Press Release: 5/28/2025

Healey-Driscoll Administration Awards $3.1 Million to Prevent and Reduce Pollutants from Entering Our Waterbodies

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

5/27/2025

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Fabienne Alexis, Public Affairs Assistant Director / MassDEP

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Call Fabienne Alexis, Public Affairs Assistant Director / MassDEP at 857-274-7522

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Email Fabienne Alexis, Public Affairs Assistant Director / MassDEP at fabienne.alexis@mass.gov

BOSTON — The Healey-Driscoll Administration today announced that the Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) is awarding $3.1 million in grants to support projects that prevent, control or reduce nonpoint source (NPS) pollution in our waterbodies.

"As our climate continues to change and rainfall increases, these types of projects help us maintain healthy lakes, rivers, and streams," said MassDEP Commissioner Bonnie Heiple. "It’s important that we implement strategies to eliminate the pollutants at the source, restore impaired waters and provide equitable access to clean and safe water."

NPS pollution occurs when rainfall or melting snow picks up and carries away natural and human-made pollutants, such as fertilizers, herbicides, construction sediment, nutrients and bacteria from animal waste, and eventually deposits those pollutants into our lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters, and ground waters. There are many types of NPS pollution that can impact our waterways. These grants help municipalities, tribal nations, regional planning agencies, and public and private entities address NPS pollution across Massachusetts.

The ten grants awarded are:

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe — $700,000

Mashpee, MA

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and the Town of Mashpee have collaborated to take a strategic, watershed-based approach utilizing a combination of structural and non-structural best management practices (BMPs) to improve water quality in Santuit Pond. This project will reduce persistent water quality degradation in Santuit Pond due to excessive in-pond nutrient loading by sequestering phosphorus over a 145-acre area of sediment where anoxia occurs most frequently. Alum treatment will be applied to the pond to reduce internal phosphorus loading to achieve substantial progress toward the watershed-based plan goal of an 81 percent reduction in phosphorus load established for the pond. This project will build on ongoing outreach and engagement activities targeted at residents in the neighborhoods surrounding Santuit Pond, Town officials, and the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe.

Mystic River Watershed Association — $869,640

Arlington, MA

The Mystic River Watershed Association will take a strategic, watershed-based approach to construct a total of 65 infiltration trenches in six (6) municipalities in the Mystic River watershed, offering cost-effective phosphorus reduction in a highly urbanized setting. This strategy is based on a model pioneered by the Town of Arlington in consultation with the University of New Hampshire Stormwater Center and EPA. The project is a continuation of work conducted by the City of Everett on behalf of eight municipalities. Municipalities will gain capacity to continue similar projects into the future, as municipalities work to meet the ambitious phosphorus reduction goals set out in the Alternative Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) report for the Mystic River watershed, released in May 2020 by EPA and MassDEP.

Town of Monson — $203,965

This project will improve water quality and ecological conditions for Chicopee Brook by installing stormwater BMPs at Cushman Field and support improved landscape management at Veterans Field. These recreational facilities, located along Chicopee Brook in Monson’s downtown, are identified in the Chicopee Brook Watershed Plan as highest priority sites for stormwater management BMPs. For Cushman Field, proposed BMPs include the installation of a 5,750-square foot bio-infiltration basin and larger drainage pipe to capture storm flows from Main and Washington Streets and stabilization of the unpaved road to reduce sediment transport. At Veteran’s Field, the recommendation to develop a 10-foot “no mow” zone along 500 feet of Chicopee Brook will be combined with a transition to organic land care practice. 

The Massachusetts Alternative Septic System Test Center – Barnstable County Department of Health and Environment (Wastewater Division) — $416,997

This project will install 25 urine diversion (UD) systems in nitrogen-impaired watersheds. The applicant will document actual nitrogen load reductions by watershed and generate performance data of UD systems to support the inclusion of UD as a general use nutrient management strategy. The County will also develop and maintain a publicly accessible map tool to communicate real-time progress toward watershed TMDLs. This project will help develop the management infrastructure needed to support collection, transport, and recycling and/or disposal of urine, and document costs and energy usage to maintain a community urine diversion program.

Massachusetts Association of Conservation Districts — $455,125

Westford, MA

The Massachusetts Association of Conservation Districts will build on a recently completed federally funded project. This project will engage farmers in the implementation of BMPs to reduce contaminant runoff to impaired waterbodies in Western Massachusetts. This award will help boost participation in programs offered by MassDEP, USDA, the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, and other financial assistance programs.

City of Pittsfield — $151,944

The funds will support the implementation of the West Branch Housatonic River Watershed-Based Plan (WBP). This project will install a stormwater BMP as part of a newly designed community park in the West Side neighborhood in Pittsfield, addressing listed impairments for trash, debris, nitrogen and pathogens in the West Branch of the Housatonic River and enhance the environmental health of the local community. It will involve and educate the community throughout the project's duration through community-based social marketing and community events that address trash and debris.

Berkshire Regional Planning Commission (BRPC) — $100,000

Pittsfield, MA

Through this project, BRPC will conduct regional NPS implementation project development via a Regional NPS Coordinator Program for Berkshire County. BRPC will carry out NPS-focused capacity-building work in and for local communities to change the perception of the rivers from liabilities to assets, and to meaningfully engender environmental stewardship. BRPC’s work will include engaging local communities through robust outreach and education, training, and capacity building. Through these efforts, local communities will be empowered to become active stewards of their rivers with the ability to identify potential NPS issues and engage in solutions to improve both water quality and the quality of life in their neighborhoods. This project will result in the development of WBPs and the submittal of high-quality proposals for future grant projects.

Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District (SRPEDD) — $100,000

Taunton, MA

This project will facilitate regional watershed planning efforts to address nitrogen and other sources of NPS pollution that impact Buzzards Bay watershed communities in the SRPEDD regional planning area. In collaboration with Mass Audubon and regional stakeholders, the applicant will conduct community outreach to identify sources and mitigation strategies for nitrogen pollution in the watershed. SRPEDD will support communities through the planning, development, and implementation of WBPs to improve water quality and build the capacity of local communities to manage their environmental resources more effectively.

Martha’s Vineyard Commission — $100,000

This project will establish an island-wide communications network of local and regional water resource stakeholders, establish a Regional NPS Coordinator to participate in ongoing watershed-based planning, and establish an education and outreach program that will focus on engaging island youth as well as training volunteers for water quality sampling. These goals are intended to ensure that all members of local communities on Martha’s Vineyard have access to key information, resources, and opportunities to have their water resource needs met, and will result in the development of WBPs.

Geosyntec Consultants, Inc. — $22,252

This project will build on the success of the Massachusetts Watershed-Based Plan web-based tool (WBP Tool). The funds will provide technical and programmatic support to the MassDEP NPS Management Section in the Watershed Planning Program for the WBP Tool.

For more information about the grant, please visit Section 319 Nonpoint Source Competitive Grants Program.