Lynnfield has the option to purchase the forested 23-acre “Richardson Green,” located immediately north of Sagamore Golf Course and adjacent to the Lynnfield Center Water District (LCWD) protected land.
The option to purchase a parcel of this size, located adjacent to both our water supply, as well as 700 acres of forest, is an opportunity that will never come again and should not be wasted. It is critical to the future of this town that the land be purchased and reserved as untouched open space to benefit the health and wellness of the town and its water supply.
We are almost perpetually under water use restrictions due to frequent droughts brought on with climate change. Additional wells will not help because there is only so much water available. Protecting and managing forests help preserve water supplies and are essential to providing clean, safe, affordable drinking water.
The shade helps to keep soil moist, enhancing infiltration; and cool, reducing evaporation and water loss from the watershed. The leaves intercept rain (between 500-4,000 gallons per year per tree), slowing droplets, reducing the impact of rain on the soil. The roots absorb rainwater: a single mature oak tree consumes more than 40,000 gallons of water per year. As a result, storm water volume and velocity are both significantly reduced — critical for recharging the aquifer and reducing soil erosion.
The state has determined that the Phillip and Main streets wells are at a high risk for contamination. Developing the land will create large impervious areas, decrease infiltration and increase storm water flow and contaminated urban run-off. Trees remove excess nutrients and pollutants from groundwater. However, trees cannot solve all water quality problems. It’s best to preserve a forest and prevent contamination from septic systems, lawn treatments, pavement and other incidental releases.
Even one ounce of solvent can render hundreds of thousands of gallons of water undrinkable. Treatments to fix or replace a contaminated aquifer have multi-million dollar costs, take years, and may not be successful. By purchasing Richardson Green, town leaders will confirm their dedication to ensuring that town residents have affordable, safe, drinking water.
Buying the land is not a new idea. The state Department of Environmental Protection recommended that LCWD acquire land that is subject to high-risk development back in 2002.
Lynnfield’s Municipal Vulnerabilities Preparedness Plan (April, 2020) prepared by town leaders identified the LCWD at high risk from development in northern Lynnfield due to resulting decreased recharge and water quality concerns. They concluded that Lynnfield should seek to acquire the Sagamore Spring Golf Club and Richardson Green, or at a minimum, work to limit development on the land to help ensure we have water for our residents.
Essex County Greenbelt and the Ipswich River Watershed Association have agreed to help secure grants provided the town is committed to the purchase. Our Conservation Commission and LCWD have funds set aside for such purchases. Lynnfield’s businesses and residents have stepped up before to help with costs for fields and sports equipment, surely they will help protect our drinking water.
Lynnfield’s water supply is fragile. Allowing the Richardson land to be built upon will increase water extraction from an already taxed aquifer, increase the risk of contamination and decrease the aquifer’s ability to recharge. Please let the Board of Selectmen know you want them to make protecting our drinking water a priority.
Patricia Fabbri
Lynnfield
