Pine Tree Brook: Improved and Protected

By Reva Levin, DPW Program Manager 6/30/05

The Pine Tree Brook Water Quality and Greenway Improvement Project was formally dedicated June 21 in a ceremony attended by legislators, federal, state and local environmental advocates, town officials, contractors and the DPW. All of these partners had one goal: to help restore the water quality of Pine Tree Brook and beautify the riverbank.

Pam Dorsey, Jane Gaughan and Richard Russell were honored during the ceremony for their work as members of the Pine Tree Brook Neighborhood Association. They led the association in securing funding and involving NepRWA and the DPW.

Residents can now stroll a new greenway trail and visit several "bio-retention cells' - depressions along the riverbank that are filled with highly absorptive soils - which will filter out pollutants from local storm water before it empties into the brook. Storm water, which is simply rain or snow melt, carries pollutants such as pet waste, chemical fertilizer residue and motor oil that would normally flow into the brook untreated. These, and other pollutants, cause long-term damage to the brook and its surrounding wildlife and habitat.

Pine Tree Brook is currently on the state's list of impaired waters. It is hoped that additional future grants will continue the restoration of this important town resource.

Top Photo: Partners for Pine Tree Brook, from left, DPW Engineer John Thompson, NepRWA Director Ian Cooke, Rep. Walter Timilty, Dick Russell of Pine Tree Brook Neighborhood Association, DPW Director Walter Heller, Selectmen Chair Marion McEttrick, Don Neal of the Conservation Commission, Sen. Brian Joyce and Town Administrator David Colton.

NEPONSET RIVER WATERSHED ASSOCIATION

490 Chapman Street , Suite One B · Canton , MA 02021
Phone 781-575-0354 · Fax 781-575-9971 · www.neponset.org

6/9/05 "Press Release"

Milton , MA - It's time to put on your walking shoes for an exploratory tour of the new greenway trail and water treatment structures along Milton 's Pine Tree Brook!

On June 21, collaborators on this greenway improvement and water purification project will introduce the nuts and bolts of the project. Senator Brian Joyce, Representative Walter Timilty, the Neponset River Watershed Association, the Milton Department of Public Works (DPW), the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, the Pine Tree Brook Neighborhood Association, Cali Construction, Geosyntec Consultants and Milton residents will all celebrate the partnership between federal, state and local organizations.

These projects are reducing bacterial pollution in Pine Tree Brook. The bacteria originate from pet waste and garbage left on streets, paths and sidewalks. The rain washes that waste-along with fertilizers, oil and other pollutants-into catch basins along the streets. From the catch basins, the storm drain system used to carry the polluted water straight into the Brook, untreated.

Now, along the north side of the Brook, between Blue Hill Parkway and Thacher Street, Cali Corporation of Natick has built three "bio retention cells" - depressions along the riverbank that are filled with highly absorptive soils and plants. Polluted water from the streets flows into these cells and soil, microorganisms and plants filter-out the pollutants. Previously, polluted street runoff ran straight into the Brook, degrading water quality with oil, fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and animal waste.

On the other side of the Brook, another large storm drain that once dumped polluted street runoff into the Brook has been diverted into Pine Tree Brook's historic streambed. That streambed now filters the polluted runoff before it can reach the Brook.

All of this storm water treatment work and improvement of a pathway along the Brook has been undertaken through a joint effort of the Neponset River Watershed Association and the Town of Milton , using a major grant from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and additional matching funds from a variety of sources.

In addition to this construction effort, there has been a parallel education campaign aimed at getting pet owners to clean-up after their furry friends, not only along Pine Tree Brook but also throughout the Town of Milton . As a part of this initiative, an informational canvass of the Pine Tree Brook neighborhood was done at about the same time that Milton adopted a bylaw making it illegal to leave behind pet waste, a year ago. Milton residents also have received information from the Milton DPW about pet waste pollution and chemical fertilizer use.

The June 21 Pine Tree Brook Dedication ceremony will start at 10:00 AM at Pine Tree Brook, rain or shine, at the Gile Road bridge below the Milton High School athletic field. RSVPs are encouraged but not required. Contact Reva Levin at the Milton Dept. of Public Works (617-696-5729) or Ian Cooke at NepRWA (781-575-0354).