City of Newburyport Awarded $300,000 Drinking Water Supply Protection Grant to Help Protect 38-acre Watershed Property on Artichoke Reservoir

The City of Newburyport, with support and assistance from the Essex County Greenbelt Association, has been awarded a $300,000 Drinking Water Supply Protection Grant from the state to help acquire and permanently protect a 38-acre woodland along the Artichoke Reservoir.  The Artichoke River Woods Conservation Project is a partnership between Greenbelt, the City, the Town of West Newbury, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

“Any opportunity to secure and maintain a natural buffer zone around the reservoir to help mitigate surface water runoff is a priority,” said Newburyport’s Water Treatment Superintendent Thomas Cusick.  “This is great news, and exactly what is needed to ensure the protection of the City’s water supply.”

Community Preservation Act funding requests in both West Newbury and Newburyport are currently pending, as is funding from the Department of Conservation and Recreation.  The property will be preserved in perpetuity with a Conservation Restriction co-held by the City of Newburyport, the Town of West Newbury, and the Commonwealth.  Greenbelt would own and manage the land, and creating and maintaining a trail system that would serve as a critical greenway link connecting eventually to Maudslay State Park. 

Over 1,000 feet of the Artichoke River Woods property abuts the reservoir.  Its acquisition will ensure that it is forever preserved and managed to protect drinking water, rare species habitat, and the intact forests and wetlands that provide resilience to the adverse effects of climate change.  Forests reduce air and water temperatures, flooding risk, and offer important refuges for wildlife.  The property is adjacent to existing watershed land conserved by the City of Newburyport, and across the street from West Newbury’s Withers Conservation Area.

The Artichoke Reservoir is part of the interconnected surface water reservoirs that provide 86% of Newburyport’s drinking water.  Appraisers and land planners have determined that a 1,600-foot long subdivision road with up to 13 houses on septic systems could be developed on Artichoke River Woods.  Development would significantly alter the land and provide a potential vector for household hazardous waste, motor oil, gasoline, road salt, pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers associated with lawn maintenance and failing septic systems, all of which threaten the City’s ability to maintain a clean, reliable public water supply. 

“Greenbelt is thrilled to be part of this historic partnership between two municipalities and the Commonwealth to preserve such an important parcel of land,” says Greenbelt’s President Kate Bowditch.  “It’s an example of what can be accomplished when we work together to preserve our region’s critical natural resources including drinking water.”