Brookline, Boston To Finish Muddy River Flood Mitigation Project - Brookline, MA Patch

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BROOKLINE MA— The Muddy River is about to get spruced up.

The second part of a joint project between Boston and Brookline to manage flooding along the river is getting underway. The good news is that it is part of an effort to restore the river's flow, manage invasive species, and protect habitat and wetland. The bad news is that it will mean some pathways will be shut down. The effort is expected to take three years.

Crews will be working on the part of the river that stretches from Olmsted Park to the Back Bay's Fens and will remove more than 90,000 cubic yards of sediment from the river.

The first part of the project was finished in 2016 and included the stretch of the Muddy River between the Riverway and Avenue Louis Pasteur. There, crews removed the river from underground culverts, dredged the parts of the river that were above ground of sediment, removed invasive plant species and built new riverbanks and added landscape plantings.

The entire project has been in the works for more than 20 years and is now wrapping up, said Brookline's Director of Parks and Open Spaces Erin Gallentine.

"The completion of this project will improve the condition of the Muddy River to ensure its preservation for generations to come," Gallentine said. "We would like to thank everyone for their patience and cooperation as we navigate through this process and the temporary effects it will have on our use of the parks and public way."

The effort is part of a 20-year flood risk management plan as flooding has affected businesses and hospitals in the Longwood medical area for years, according to officials.

In an effort to help the river flow, crews will remove 1-to 8 feet of sediment from the bottom of the river at Leverett Pond near Boylston Street, and along the Back Bay Fens. Crews will also work to stabilize the river bank, restore wetland, remove invasive species and habitation for turtles, fish and amphibians while protecting historic structures and landscape.

Dredging is expected to start in the fall.

During the next three years, crews will close part of the paths and roadways near the Muddy River, but, according to the town, at least one pathway will remain open at all times for shared pedestrian and bicycle access.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the state, City of Boston and Town of Brookline are working with Charter Contracting Company on the project.

The Maintenance and Management Oversight Committee of the Muddy River Restoration Project created by the Massachusetts Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs, including community groups such as the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, the Fenway Alliance and the Brookline GreenSpace Alliance helped develop a specific and detailed strategy to define, control and minimize impacts to trees during construction. The team identified each area of the river to be dredged, surveyed all of the trees in the project area and developed a construction access plan that minimizes the impacts on healthy trees.

Of the 116 trees expected to be removed between Olmsted Park, Riverway Park and the Back Bay Fens, 24 are dead, another 34 are Ash trees, which are susceptible to the national pest, now in Boston, called the Emerald Ash Borer, which can kill ash trees. Dead, affected Ash trees have been observed upstream of Leverett Pond and it is anticipated that all 34 listed Ash trees would ultimately be infested with Emerald Ash Borer and perish within the next several years, anyway.

Of the 58 remaining trees to be removed, 18 trees have been determined to be in fair or poor condition, 31 are considered to be invasive species. Another nine trees are in good condition, but for some reason are causing an issue, according to authorities.

At the end of the project, 130 new trees will be planted and pathways, bank plantings, lawn areas and overall park conditions will be restored or improved.


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Got a tip? Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna). Have a press release you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how to post a press release, a column, event or opinion piece.



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