A Cleaner Charles River May Start At A Park In Milford

MILFORD, MA — Think of it as a big sponge, but one that you can play basketball and tennis on.

A major green infrastructure upgrade is coming to Milford's Town Park to help control flooding, prevent droughts and keep pollutants out of the Charles River.

This week, engineers with the Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA) presented new designs for the green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) project to the Select Board. In about a year, construction on rain gardens and a large infiltration system will begin at the park.

That infrastructure will help absorb and filter stormwater and runoff — everything from engine coolant to pet waste — so it doesn't end up in nearby Milford Pond, which is part of the Charles River. The CRWA is especially focused on reducing phosphorous, which is linked to harmful algae blooms.

Jennie Moonan, CRWA's stormwater program director, said many people don't realize that whatever flows into storm drains ends up in the Charles — there's no treatment plant to stop pollution. The Town Park project is a relatively inexpensive and easy way to soak up some of that contamination.

CRWA considered several other locations in Milford for the project, including Fino Field, the downtown area and Brookside Elementary. Town Park was ultimately chosen because it drains a large 10-acre area.

"It's the biggest bang for the buck," Moonan said.

Also, the location of the park near Environmental Justice Populations helped the $443,000 project qualify for a $419,000 Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) grant from the state. The CRWA will match the remaining costs.

On top of the environmental benefits, the project will also be integrated into the community. The CRWA has been visiting students at Stacy Middle School and Memorial Elementary to talk about the project and water ecology. The Milford Garden Club will be involved in helping select plants for for the rain gardens.

Moonan said the final design will likely be ready this fall. The project could break ground in about one year. Construction will be planned to avoid events at Town Park.

"It will be an example of a green infrastructure project that other communities can look to," CRWA Climate Resilience Specialist Robert Kearns said.

You can see the CRWA's Milford project page here, and the Select Board presentation is here. You can also visit nearby examples of rain gardens at either the Bellingham municipal complex or the Watch Factory in Waltham.

About the Charles River

The Charles is most famous for its wide, scenic course through Boston and Cambridge. But the river begins as close to Milford along Route 85 in Hopkinton just east of Cornell's Irish Pub.

From its beginning, the river twists and turns for about 80 miles before reaching Boston Harbor, passing through Medway, Millis, Medfield, Dover, Natick (then Dover again), Needham and Dedham before running about parallel with I-95 and then heading east into Boston at Waltham.

But the river collects water from about 308 square miles, from as far north as Wayland and Lincoln to as far south as Wrentham. After decades of pollution, the CRWA was created in the 1960s improve the river, and you can see some of the organization's clean-up projects here.