoration of 2 hectares of sea- had not existed for decades. grass (Leschen et al., 2010). This project was the most successful In 1974, many of the islands were designated as the Boston seagrass restoration effort in Massachusetts at that time. MDMF Harbor Islands State Park, and in 1996, the Boston Harbor Islands conducted additional restoration efforts to further mitigate dam- National Recreation Area was established as part of the National age from the HubLine natural gas pipeline, with large-scale plant- Park system. The park is now referred to as the Boston Harbor ings at 7 sites in Salem (to the north of Boston Harbor) and Islands National and State Park, with management coordinated Boston Harbor from 2011–2015 aimed at restoring 1.8 total acres of by the Boston Harbor Islands Partnership, consisting of 13 mem- eelgrass within 3–4 years of planting (Evans et al., 2018). Three of bers that represent a range of national, state, and nonprofit or- the seven sites continued to grow and expand, including 1.8 acres ganizations, including the National Park Service (Boston Harbor at Governor’s Island Flats (located just east of Logan Airport) in Islands Partnership, 2002). The role of the Partnership is to develop Boston Harbor, resulting in total restored eelgrass coverage of 2.4 and implement an integrated resource management plan for the acres (Evans et al., 2018). islands. This plan was required to enhance the public’s use of the Improved water quality in Boston Harbor appears also to be islands and preserve their condition. Engaging the public has been contributing to natural recovery of seagrass in some areas. Anecdo- a defining aspect since its inception, with a mission ‘‘to make the tally, a small meadow (1/3 acre) appeared for the first time in 2012 8 J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482

Fig. 5. Water quality changes as a result of waste treatment in Boston Harbor. Decrease in total nitrogen (A), total phosphorus (B), total suspended solids (TSS)(C) and particulate organic carbon (POC)(D) that occurred with each stage of wastewater treatment. The different stages include: (1) the end of dumping sludge directly into the harbor, (2) completed construction of primary and secondary treatment and elimination of several combined sewer overflows (CSOs), (3) the diversion of wastewater to the mouth of the harbor and (4) wastewater discharge was diverted 15 km offshore. Source: Data modified from Taylor (2010).

Fig. 6. Visitation to the Boston Harbor Islands. Increase in the number of visitors to Spectacle and Georges Islands from 2004 to 2014. Source: Unpublished data courtesy of the National Park Service. near Winthrop, and it persisted through at least the most recent to an expanded safety ramp project at Boston’s Logan Airport. sampling in 2016. Also in 2012, a meadow was discovered on Calf Because of restrictions by the Federal Aviation Administration Island; because MDEP efforts to map seagrass do not extend that far regarding proximity to the airport runway, Massport sited their out in the harbor, it is not clear whether this bed is newly formed restoration efforts in Hull (two sites) and Quincy (one site) rather or simply undocumented (P. Colarusso, unpublished data). Natural than the northern part of the harbor. The plants died soon after recovery beginning around 2012 has also occurred on Governor’s transplanting, resulting in failure at all three sites. There have also Island Flats (in conjunction with the successful MDMF restoration been large periodic losses in the extent of natural seagrass beds at effort there), resulting in a total of nearly 50 acres (Evans et al., some sites in the harbor. For example, in the fall of 1995 a 70-acre 2018). MDMF mapped nearly 1200 acres of eelgrass in Boston meadow by Grape Island experienced dramatic losses, leaving only Harbor in 2016, up from 800 acres in 2006 (Evans et al., 2018). 1 acre. Encouragingly, this meadow has since partially recovered, Despite successes in both restoration efforts and natural recov- suggesting that fluctuations in coverage may be a natural feature ery of seagrasses following the harbor cleanup, there have also of this system, as has been shown elsewhere (Fonseca et al., 2000; been setbacks. The most substantial setback was the expensive Orth et al., 2006). Despite improvements in water quality, levels yet unsuccessful restoration attempt by the Massachusetts Port of suspended solids are still too high in some areas of the harbor Authority (Massport) to mitigate intentional seagrass losses due to support seagrass, particularly in areas with lower tidal flushing J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482 9

(Leschen et al., 2010). The challenges of finding suitable sites for Climate Ready Boston, 2016. https://bostoncan.files.wordpress.com/2017/01/ seagrass restoration, combined with continued losses of natural climate-ready-boston-12-2016pdf. beds, suggest that additional management efforts are needed to Costello, C.T., Kenworthy, W.J., 2011. Twelve-year mapping and change analysis of eelgrass (Zostera marina) areal abundance in Massachusetts (USA) identifies protect and recover this valuable coastal resource in Boston Harbor statewide declines. Estuar. 34, 232–242. and beyond (Leschen et al., 2010). Cottam, C., 1934. Past periods of eelgrass scarcity. Rhodora 36, 261–264. Cottam, C., 1935. Further notes on past periods of eelgrass scarcity. Rhodora 37, 7. Conclusions 269–271. Deegan, L.A., Johnson, D.S., Warren, R.S., Peterson, B.J., Fleeger, J.W., Fagherazzi, S., Wollheim, W.M., 2012. Coastal eutrophication as a driver of salt marsh loss. The city of Boston has a long history that is intertwined with Natur 490, 388–392. the marine resources of Boston Harbor and surrounding waters Dennison, W.C., 1987. Effects of light on seagrass photosynthesis, growth, and depth that led to Boston being a critically important trading and shipping distribution. Aquat. Bot. 27, 15–26. Dettmann, E.H., 2001. Effect of water residence time on annual export and denitri- community in the years after settlement. Continued growth of fication of nitrogen in : A model analysis. Estuaries 24, 481–490. the city population, however, led to degraded marine resources, Dolin, E.J., 2004. Political Waters. University of Massachusetts Press, Boston, MA. including extensive habitat destruction and impaired water qual- Evans, T., Carr, J., Frew, K., Rousseau, M., Ford, K., Boeri, A., 2018. Massachusetts ity. Massive infrastructure projects in the latter part of the 20th Division of Marine Fisheries 2010 to 2016 HubLine Eelgrass Restoration century, including building a waste treatment facility and diverting Final Report. Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2018/03/26/20102016%20Eelgrass% treated waste several kilometers off shore, and rerouting a central 20Restoration%20Final%20Report.pdf. traffic artery underground resulted in drastic changes to the urban Fonseca, M.S., Kentworthy, W.J., Whitefiled, P.E., 2000. Temporal dynamics of sea- waterfront. Currently, Boston Harbor is among the cleanest harbors grass landscapes: A preliminary comparison of chronic and extreme distur- in the country, as evidenced by the recovery of seagrass beds in bance events. Biol. Mar. Mediterr. 7, 373–376. Fontenault, J., Vinhateiro, N., Knee, K., Mapping and analysis of privately owned some areas. It is ringed with kilometers of walking trails and parks, coastal structures along the Massachusetts shoreline. Massachusetts Office of and hosts several million visitors per year to enjoy the harbor Coastal Zone Management Project 2012-266 Boston, MA. and its islands. Efforts to maintain this progress and increase the Geroldi, C., 2017. Spectacle Island: From discarded fill to designed landscape, a resilience of Boston Harbor must address the many threats (e.g., sea ‘natural’-looking park. J. Landsc. Archit. 12, 16–31. Gittman, R.K., Fodrie, F.J., Popowich, A.M., Keller, D.A., Bruno, J.F., Currin, C.A., level rise, invasive species, and habitat degradation) that it faces. Peterson, C.H., Piehler, M.F., 2015. Engineering away our natural defenses: an analysis of shoreline hardening in the US. Front. Ecol. Environ. 13, 301–307. Acknowledgments Gleaser, E.L., 2005. Reinventing Boston, 1630-2003. J. Econ. Geogr. 5, 119–153. Gordon, D.L., 1999. Implementing urban waterfront redevelopment in an historic context: a case study of the The Boston Naval Shipyard. Ocean Coast. Manag. Phil Colarusso provided essential information for the seagrass 42, 909–931. restoration case study. Research for this paper was conducted as Gulf of Maine Council, 2008. Salt marshes in the Gulf of Maine - human impacts, a part of a course in Coastal Ecology and Sustainability that was habitat restoration, and long-term change analysis. http://www.gulfofmaine. taught as part of a CAREER award to JLB (NSF DEB 1734231 and org/saltmarsh/. (Accessed 15 July 2018). 1719418). Funding for this course was provided by Northeastern Hall-Arber, M., Dyer, C., Poggie, J., McNally, J., Gagne, R., 2001. New England’s Fishing Communities. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sea Grant College University, USA. Additional funding was provided by another NSF Program. CAREER award, USA to ARH (NSF OCE-1652320). Harr, C.M., 2005. Mastering Boston Harbor: Courts, Dolphins, and Imperiled Waters. Press, Cambridge, MA. References Hollander, J.B., Soule, J., 2017. takeholder preferences on a working waterfront: Quality of life, land uses and planning processes in Chelsea, Massachusetts. In: Phillips, R., Wong, C. (Eds.), Handbook of Community Well-Being Research. Adams, C.F., 1905. Wessagusset and Weymouth. The Weymouth Historical Society, Springer, Dordrecht, pp. 339–354. T.R. Marvin & Son, Printers, Boston, MA. Hubbard, W., 1848. A General , from Discovery to 1704. Little Batuik, R.A., Bergstrom, P., Kemp, M., Koch, E., Murray, L., Stevenson, J.C., Bartle- Brown Publishers, Boston, MA. son, R., Carter, V., Rybicki, N., Landwehr, J., Gallegos, C., Karrh, L., Naylor, M., Hunt, C.D., Slone, E., 2010. Long-term monitoring using resident and caged mussels Wilcox, D., Moore, K., Ailstock, S., Teichberg, M., 2000. Chesapeake Bay Sub- in Boston Harbor yield similar spatial and temporal trends in chemical contam- merged Aquatic Vegetation Water Quality and Habitat-Based Requirements and ination. Mar Environ Res 70, 343–357. Restoration Targets: A Second Technical Synthesis. United States Environmental Ingersoll, E., 1881. The Oyster Industry. US Government Printing Office, Washington, Protection Agency, Annapolis, MD. DC. Beck, M.W., Brumbaugh, R.D., Airoldi, L., Carranza, A., Coen, L.D., Crawford, C., Jackson, K.T., 1985. Crabgrass Frontier: The Suburbanization of the United States. Defeo, O., Edgar, G.J., Hancock, B., Kay, M.C., Lenihan, H.S., Luckenbach, M.W., Oxford University Press, New York. Toropova, C.L., Zhang, G., Guo, X., 2011. Oyster reefs at risk and recommenda- Kennedy, L., 1992. Planning the City Upon a Hill: Boston Since 1630. University of tions for conservation, restoration, and management. BioScience 61, 107–116. Massachusetts Press, Amherst, MA. Bell, R., Buchsbaum, R., Roman, C., Chandler, M., 2005. Inventory of intertidal marine Kirby, M.X., 2004. Fishing down the coast: historical expansion and collapse of oys- habitats, Boston Harbor Islands National Park Area. Northeast. Nat. 12, 169–200. ter fisheries along continental margins. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 101, 13096– Boston Harbor Islands Partnership, 2002. Boston Harbor Islands, A National Park 13099. Area General Management Plan. National Park Service, Boston MA. Kirshen, P., Knee, K., Ruth, M., 2008. Climate change and coastal flooding in Metro Bothner, M.H., Buchholtz ten Brink, M., Manheim, F.T., 1998. Metal concentrations Boston: Impacts and adaptation strategies. Climatic Change 90, 453–473. in surface sediments of Boston Harbor – Changes with time. Mar. Environ. Res. Knebel, H.J., Rendigs, R.R., Bothner, M.H., 1991. Modern sedimentary environments 45, 127–155. in Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. J. Sed. Petrol. 61, 791–804. Braun, D.P., 1974. Explanatory models for the evolution of coastal adaptation in Knollenberg, B., 1975. Growth of the 1766-1775. The Free prehistoric eastern New England. Am. Antiq. 39, 582–596. Press, New York. Brewer, J.F., Moulton, K., Alden, R., Gunther, C., 2017. Accountability, transformative Leschen, A.S., Ford, K.H., Evans, N.T., 2010. Successful eelgrass (Zostera marina) learning, and alternate futures for New England groundfish catch shares. Mar. restoration in a formerly eutrophic (Boston Harbor) supports the use Pol. 80, 113–122. of a multifaceted watershed approach to mitigating eelgrass loss. Estuar. Coasts Bromberg Gedan, K.D., Bertness, M.D., 2005. Reconstructing New England salt 33, 1340–1354. marsh losses using historical maps. Estuaries 28, 823–832. Long, J.D., Trussell, G.C., Elliman, T., 2009. Linking invasions and biogeography: Carlisle, B.K., Tiner, R.W., Carullo, M., Huber, I.K., Nuerminger, T., Polzen, C., Shaf- Isolation differentially affects exotic and native plant diversity. Ecology 90, 863– fer, M., 2005. 100 Years of Estuarine Marsh Trends in Massachusetts (1893 868. to 1995): Boston Harbor, Cape Cod, , Martha’s Vineyard, and the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, 2013. http://www.massmarinefisherie . Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management, Boston, s.net/shellfish/dsga/GBH4.pdf. (Accessed 25 2018). MA;, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Hadley, MA; and University of Massachusetts, Marr, J.S., Cathey, J.T., 2010. New hypothesis for cause of an epidemic among Native Amherst, MA. Americans 1616-1619. Emerg. Infect. Dis. 16, 281–286. Chapman, V.J., 1977. Wet Coastal Ecosystems: Introduction. Ecosystems of the McWilliams, J.E., 2007. Building the Bay Colony: Local Economy and Culture in Early World. Elsevier, Amsterdam. Massachusetts. University of Virginia Press, Charlottesville, VA. 10 J.L. Bowen, C.J. Baillie, J.H. Grabowski et al. / Regional Studies in Marine Science 25 (2019) 100482

Morison, S.E., 1921. The Maritime . Houghton Mifflin Co, Short, F.T., Burdick, D.M., Wolf, J.S., Jones, G.E., 1993. Eelgrass in Estuarine Research Boston, MA. Reserves Along the East Coast, USA, Part I: Declines from Pollution and Disease. Murchelano, R.A., Wolke, R.E., 1985. Epizootic carcinoma in the winter flounder, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Coastal Ocean Program, Pseudopleuronectes americanus. Science 228, 587–589. Rockville (MD). Nestler, E.C., Diaz, R.J., Hecker, B., Pembroke, A.E., 2011. Outfall Benthic Monitoring Signell, R.P., Butman, B., 1992. Modeling tidal exchange and dispersion in Boston Report: 2011 Results. Report 2012-08, Massachusetts Water Resources Author- Harbor. J. Geophys. Res. 97, 15591–15606. ity, Boston, 38 pp. Snow, E.R., 1936. The Islands of Boston Harbor, second ed. Andover Press, Andover, NOAA, 2007 Community Profile of Boston, MA Prepared by Lisa Colburn under MA. the auspices of the National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Stachowicz, J.J., Terwin, J.R., Witlatch, R.B., Osman, R.W., 2002. Linking climate Science Center. https://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/read/socialsci/createReport.php? change and biological invasions: Ocean warming facilitates nonindigenous state=MA&county=BOSTON. species invasions. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 99, 15497–15500. NOAA, 2018. Commercial Fisheries Statistics: Total Commercial Fisheries Landings Sutton-Grier, A.E., Gittman, R.K., Arkema, K.K., Bennett, R.O., Benoit, J., Blitch, S., at Major US Ports. https://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/commercial-fisheries/ Burks-Copes, K.A., Colden, A., Dausman, A., DeAngelis, B.M., Hughes, A.R., commercial-landings/other-specialized-programs/total-commercial-fishery- Scyphers, S.B., Grabowski, J.H., 2018. Investing in Natural and Nature-Based landings-at-major-u-s-ports-summarized-by-year-and-ranked-by-dollar- Infrastructure: Building Better Along Our Coasts. Sustainability 10, 523. value/index. Taylor, D.I., 2006. 5 years after transfer of Deer Island flows offshore: an update of Orth, J.J., Carruthers, T.J.B., Dennison, W.C., Duarte, C.M., Fourqurean, J.W., water quality improvements in Boston Harbor, 77. Report ENQUAD 2006-16, Heck Jr., K.L., Hughes, A.R., Kendrick, G.A., Kenworthy, W.J., Olyarnik, S., Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, Boston, MA. Short, F.T., Waycott, S.L., 2006. A global crisis for seagrass ecosystems. Bio- Taylor, D.I., 2010. The Boston Harbor Project, and large decreases in loadings of Science 56, 987–996. eutrophication-related materials to Boston Harbor. Mar. Poll. Bull. 60, 609–619. Park, E., 1983. Without warning, molasses in January surged over Boston. Smithso- Thornberry-Ehrlich, T.L., 2017. Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation nian 14, 213–230. Area Geologic Resources Inventory Report. Natural Resource Report Puleo, S., 2010. A City so Grand: the Rise of an American Metropolis, Boston 1850- NPS/NRSS/GRD/NRR—2017/1404, National Park Service, Fort Collins, Colorado. 1900. Beacon Press, Boston, MA. Town of Boston, 1818. By-Laws and Orders of the Town of Boston: The Rules and Rasmussen, E., 1977. The wasting disease of eelgrass (Zostera marina) and its effects Regulations of the Board of Health. Andrew J. Allen. on environmental factors and fauna. Seagrass Ecosyst. A Sci. Perspect. 4, 1–51. Tucker, J., Giblin, A.E., Hopkinson, C.S., Kelsey, S.W., Howes, B.L., 2014. Response of Roman, C.T., 2012. Tidal Marsh Restoration: a Synthesis of Science and Management. benthic metabolism and nutrient cycling to reductions in wastewater loading Island Press, Washington, DC. to Boston Harbor, USA. Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci. 151, 54–68. Roman, C.T., Neiring, W.A., Warren, R.S., 1984. Salt marsh vegetation in response to Valiela, I., Cole, M.L., 2002. Comparative evidence that salt marshes and mangroves tidal restriction. Environ. Manage. 8, 141–149. may protect seagrass meadows from land-derived nitrogen loads. Ecosystems Rudnick, S.M., 2009. Remaking Boston Harbor: Cleaning up after ourselves. In: 5, 99–102. Penna, A.N., Wright, C.E. (Eds.), Remaking Boston: An Environmental History Valiela, I., Foreman, K., LaMontagne, M., Hersh, D., Costa, J., Peckol, P., DeMeo- of the City and its Surroundings. Univeristy of Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA, Anderson, B., D’Avanzo, C., Babione, M., Sham, C.-H., Brawley, J., Lajtha, K., pp. 56–74. 1992. Couplings of watersheds to coastal waters: sources and consequences of Russell, H.S., 1976. A Long, Deep Furrow: Three Centuries of Farming in New nutrient enrichment in , MA. Estuaries 15, 443–457. England. University Press of New England, Hanover, . Wahle, R.A., Dellinger, S., Jekielek, P., 2015. American lobster nurseries of southern Sammarco, A.M., 1998. Boston’s Harbor Islands. Arcadia Press, Charleston, SC. New England receding in the face of climate change. ICES J. Mar. Sci. 72, 69–78. Zago, C., Giblin, A.E., A., Bergamasco., 2001. Changes in the metal content of surfi- cial sediments of Boston Harbor since the cessation of sludge discharge. Mar. Environ. Res. 51, 389–415.