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SPRING 2001 Currents

Editorial: Protecting Lynn Woods On May 9, the Metropolitan District Commission purchased 27.5 acres of land for conservation purposes in Saugus for approximately $800,000. The move prevented significant development from taking place in between Walden Pond and Birch Pond, part of the Lynn Reservoir System. This action was part of Massachusetts Environmental Affairs Secretary Bob Durand's Land Aquisition Program, which seeks to protect 200,000 acres of important habitat throughout the state. Durand has committed $1 million per year over the next couple of years toward the Saugus River watershed. As part of the arrangement to purchase and protect the 27 acres, the state has asked the City of Lynn to consider placing a Conservation Restriction over the entire 2,100 acres that make up the Lynn Woods Reservation. The Saugus River Watershed Council strongly supports the Memorandum of Understanding that would ensure long-term preservation of Lynn Woods through a conservation restriction. Throughout the watershed, we continue to experience increasing pressures to develop natural habitat and open spaces into residential, commercial or industrial uses. Maintaining our natural areas is important for ensuring public access and education, protecting wildlife habitat, and providing buffer zones to protect lakes, ponds and rivers from pollution. With over 2,000 acres, Lynn Woods currently provides habitat for a wide range of birds and other mammals, enables families to enjoy hiking and other passive recreation, and helps to protect the City of Lynn's public drinking water supply from pollution. Representatives from the Metropolitan District Commission, the City of Lynn, the Lynn Water and Sewer Commission, Friends of Lynn Woods, and others have been carefully crafting language for the agreement to ensure, not only conservation, but maintenance of local decision making and management of the woods. Lynn Woods is one of Lynn's greatest assets and has been successfully managed and protected with pride by public officials and citizens. Public officials in Lynn have a unique opportunity to ensure that today's public access, wildlife habitat, and open spaces of Lynn Woods are more fully protected for future generations. Signing the state's Memorandum of Understanding would provide this additional level of conservation without giving up local control and management of Lynn Woods. In 1881, the City of Lynn purchased approximately 150 acres of wooded land for one dollar from a group of conservation-minded residents. Along with the purchase, the city agreed to the condition that the land be preserved as forest. Since that time, Lynn Woods has grown to become the second largest plot of open space in the Greater Boston area. The woods encompass forested paths, swamps, ponds, and hills ranging through Lynn, Saugus, and Lynnfield. As one of the City's most important assets, the reservation protects Lynn's water supply and provides irreplaceable natural resources and recreational opportunities in an otherwise urban setting. Joan LeBlanc

Annual Picnic 26 June 2001
Restoring Rumney Marsh
Editorial: Protecting Lynn Woods
Saugus River Scenes
SRWC Launches "Fish Spotter" Program
Environmental Educator Workshops
Help Keep the River Flowing:
Water Conservation Tips for Garden & Lawn Care
Around the Watershed
Saugus River Water Quality 1998-2000 Report Available
SRWC Annual Meeting a Success!
Overlook Ridge, Rowe Quarry: Project Update