Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) Office Environmental Notification Form For Office Use Only EEA#: MEPA Analyst: The information requested on this form must be completed in order to submit a document electronically for review under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act, 301 CMR 11.00. Project Name: Monatiquot River Restoration Street Address: Hancock Street and Plain Street Municipality: Braintree Watershed: Boston Harbor Universal Transverse Mercator Latitude: 42.198310 Coordinates: Longitude: -71.003542 334,584.25 E 4,673,737.82 N; UTMZ 19T Estimated commencement date: Estimated completion date: July 2022 June 2021 (in-water work estimated completion date: March 2022) Project Type: River Restoration Status of project design: 60 %complete Proponent: Town of Braintree, in cooperation with Hollingsworth Pond, LLC. Street Address: 1 John F. Kennedy Memorial Drive Municipality: Braintree State: MA Zip Code: 02184 Name of Contact Person: Matthew Sanford Firm/Agency: Milone & MacBroom, Inc. Street Address: 99 Realty Drive Municipality: Cheshire State: CT Zip Code: 06410 Phone: (203) 271-1773 Fax: E-mail: [email protected] Does this project meet or exceed a mandatory EIR threshold (see 301 CMR 11.03)? Yes No If this is an Expanded Environmental Notification Form (ENF) (see 301 CMR 11.05(7)) or a Notice of Project Change (NPC), are you requesting: a Single EIR? (see 301 CMR 11.06(8)) Yes No a Special Review Procedure? (see 301CMR 11.09) Yes No a Waiver of mandatory EIR? (see 301 CMR 11.11) Yes No a Phase I Waiver? (see 301 CMR 11.11) Yes No (Note: Greenhouse Gas Emissions analysis must be included in the Expanded ENF.) Which MEPA review threshold(s) does the project meet or exceed (see 301 CMR 11.03)? 301 CMR 11.03(3)(a)4., structural alteration of an existing dam that causes an expansion of 20% or decrease in impoundment capacity, 301 CMR 11.03(3)(b)1.b., alteration of 500 or more linear feet of bank along a fish run or inland bank, 301 CMR 11.03(3)(b)1.e., new fill or structure or expansion of existing fill or structure, except pile-supported structure, in a velocity zone or regulatory floodway; 301 CMR 11.03(3)(b)1.f., alteration of ½ or more acres of any other wetlands. Which State Agency Permits will the project require? Ecological Restoration Order of Conditions; Combined 401 Water Quality Certification & Chapter 91 Dredge Permit; Chapter 91 Waterways License; Chapter 253 Dam Safety Permit; DMF Fishway Construction Permit Effective January 2011 Identify any financial assistance or land transfer from an Agency of the Commonwealth, including the Agency name and the amount of funding or land area in acres: State funding has supported the design and permitting efforts and is anticipated to support future construction activities. State funding allocated to date includes: MA Dam & Seawall Repair or Removal Grant program: $75,000 MA Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Program: $90,000 MA Division of Ecological Restoration: $80,000 Summary of Project Size Existing Change Total & Environmental Impacts LAND Total site acreage 13.9 acres New acres of land altered 0.45 acres Acres of impervious area 6.9 acres -0.1 acres 6.8 acres Square feet of new bordering vegetated wetlands alteration * Net change in BVW. BVW will be created +3.53 acres through conversion of LUW. See Supplemental Information Report Section 6.0 for details. Square feet of new other wetland alteration Net change in LUW. LUW will be converted to BVW. See -3.40 acres Supplemental Information Report Section 6.0 for details. Acres of new non-water dependent use of N/A tidelands or waterways STRUCTURES Gross square footage N/A N/A N/A Number of housing units N/A N/A N/A Maximum height (feet) N/A N/A N/A TRANSPORTATION Vehicle trips per day N/A N/A N/A Parking spaces N/A N/A N/A WASTEWATER Water Use (Gallons per day) N/A N/A N/A Water withdrawal (GPD) N/A N/A N/A Wastewater generation/treatment (GPD) N/A N/A N/A Length of water mains (miles) N/A N/A N/A Length of sewer mains (miles) N/A N/A N/A Has this project been filed with MEPA before? Yes (EEA # ) No Has any project on this site been filed with MEPA before? Yes (EEA # ) No - 2 - GENERAL PROJECT INFORMATION – all proponents must fill out this section PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Describe the existing conditions and land uses on the project site: This project encompasses the area along the Monatiquot River in Braintree, Massachusetts, from the stone arch Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) railroad bridge at the downstream project limits to the Plain Street bridge at the upstream limits. Several barriers to fish passage exist along the project river reach, and the proposed project will restore fish passage through this reach. There are three specific barriers that will be addressed as part of this restoration project. These are described from downstream to upstream. The natural fish passage barrier known as Rock Falls is located upstream of the MBTA bridge and has a 4-foot grade drop over a relatively short distance. The significant grade change and channel slope are a barrier to fish passage. Upstream of Rock Falls is the Ames Pond dam, which is a non-jurisdictional concrete dam that blocks fish passage. Lastly, the Armstrong dam is located upstream of the Ames Pond dam and impounds an approximately 3.8-acre area known as Hollingsworth Pond. The impoundment stretches from the dam to the Plain Street bridge. The Ames Pond and Armstrong dams are both owned by Hollingsworth Pond LLC. The Ames Pond dam (also known as Factory Pond dam, MA#03101) varies between 2 to 3 feet high and is approximately 50 feet long and is considered a non-jurisdictional dam. Therefore, no hazard rating is attributed to this dam. The dam is partially breached and no longer has a formal impoundment upstream. Even though this dam is partially breached, the velocities flowing over the dam are too high for fish passage. The Armstrong dam (MA#03102) is approximately 12 feet high and 92 feet long and is located beneath a former mill building known as the Armstrong Cork building. The concrete dam is classified by MA ODS as an intermediate-sized, high hazard potential structure that is in “fair” condition. The dam has eight main bays separated by concrete piers (structural supports for the building) on the spillway and one low auxiliary bay, which acts as a low-level outlet, located 5 feet in front of the dam. The dam is a significant barrier to fish passage due to the lack of an existing fish ladder. The dam is operated in a run-of-river mode and does not provide any flood protection; in fact, under flooding conditions, the dam acts to increase the water level and area of inundation upstream of the dam. The Armstrong dam impoundment is referenced as Hollingsworth Pond and has an approximate inundation area of approximately 3.8 acres extending approximately 2,400 linear feet upstream to the Plain Street bridge. Hollingsworth Pond has a water storage capacity of approximately 20 acre-feet. Small pockets of bordering vegetated wetlands are found along the periphery of the impoundment, but most land use surrounding the impoundment is classified as developed. Some of this development includes the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV), the Bayshore Athletic Club, an auxiliary parking lot located east of the impoundment, and the MBTA Old Colony Line Middleboro Branch railroad, which parallels the impoundment to the west. The primary goals of the project are to remove two aging and obsolete dams, improve public safety, restore fish passage along this reach of the Monatiquot River, and provide opportunities for diadromous fish to reach Great Pond for spawning and rearing habitats. Figure 1-1 of the Supplemental Information Report and Sheets EX-1, EX-2, and EX-3 of project plans in Appendix D of the same report provide an overview of existing conditions in the vicinity of the project. Please refer to the Supplemental Information Report, Section 2.0, and relevant technical appendices for more detailed discussion of existing conditions. Describe the proposed project and its programmatic and physical elements: - 3 - NOTE: The project description should summarize both the project’s direct and indirect impacts (including construction period impacts) in terms of their magnitude, geographic extent, duration and frequency, and reversibility, as applicable. It should also discuss the infrastructure requirements of the project and the capacity of the municipal and/or regional infrastructure to sustain these requirements into the future. The proposed project involves removal of the Armstrong dam and the Ames Pond dam, reconstruction of the Monatiquot River channel within Hollingsworth Pond, construction of a fish passage structure (natural bypass channel or 30-foot-long steep pass) at Rock Falls, construction of a multiuse trail adjacent to the river, and construction of a vehicular and pedestrian bridge over the river. Completion of this project would restore riverine habitat, provide uninterrupted aquatic fish and wildlife passage from Fore River Bay to Great Pond (a 180-acre high-quality fish spawning/rearing habitat), reduce flood risks, encourage public access to the river, and create a patch of open space in a relatively urbanized section of Braintree. Armstrong Dam and Hollingsworth Impoundment Dewatering of the Hollingsworth Pond impoundment and removal of the Armstrong dam will restore approximately 5,200 linear feet of natural free-flowing habitat on the Monatiquot River and will create over 3 acres of naturalized open space.