Protecting the Sudbury River

It's in our back yard. It is used for drinking, bathing, recreation, business and wildlife.

The Sudbury River is an asthetically pleasing river of historic significance. It was used as a passage to the coast by Native Americans. Colonists dammed the river to harness the water for power to industrial mills. The river had been diverted for water supply for the City of Boston in the 1800's. Authors have canoed and written about the Sudbury River for centruries. Wildlife, bird watching, fishing, hiking,boating provide recreational opportunities. But behind all that beauty and history belies problems.

In 1944, 250 acres were donated for a wildlife refuge. In 1966 the federal government began purchasing more property for the Great Meadows Wildlife Refuge. This refuge now has 3600 acres. In 1999, 14.9 miles of the SUASCO basin was included in a Wild and Scenic River designation.

The headwaters area of the Sudbury River is the site of explosive development of residential, business and industry.

Flow issues have affected the river and in August and September of 1999 the river ran dry for about 200 feet in the proximity of the Fruit Street Bridge at the Hopkinton & Westborough town lines for approximately 14 days.

In Ashland mercury contamination from the Nyanza plant prompted the town to be put on an EPA toxic list which led to a cleanup of the area. Eating fish caught downriver is still not recommended.

Storm water discharge still enters the river. Serious waste has been located and cleaned up in several areas.

Invasive species such as E. Milfoil, Water Chestnuts and Purple Loosestrife run rampant in several areas.

Effluent from a wastewater treatment plant in Marlborough, MA affected the quality of HopBrook that is a tributary of the Sudbury River.

In all these cases Education and outreach are a priority.

How we started

Started as a stream team with the MA Riverways program in 1998, SWAMP continued to campaign for the quality of the Sudbury River and it's adjacent watershed within Southborough and the surrounding towns of Westborough, Hopkinton and Ashland.

Members of SWAMP collected water quality samples including pH, dissolved Oxygen, Saturated Oxygen, temperature, clarity, conductivity, depth and flow. We also monitor for development and land sales that could affect or enhance the river. We worked with local and state agencies, land trusts and other watershed groups.

The history of the Sudbury River is one of geological, historical and cultural significance. Native Americans used this river for fishing and navigation to the sea. Several archeolgoical sites related to the Native Americans that once inhabited this river area exist in the upper Sudbury. Colonists as they settled westward dammed the river for industrial purposes.

Within the four-mile section that SWAMP monitored, one would still find traces of boot factories, sawmills, gristmills and millraces that once dotted the Sudbury's bank. The largest of these was the Cordaville Woolen Mill that made blankets for the army. The millpond and a few foundations still exist at the site that now houses the MBTA commuter rail station. The keystone arched bridge that SWAMP used as it's symbol is located here on the original road over the river between Hopkinton and Southborough.

SWAMP was the voice of the river. The Metro-west area of the state of Massachusetts where much of the Sudbury River flows is one of the fastest growing regions in the country. Water quality and quanity issues abound. In 1999 for the first time in anyone's memory approximately 200' of the mainstem river at the Fruit Street Bridge, Hopkinton/Westborough line the river ran dry! For 2 periods totaling 14 days. With the rapid development and need for water we have to protect our natural resource so it will always be there for now and future generations.

Swamp accomplished the following before morphing into the Sudbury River Watershed Organization aka SRWO.

Spring of 1998 SWAMP formed

Summer of 1998 Riverways stream team training offered

Fall of 1998 shoreline survey conducted

winter of 1998/1999 results of streamline survey put on to paper with short and long-term goals

spring 1999 $5,000 grant received from Commonwealth of MA with assistance from Southborough Open Land Foundation

Summer of 1999 water quality sampling equipment purchased and professional anaylitic survey conducted.

June 1999 Rivers Month display at Southborough town library

summer of 1999 Sudbury River runs dry on mainstem for approximately 200 feet

fall of 1999 began water sampling in four locations along the Sudbury River

Fall 1999 SWAMP display Southborough Heritage Day

fall of 2000 first annual canoe trip held

2001 Biodiversity Day held along the Sudbury River, Southborough/Hopkinton

June of 2001 Rivers month display at Southborough Town Library

October 2001 Display at Southborough Heritage Day

2002 Biodiversity Day Sudbury River Southborough/Ashland

June 2002 Rivers Month Display at Southborough Town Library

TICKNIPPE Native American for "wooded water". The word tick means wooded and nippe is water. Together they are befitting of what the Sudbury River in Southborough, MA is very much like. The Sudbury River in town meanders through the woods. The words were taken from the Southern New England Glossary in the book Native Names of New England Towns and Villages by C. Lawrence Bond, A. B., S. B.

Sudbury River Watershed Organization

Contact:

sudburyriver@sudburyriver.org

webmastersrwo@sudburyriver.org