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Created by a glacier some 11,000 years ago, the resulting kettle-hole at the Bartlet Mall has been called the Frog Pond for a long time. The soil which a glacier dug is now on the south side of Greenleaf Street…at Old Hill Burying Ground.
Once, livestock ranged. Festivals were held. A manned hot air balloon was launched. Weddings have been enjoyed. Lots of history and quiet times.
Quoting from the Aqueous Consultants’ 2022 report to the city of Newburyport, “Frog Pond is a former kettle hole that has been manipulated by the colonization and urbanization of humans for centuries. Any natural means of inflow and outflow out of this pond to assist in circulation has been long lost due to human exertion…Throughout history, this pond has had more cultural significance than environmental significance…Former uses for this pond have included livestock watering, Revolutionary War training, fire suppression, boating, and aesthetic enjoyment in an urban park setting.”
The Frog Pond has no outlet other than evaporation. It is fed by rain and snow. It is about 4’ deep and contains about 3,000,000 gallons of water. It was once used to supply water to several underground cisterns for firefighting. Stagnant water has resulted in accumulations of Cyanobacteria, algae arsenic, lead, chromium, phosphorus, cadmium and mercury.
A few months ago, the city administration listed its $5,200,000 remediation as its 3rd highest priority project.
Startling.
Prioritized over roof replacement at the high school, drinking water improvements, and other infrastructure needs.
According to the EPA New England Enforcement and Compliance Division, the city has not yet applied for approvals to direct through stormdrains the contaminated water into the Merrimack.
Quoting from the Aqueous Report, “installing the outlet control structure and a well to continually keep Frog Pond full will improve water quality immediately. However, it may not address cyanobacteria, water clarity, circulation, and aquatic ecology for different variations of climate year after year.”
In direct contrast to the city administration’s statement quoted by The Daily News on May 26, Aqueous advises: “Standup paddleboards should not be used or issued by the City, given the frequency of falling.”
Published plans from the City show pumping out of the current contents of the Frog Pond to city storm-drains to the Merrimack River…then a well and a pump station to provide continuous pumping of water out to city storm-drains…to the Merrimack River.
With a planned 16-inch granite curb encircling the Frog Pond, how will the painted and snapping turtles survive?
They must come ashore to lay eggs.
They are aquatic turtles, not land turtles.
They cannot scale stone.
They cannot walk to a reservoir.
They cannot file a complaint.
And yet the city administration has not authorized a wildlife inventory. Why? Because no endangered species have been identified. And without identification, there is no obligation. No data, no duty. Ends justify means.
This is not stewardship.
It’s a procedural loophole dressed as landscape architecture.
It’s a granite wall against biology.
It’s a granite curb that curves away from accountability.
To me, concerns center around:
* We have $68 million in safe drinking water priorities!
* Approximately 40 trees shed leafs into the Frog Pond.
* Once the pond is drained and a plastic liner is installed, how will DPS remove leafs…yearly?
* With a planned 16” high granite curb around the shoreline, how will the approximately 47 painted and snapping turtles survive…as they need to come ashore to lay eggs?
* With a 20hp motor at 80 decibels (vacuum cleaner) in a structure adjacent to the existing playground flushing 600 gallons a minute into storm drains, how will peace and tranquility of the beautiful park be maintained?
* How will the city pay for annual maintenance…see Annual Maintenance beginning on Page 52 of the study done for the city.
* How will residents be protected from dust containing Cyanobacteria, arsenic, lead, chromium, phosphorus, cadmium and mercury? These will be exposed to the wind as the Frog Pond is drained, the fountain addressed and before the plastic sheeting is applied.
* As a member of the Bartlet Mall Commission, we got a bit of water to come out the top of the fountain. We secured professionals to examine the fountain. It’s sinking. Its interior pipes have holes. Lack of maintenance has results. It’ll cost about $500,000 to replace the fountain.
Infrastructure over optics, please.
Let’s demand stewardship, not spectacle.
Walt Thompson
Newburyport resident
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