Here’s a story posted this summer on the Newton Conservators website that I don’t believe has been reported anywhere else….
In November 2018, Boston College filed plans with the City of Newton to construct the salt storage facility [on the rear parking lot of the land it owns in Webster Woods.] Neither the Newton Conservation Commission nor any other city department had the authority to prevent the construction of this facility. Construction began in February 2019, and was substantially complete by June.
This facility threatens Webster Woods because of the likelihood of runoff of salt-contaminated rainwater from the site, and because of the likelihood that flaws in the parking lot will allow infiltration of salt water into the ground. Read the rest here.
Julia,
Tell us what the impact of subsoil sail incursion would be / could be on tree canopy, wild life here. ???
The City of Newton should have bought Webster Woods when it had the opportunity. Now, the City should consider taking this property by eminent domain, using the existing structures for NewCal, and permanently preserving the undeveloped land. Solve two problems with one check from the taxpayers.
The linked article is fundamentally alarmist and, as presented, provides no substantive justification for the conclusions drawn. For example, in what sense is the risk of salt water contamination “significant”? How is significant even quantified? How is the impact of the runoff quantified? More importantly, what is direction of subsurface water flow? The writer seems to presume (whether they know it or not) that the flow is such as to take the salt from the lot to the pond. Is this so? If there is a “significant risk,” and perhaps there may be, the author of this piece does nothing to make the case. It is irresponsibly written and as such, irresponsibly presented here.
@elmo – What you say is true, but …..
A mountain of salt at the top of a hill, a body of water at the bottom of the hill. Just saying …