The Buzzards Bay Watershed Restoration Partnership (BBWRP) held its annual gathering last week at the Buzzards Bay Coalition’s Science and Field Operations Center in Marion, bringing together partners and stakeholders from across the region. Attendees represented a broad range of interests within the Buzzards Bay watershed, including municipal leaders, landowners, land managers, regulatory agencies, and community organizations. The event also welcomed several representatives from the Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration (DER), whose support helps advancing the partnership’s restoration efforts throughout the watershed.
Organizer Evelyn Mortimer began the session with updates on ongoing partnership projects such as Puritan Bogs (Bourne), Jack’s March (Wareham), Mattapoisett Neck, Wolf Island Bogs (Rochester), and culvert replacements in Westport and Marion. Massachusetts DER Ecological Restoration Specialist Bridget Livers Gonzalez presented on the common themes and challenges of “Dam Removal and Ecological Restoration in Massachusetts.” She noted that the average age of dams in the state is more than 100 years old and of the more than 3,000 dams across the Commonwealth, only 250 (eight percent) actually serve a purpose now, highlighting the prevalence of aging infrastructure that provides little public benefit while continuing to harm river ecosystems.
Nick Wildman, Executive Director of the Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust, highlighted the partnership’s work to address small dams on Lower Buttonwood Brook, emphasizing the importance of understanding the impacts of smaller barriers on waterways, and the value of bundling them into larger restoration efforts, which can maximize ecological impact and funding opportunities.
The meeting wrapped up with a presentation on dam removals and lessons learned on Town Brook in Plymouth. Long-time Plymouth environmental director and Coalition partner David Gould and fisheries and aquaculture specialist Abigail Archer spoke on the use of quantitative data (notably, fish counting) to drive support and funding for local projects, using Town Brook as an example.
