Towns strive to protect source of drinking water
The Plymouth-Carver aquifer, the second-largest in the state, covers about 199 square miles and contains an estimated 500 billion gallons of water. It's the result of thousands of years of water filtration through the region's sandy soil, and today is the sole source of drinking water for some area towns, including Plymouth.
It's no wonder that local towns are looking for ways to protect it.
Legislators representing the aquifer towns have put $100,000 in next year's budget to continue developing an aquifer management plan, drafted over the last year by an advisory committee from the seven towns affected: Carver, Kingston, Middleborough, Plymouth, Plympton, Wareham, and Bourne.
"The towns are increasingly conscious of the significance of the aquifer and recognize they have a shared responsibility for safeguarding it," said Rob Johnson, Southeastern Massachusetts project director for The Nature Conservancy, a non profit environmental group.
State officials and environmentalists said they believe a management plan agreed to by all the communities is the route to protecting the aquifer, which is essential to the region's growth, and that preserving open space is a key ingredient.
So far, Carver and Middleborough selectmen have held meetings on the management plan and backed it. John Clarkeson of the state Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, who has been coordinating the plan's development, will present it to Plymouth selectmen at their meeting June 12. All towns are scheduled to respond to the proposal by the middle of next month.
Over the years, the environmental health of the aquifer and the quality of its water have benefited from the location of the Myles Standish State Forest over much of it. But there is still a vast amount of unprotected open space that makes the area a tempting target for development.
"With the tremendous growth our region is experiencing, it is more important than ever that we do everything in our power to protect it for future generations," said Senate President Therese Murray, a Plymouth Democrat.
Senator Marc Pacheco, a Taunton Democrat who represents Carver, said the aquifer is essential to provide clean drinking water to one of the fasting-growing areas in the region.
Local representatives on the advisory committee are also worried about the impact of development. "Given the rate of growth, the committee is concerned some critical open space will be lost," said Johnson, who attended the group's meetings. That worry, he said, is moving the towns gradually toward greater coordination.
The aquifer management plan proposes that common aquifer protection bylaws be adopted and a regional open space plan be developed.
The protection bylaws would have implications for developers and sand and gravel operations within the aquifer. Drawn up by consultants Fuss & O'Neill of Lakeville, the plan envisions "model bylaws" on low-impact development, soil erosion and sediment control, storm-water management, sand and gravel removal, and waste-water management. Low-impact development calls for drainage systems that get used water directly back into the ground -- using gravel in some areas rather than pavement, for instance -- to reduce storm-water runoff.
Rules like these are intended to improve aquifer "recharge" -- the amount of water withdrawn for human use that finds its way back into the ground -- over conventional construction methods, Johnson said. Other bylaws that improve recharge include cluster zoning, which puts houses closer together, leaving more open space.
While adoption of these rules by all towns is the plan's goal, compliance would be voluntary.
The development of an open space plan is also voluntary. It envisions a network of cooperation among local officials and interested parties, who would evaluate open space areas within the aquifer and prioritize the most important ones.
Robert Knox can be contacted at rc.knox@gmail.com. 
