WENDELL — The removal of the 90-year-old Bowen’s Pond dam began this week, despite opposition from community members concerned about environmental impacts and a perceived lack of public input.
Landowners Tom and Mary Robinson recruited Mass Audubon’s help for the work, which is expected to continue until at least the end of this week. Stones had been removed by Tuesday, resulting in water from the manmade pond surging under a Wendell Depot Road bridge.
“We’ve got about a … 2.1-square-mile watershed — starts up near the center of town, comes down into a beaver pond, cuts under the road, goes around the back,” Tom Robinson said on the site. “[The water] goes down the road, into the Millers River.”
The Robinsons, who own about 200 acres, teamed up with Mass Audubon to remove the dam and allow the land to return to a natural state. Bowen’s Pond was formed when the dam was built following the infamous 1936 flood.
“It’s … a big solar collector and it warms the water up to almost bathwater temperature in the summer,” Tom Robinson said. “[This work] will keep the water cold, in favor of life — brook trout, brown trout.
“The dam was in terrible condition,” he added, going on to mention that the two remedies were to “rebuild it and continue to maintain it for the rest of your life, or take it down and restore the natural situation.”
The removal work is being done by T Ford Co. Inc. in Georgetown. The Robinsons also used the services of GZA GeoEnvironmental Inc. in Springfield.
Although Mass Audubon had been offered a $462,552 state grant for the work, it opted to fund the project on its own because it was deemed a high priority and the agency could quickly mobilize construction.
“We’ve worked closely with the dam’s owner and the project has undergone an extensive public approval process, so we’re eager to get started and bring benefits to local infrastructure and improve the ecological integrity of the area, aligning with the state’s established biodiversity goals,” Jocelyn Forbush, Mass Audubon’s chief conservation officer, said in a statement.
But neighbors are unhappy with the work, believing it will have adverse effects.
Adam Porter, who identified himself as an abutter and a professional biologist, argued that an invasive species called glossy buckthorn will likely take over, as it has throughout the area.
“Our expectation is that that shrub will fill that basin,” he said. “What’s likely to happen is, in eight to 10 years, young shrubs will dominate the basin … so we think it’s essentially going to be an ecological disaster, but it’s going to happen at a slow-motion rate.”
Porter also said other plant species cannot grow well alongside glossy buckthorn.
Mary Robinson said she and her husband are aware of the project’s opposition, but that the work will be beneficial.
“It’s obviously a change,” she said. “People don’t like change.”
Aaron Saunders, who represents Wendell in the state Legislature, previously said he was concerned that taxpayer money would be used to improve a private resident’s land. He said he is relieved that Mass Audubon ultimately rejected the state grant, but he still feels the public did not have ample opportunity to voice opposition.
“I think it raised a more fundamental question about scarce public resources being used for projects that did not enjoy any community support … or at least overwhelming opposition and a tremendous amount of concern,” the Belchertown Democrat said. “I think it’s unfortunate that the type of community involvement and robust public conversation wasn’t able to be had prior to the removal of the dam.”
Still, Saunders said he appreciates Mass Audubon’s work of conserving “tremendous amounts of land in Wendell and throughout Franklin County.”
Forbush maintains that the dam’s removal is a crucial part of advancing the state’s biodiversity goals of restoring degraded habitats and creating safer, more climate-resilient communities.
“This project will allow Osgood Brook to return to its natural condition and serve as a vital wildlife corridor connecting Whetstone Wood Wildlife Sanctuary and Wendell State Forest,” she said. “We are deeply appreciative of the Robinson family who identified this as an environmentally conscientious best practice and then worked tirelessly for a decade on design, permitting and preparation. This kind of crucial habitat with potential for recreational outdoor use is the type we seek when evaluating land as a potential new wildlife sanctuary.
“We look forward to contributing to this important project and serving as a partner in the community as we have for decades,” she continued.
