Norwood annual report 1895-1899, Part 21

Author: Norwood (Mass.)
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: The Town
Number of Pages: 1166

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10.40

99.00

1.76

4.57

Bridge above Ink Works,

.0078

.0200

.1580

.1270

.2100

.0157

. 0670

.1640

. 0600

. 0460

4.96

26.40

39.60

2.00

7.30

8.10

.38

3.44

6.88

Below Ink Works and above Smith's sewer.

.0150

.0800

.1466

.1360

.0712

.0960

.0754

.0400

26.65

35.50

9.15

8.90

2.28

5.69

One hundred feet below Smith's sewer.

.0129

.1160

.1431

.1800

.0711

.0930

.0720

.0870

26.85

43.64

8.20

11.64

3.52

8.02

One hundred feet above Can- ton River.

.0400

.1220

. 1300

.1560

.0670

. 1040

.0630

. 0520

24.40

35.40

6.40

9.50

3.12

7.31

Canton River one hundred feet above its mouth.

.0016

.0040

. 0385

.0360

. 0257

.0220

.0128

.0140

0.51

0.68

One thousand feet below Can- ton River.

.00$2

.0170

.0060

.0685

.0560

.0176

.0476

.0340

.0209

.0220

4.66

14.95

11.20

2.00

4.85

4.70

.43

1.84

1.35

Paul's Bridge, .

.0086

.0190

. 0654

.0510

.0492

. 0200

.0413

.0382

.0097

.0110

5.08

11.40

14.10

2.12

3.70

4.60

.48

1.16

1.79

Mother Brook,

.0157

.0026

.0344

.0179

.0244

.0100

4.92

8.40

2.40

2.70

.36

0.53

Dam at Mattapan Paper Mill,

.0104

.0892

.0466

. 0208

.0406

.0060

5.28

10.85

2.50

5.35

. 46

2.39

Milton Lower Mills,

.0112

.0274

.0526

.0472

.0434

.0171

.0329

. 0342

.0143

.0092

5.36

11.80

2.22

4.00

.46

1.18

1.47

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

10.30

4.30

7.80

2.50

FREE AMMONIA.

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

Chemical Examination of Water from the Neponset River at Hyde Park.

Averages by Years. [Parts per 100,000.]

RESIDUE ON EVAPORA- TION.

AMMONIA.

NITROGEN AS

DATE OF COLLECTION.

Color.

Total.

Loss on

Free.

Total.

Dis-

Sus-

Chlorine.

Nitrates.

Nitrites.

Oxygen Consumed.

Hardness.

1887*

1.19

8.35

2.30

.0053 .0400

0.99

.0080

1888

1.02

6.77

2.27

.0030 .0324

0.83

.0095

.0002

1891}

1.48

10.34

3.45

.0190 .0510

.0413

.0097

1.16

.0065

.0003

3.3

1892} .

0.90

13.30

2.85

.0260 .0324

.0286

.0038

2.31

.0090

.0012

4.4

1893 ·

1.16

7.70

2.49

.0151

.0320

.0254

.0066

1.19

.0154

.0005

0.9548 2.4

1894

1.14

9.68

2.69

. 0112 .0360

.0277

.0083

1.64

.0062

.0002 1.0003 3.0

1895

1.04 ·

8.40

2.81

.0182 .0365

.0312

.0053

1.18

.0064 .0001 1.04583.0

Averages of the Six Months from June to November, inclusive.

1887

1.18

8.20

2.22

.0053 .0402

0.98

.0077

1888§

1.12

7.77

2.37

.0040

.0371

1.08

.0074

.0003

1893

1.27

8.60

2.68

.0233

.0370

.0282

.0088

1.47

.0045

.0009

1.0008 2.6

1894

1.19

12.87

3.03

.0196

.0466

.0333

.0133|

2.31

.0033

.0002

1.0334 4.1

1895

0.97

10.01

3.07

.0341

.0440

.0373

.0067

1.51

.0042 .0001 1.0470 3.7

The samples were collected from the river opposite the pumping station of the Hyde Park Water Company.

GENERAL CHARACTER AND PRESENT SANITARY CONDITION OF THE MEADOWS.

The extent and general features of the great meadows are shown by Plan No. 2. The results of the survey of the great meadows by the Board show that they cover a total area of 3,694 acres in several towns, including 32 acres of upland in small lots surrounded by the meadows, the area in each town being about as follows : -

* June to December.

+ August and September.

# July.

§ Average of five months, July to November.

Ignition.

Albuminoid.

solved.

pended.

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

TOWNS.

Area in Acres.

TOWNS.

Area in Aeres.

Norwood,

1,583

Milton,

Canton. .

1,302

Hyde Park,

Dedham, .

443

Sharon,

243

Total,

3,694

The elevation of the meadows has been determined at numerous points well distributed over the whole area. The results show that large areas are nearly level. About 413 acres, or about 11 per cent. of the total area, are below grade 48; 1,411 acres, or 38 per cent. of the area, are between grade 48 and grade 50; and 949 acres, or 26 per cent., are between grade 50 and grade 52. The meadows are lowest between Green Lodge Street and Paul's Bridge, where there are about 175 acres with an average elevation of about 46.7, which is less than 2 feet above the river at its lowest stage ; 50 per cent. of the meadows average only about 2 feet above the level of the water in the river at the lowest point it reached during the past dry season. In consequence of these conditions and of the character of the river, the meadows are subject to frequent overflows, not only in the winter and spring but in the drier portion of the year.

In the following table is given the elevation of the meadows in the different towns : -

BELOW GRADE 48.

ABOVE GRADE 54.

TOWNS.

Total.

Area in Aeres.

Average Elevation. Feet.

Between 48 and 50 Aeres.

Between 50 and 52 Aeres.

Between 52 and 54. Aeres.

Area in Aeres.

Average Elevation. Feet.

Canton,

111

714

402

1,302

Dedham,

181

222

443

Hyde Park,

Milton,

Norwood, .

451

434

376

320

1,583

Sharon,

243

Totals, .

413

1,411

949

505

416

3,694

Of this area, 32 acres are islands, divided among the different towns as follows : Canton, 17 acres ; Dedham, 12 acres ; Norwood, 3 acres.

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

In the next table is given the average elevation of the meadows between prominent points : -

BELOW GRADE 48.

Acres. Between 48 and 50.

Between 50 and 52.

Between 52 and 54.

Area

in Aeres.

Average

Elevation. Feet.

Total.

Above Pleasant Street,

Between Pleasant Street and Neponset Street.

158

412

244

117

931

Between Neponset Street and Dedham Road.

706

410

261

255

1,634

Between Dedham Road and Green Lodge Street.

254

306

Between Green Lodge Street and Paul's Bridge.

406

293

791

Totals,

413

1,411

949

505

416

3,694

Of this area, 32 acres are islands, divided among the different lo- calities as follows : between Pleasant Street and Neponset Street, 13 acres ; between Neponset Street and Dedham Road, 7 acres; be- tween Green Lodge Street and Paul's Bridge, 12 acres.

During the time the surveys were made in 1895 the character and condition of the meadows were noted, and from these observations it appears that areas aggregating about 1,400 acres, or about 38 per cent. of the whole area, were constantly wet, even in so dry a year as 1895. There were also indications that in ordinary seasons a con- siderably larger area, probably aggregating at least 50 per cent. of the whole area, is constantly wet.

Of the total area of the meadows, about 1,100 acres, or 30 per cent., were found to be covered with bushes and trees in various stages of growth and degrees of density, and nearly all of these areas are wet at all seasons of the year. Areas aggregating about 600 aeres were in such a condition, on account of wetness and uneven- ness of surface, that little or none of the hay crop is ever harvested from them. About 1,300 acres were in a somewhat more satis- factory condition, nearly all being free from water in the summer of 1895; and from these areas the hay crop can apparently be se- cured occasionally, though in one instance the erop was gathered in 1895 for the first time in eight years, according to the statement of the owner. The remainder of the area, about 600 acres in all, ap- peared to be in a more satisfactory condition, and from these areas a crop of hay is usually obtained.

Acres.

Area

in Acres.

Average

Elevation.

Feet.

ABOVE GRADE 54.

LOCALITY.

Aeres.

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

The condition of the meadows is said to have grown worse in the last few years, and from present indications it seems likely to con- tinue to do so, from various causes. Sonie of the meadow owners state that it is found unprofitable to keep the ditches elear, with the present uncertainty of obtaining a erop from the land, -a policy which will tend to still further increase the wetness of the meadows. Areas from which the grass is not eut have already been subject to injury from the stripping of the sod in winter. When the meadows are overflowed in cold weather the long grass is sometimes frozen into the ice, and by a subsequent rise in the water the sod is often torn from large patches and deposited in other portions of the meadow. This process is locally known as " scalping," and the areas from which the sod has been removed in many cases become filled with stagnant water in the summer season. The process is also liable to work injury to the stream by filling up the channel.

FEASIBILITY OF IMPROVEMENT OF THE SANITARY CONDITION OF THE RIVER AND MEADOWS.

To improve the sanitary condition of the river it will be necessary to prevent the further discharge into the stream or its tributaries of domestie and manufacturing sewage, unless it has been previously purified to a sufficient extent to prevent its being offensive to sight or smell. A general system of sewerage for the towns in the lower portion of the valley has already been provided for by chapter 406 of the Acts of 1895, and the construction of a main trunk sewer in the valleys of the Neponset River and Mother Brook was begun in 1896. By means of this system it will be possible to prevent the pollution of the river below the great meadows in the future, if some provision is made whereby the diversion of sewage from the river into the sewers is made compulsory, and the further discharge of sewage or objectionable manufacturing refuse into the main stream or its tributaries is prevented.

In the region above Hyde Park the pollution of the river at the present time is caused almost entirely by the discharge into it of manufacturing sewage, chiefly, as already noted, from paper mills and tanneries. During the summer of 1895 investigations were be- gun with reference to the purification of manufacturing sewage of this sort ; and, while these investigations have not yet been carried far enough to indicate definitely the method of purification that would

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

be most satisfactory in each case, the results thus far obtained indi- cate that it will be feasible to purify the sewage satisfactorily at a sufficiently small cost to obviate the danger of crippling the manu- facturing industries, which are at present the most important factors in the pollution of this portion of the stream. The question of the sewerage of some of the towns in this district was considered by the Massachusetts Drainage Commission in 1885, with the result that the Commission recommended plans for the disposal of the sewage of the towns of Canton, Stoughton, Sharon and Norwood separately by filtration upon land. A further study of the question in con- nection with the present investigation indicates that the disposal of the sewage of the towns and villages in the upper portion of the valley can be most satisfactorily accomplished by separate treatment upon land, as is 'done in many other towns in the State similarly situ- · ated, rather than by a general system of sewerage for the upper por- tion of the valley.

By purifying the sewage from the towns, as sewerage systems become necessary, and the sewage from manufacturing establish- ments which discharge matters which would tend to seriously pollute the streams, the portions of the river and its tributaries above the great meadows can be brought into a satisfactory sanitary condition.

The prevention of the pollution of the river and its tributaries would tend to improve the sanitary condition of the meadows, by preventing further deposit of organic matter from sewage upon the sides and bottom of the river and in the numerous shallow bays and coves ; but the sanitary condition of the river would remain unsatis- factory on account of wetness and the frequent fluetuations in the level of the water in the meadows, - conditions which are regarded as unfavorable to health.

To improve the sanitary condition of the meadows it will be neces- sary to lower the level of the water in the river sufficiently to permit of their satisfactory drainage, and, if possible, to prevent them from being flooded during the warmer portion of the year.

The investigations have shown that this eannot be aeeomplished by removing the flashboards from the dam at Hyde Park, or even by removing the dam entirely, unless an extensive improvement is also made in the channel of the river. Under present conditions the height of the flashboards affeets the level of the river above Green Lodge Street only to a very slight degree in the drier portion of the year; and if the dam should be removed entirely the water in the river

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

in a summer season like that of 1895 would probably be less than six inches lower at Green Lodge Street than it was actually found to be and about two inches lower at Neponset Street, unless the lowering of the water below should cause a wearing away of the bars in the lower part of the meadows on account of the increased velocity of the stream at times of higher water, and it is very doubtful whether any appreciable effect upon the condition of the meadows would be pro- duced in this way.

To effect any decided improvement in the present conditions it will be necessary to deepen the river sufficiently to carry off the summer flows and keep the surface of the water in the stream suffi- ciently low to allow the surface of the meadows to be drained. The amount of work required in improving the channel in order to drain the meadows satisfactorily depends upon the flow to be provided for and the fall that can be obtained.

No records of the flow in the Neponset River for a long period of years are obtainable, but the conditions affecting its water-shed appear to be such that the records of flow of the Sudbury River are applicable. The Sudbury River records cover a period of twenty- one years, including years of very low and very high flow. The highest summer flow occurred in 1889, when the average flow for the highest week amounted to 3.7 cubic feet per second per square mile of watershed, the daily flow for one or two days of this week proba- bly considerably exceeding this amount. It is probable, however, that, if the channel of the river should be sufficiently enlarged to enable it to carry 4 cubic feet per second per square mile, the meadows would be kept free of water excepting for a day or two in a week such as that in 1889 referred to.

With the exception of the records of the flow of the Sudbury River, there are no records of flows of streams in this part of the country which appear to be applicable to the conditions existing on the Neponset. Records of rainfall, however, have been kept in the eastern part of the State for long periods of years, and an examina- tion of such records, covering a period of one hundred and thirteen years, indicates that summer months like that of August, 1889, may be expected to occur about once in from ten to fourteen years ; moreover, about two or three times in a century it may happen that the flow for one of the summer months will be considerably in excess of that of August, 1889. While these estimates are not wholly re- liable, they furnish, nevertheless, the most satisfactory information

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

obtainable with reference to the probable flow of streams in this region for a long period of years.

All things considered, it does not seem necessary or desirable at the present time to provide for a greater flow than 4 cubic feet per second per square mile, because even this flow may occur, in the warmer portion of the year, only at considerable intervals of years ; and, though it may be exceeded at times, it is not probable that water would stand upon the meadows for a sufficient time to cause any serious injury to vegetation.

PLAN FOR DRAINING MEADOWS.

As already stated, the total fall of the stream through the great meadows, from a point 500 feet below Pleasant Street to the Mattapan Paper Mill dam, at very low water, is about 9.35 feet, and at times, when the meadows are overflowed, considerably more ; and the total length of the stream from Pleasant Street to the dam at Mattapan Paper Mill, 72,400 feet. The fall at the upper cnd of the stream is so rapid that no overflow of consequence would take place in the sum- mer season for a considerable distance below Pleasant Street, if the water below was carried off with its surface at a sufficiently low level. In the middle portion of its course for a long distance the bottom of the river varies very little in elevation, and to enlarge the channel sufficiently to carry off' 4 cubic feet per second per square mile of watershed, it will be necessary to deepen the channel a large portion of the way from a short distance below the bend at Dean Street to Mother Brook. The river is so crooked, however, that by cutting across sharp bends its length can be considerably shortened, thus increasing the slope and reducing the dimensions of the channel, and decreasing the amount of excavation that would be neces- sary. While providing a channel capable of carrying off high sum- mer flows it seems desirable to have as great a depth of water as possible at times of low summer flow, tending thereby to prevent the growth of weeds in the bottom of the channel. It also secms desir- able to maintain the water at as near the present level as possible in the town of Hyde Park. With these objects in view, a channel has been designed, as shown on the accompanying plan and profile (Plan No. 3).

By this plan the flashboards on the Mattapan Paper Mill dam would be removed, leaving the top of the dam at grade 42.3. Beginning at

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

the dam, an enlargement of the cross-section of the river will be necessary at a few points indieated on the plan and profile up to a little below Bridge Street in Hyde Park. From this point the plan provides for the deepening of the channel, where necessary, to a uniform grade of 1 in 8,750, up to a point in the vicinity of Canton River, and to a grade of 1 in 1,600 from Canton River to a point 2,400 feet above Traphole Brook, and about a mile below Dean Street.

The plan shows the portions of the stream where the channel of the river would have to be deepened and the places at which it appears to be advantageous to exeavate a wholly new channel.

The channel as designed would have a bottom width of 27 feet from Mother Brook to Ponkapoag Brook, a short distance above Green Lodge Street. From that point to Purgatory Brook its bottom width would be 23.5 feet, and from Purgatory Brook to Canton River 20.5 feet. Above Canton River a bottom width of 14 feet is proposed.

The grade of the bottom of the channel at Mother Brook would be about 37.6, or about 4.7 feet below the level of the top of the dam, while at Canton River the grade of the bottom of the channel would be about the same as the top of the dam.

The surface of the water of the river with 4 cubic feet per second flowing would generally be at least a foot below the level of the low portions of the meadows up to a short distance above Purgatory Brook. From this point to Traphole Brook there are several places where the surface of the river under these conditions would be only 0.3 or 0.4 of a foot below the level of the meadows. There is, how- ever, a small area of perhaps 5 acres about 1,000 feet above Paul's Bridge which would be flooded slightly. With a flow of 0.5 of a cubie foot per second per square mile, which may be taken to repre- sent the average flow in the middle or latter part of June, the surface of the water in the channel would be generally from 4 to 5 feet below the level of the meadows. The depth of the water in the river through the great meadows up to Canton River would be about 6.7 feet, with a flow of 4 eubie feet per second per square mile. The depth of water in the channel in summer, with a flow of 0.5 of a eubie foot per second per square mile, would be about 4} feet at the lower end of the meadows, deereasing to about 3 feet at Dedham Road and to about 23 feet at Canton River. The surfaces of the water in the channel with these amounts flowing have been indicated on the profile.

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

Through the driest months of the year the flow would average con- siderably less than 0.5 of a cubic foot per second per square mile.

The velocity of the water at times of high flow would be about 1.5 feet per second. This might be such as to erode the banks some- what in places, but it does not seem likely that any serious changes in the channel would occur from this cause for many years, if at all.

Whether weeds would grow in the bottom at times of low flow in summer, and obstruct the channel, cannot be predicted with cer- tainty. On the Concord and Sudbury rivers it was found that weeds grew from the bed of the river when the depth was less than 4 feet ; but the Concord and Sudbury rivers have an extremely sluggish flow, while the flow in the Neponset would be comparatively rapid. In the Charles River weeds are also found in the shallow places where the fall is slight and the current sluggish, but in more rapid currents very little of this sort of growth is noted. Should weeds grow, the effect would be to raise the level of the water, and the effect would be felt most at times of low flow ; but it is probable that at times of high flow the growth would be destroyed and largely removed by the force of the current.

Care would be necessary, in the connection of ditches and tributa- ries with the new channel, to excavate them to a sufficient depth and width to make the velocity at the point of entering the river as low as possible, to allow for the settlement of matters washed from the bottom of streams and ditches in heavy showers or storms, and to prevent their being carried into the river.

The material excavated in improving the channel of the river should be used in filling old channels and places where water might collect and become stagnant.

ESTIMATED COST.

With the money at the disposal of the Board, it has not been feasible to make the detailed survey of the river that would be required for an accurate engineering estimate of the amount and character of material to be removed. Rod soundings indicate that the material of the bottom of the river is sand, gravel and mud throughout the great meadows. The information furnished by soundings below the great meadows, between Paul's Bridge and Mother Brook, indicated the presence of ledge; and through this region a more accurate determination of the character of the river bottom has been made by means of borings, with the result that

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

ledge is found at only one place, just above Mother Brook, where it rises above the bottom of the proposed channel for a distance of 250 feet along the river, the material for the remainder of the dis- tance probably being sand and gravel.

From estimates made from soundings through the centre of the river, showing the elevation of the bottom, it appears that the total amount of material that it would be necessary to remove by the plan suggested would be 199,450 cubic yards of sand, gravel and mud, and 962 cubic yards of rock.

It is probable that there will be an extra cost for enlarging the channel beneath some of the bridges below the meadows. At the first of these - Paul's Bridge - the bottom of the river will need to be decpened some 4 feet. It is said that the river has filled up considerably in this place in recent years ; and if this is the case, it is possible that the foundations of the bridge are sufficiently deep to allow for the necessary deepening of the river without affecting the stability of the bridge : nevertheless, there may be an extra cost for deepening the river at this place. The channel will need to be greatly enlarged at the bridges in the freight yard of the New Eng- land Railroad, on account of the choking of the river channel by piles ; and some difficulty may be encountered in providing a suita- ble channel here, on account of the large area of the river covered by these bridges. At Bridge Street and Fairmount Avenue the chan- nel will also need some cnlargement, which may require extra ex- pense.

It is estimated that the cost of excavating and disposing of the sand, gravel and mud would be $0.50 per cubic yard, and for remov- ing the rock $5 per cubic yard. The extra cost of enlarging the channel at the bridges below the Great Meadows is estimated at $6,000. On this basis the total cost of constructing a channel as proposed would be as follows : -

Excavating 199,450 cubic yards of sand, gravel and mud, at $0.50, $99,725

Excavating 962 cubic yards of rock, at $5, . 4,810

Enlarging the channel at Bridges below the Great Meadows, 6,000

Total, .

$110,535

Engineering and inspection, 15 per cent.,

16,580

Total, .

$127,115

In addition to the cost of the work, there would be the cost of land and water damages. The only water power affected is that of

NEPONSET MEADOWS.

the Mattapan Paper Mill. The present available fall at this mill at times of low water in summer is about 8 feet, and this fall would be reduced nearly 3 feet by the removal of flashboards. A very large amount of water is used from the river for washing purposes, and this may be the most important use of the river at these works. The proposed improvement would reduee the level at which the water from the river would be delivered to the mill, but on account of the extensive deepening of the river the reduction in the capacity of the millpond would probably be slight, if any, and the quality of the water would be much better than at present.

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Norwood annual report 1895-1899, Part 21

Author: Norwood (Mass.) Publication date: 1895 Publisher: The Town Number of Pages: 1166

Author: Norwood (Mass.)
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: The Town
Number of Pages: 1166