Cohasset Center for Student Coastal Research

There are 6 different wetland sites with established teams and leaders that CSCR is monitoring this summer.  All of the sites are known as ”priority projects” according to the Wetland Restoration Program, an initiative managed and financed by the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management.  Here’s some info about each of the sites:

·        Jacobs Meadow: the Town of Cohasset wants to have a healthy salt marsh in Jacobs Meadow, a 10-acre site located in downtown Cohasset. But the marsh can only be a salt marsh if enough salt water floods and flushes the marsh twice a day during high tides.  Currently, the Town is working with partners including NOAA Restoration Center, Army Corps of Engineers, and EPA to evaluate the performance of a self-regulating tide gate between the marsh and James Brook.   As it stands right now, it is uncertain if this tide gate is allowing enough water into the marsh.  (Too much water floods the marsh and presents a problem to the homeowners along the creek.)  CSCR students provide important baseline data to CZM and town officials as everyone tries to work together to restore the salt marsh to its natural state.

·        Parker Avenue ‘Cut’, Cohasset Sponsor: Cohasset Conservation Commission Known as the Parker Avenue ‘Cut’, this relatively small wetland of approximately 1.7 acres and its associated channel may provide an important tidal connection to the much larger Gulf River Estuary in Cohasset. The culvert that formerly facilitated tidal flushing through the site is collapsed, and the wetland is degraded by stagnant conditions and high bacteria counts. The Town has approved local funding for this project and is working to initiate a feasibility study in partnership with WRP and several other groups, including the Conservation Law Foundation, NOAA Restoration Center, and The Cohasset Center for Student Coastal Research.

·        Broad Cove, Hingham Sponsor: Derby Academy The Broad Cove Restoration Project is a tidal wetland complex located in the Town of Hingham that is impacted by three tidal restrictions identified in the Atlas of Tidal Restrictions on the South Shore of Massachusetts. The Derby Academy in Hingham has sponsored this project and will work with CZM-WRP to develop a project team and advance feasibility studies to investigate issues such as the baseline health of the Broad Cove ecosystem, remedies to non-point source pollution, and the potential to reconfigure culverts and other tidal restrictions. The site is currently being monitored through a partnership between the Cohasset Center for Student Coastal Research and CZM-WRP.

 ·        Musquashicut Pond: Sponsored by the town of Scituate, this project aims to improve the condition of a 74 acre pond that is separated from tidal influence by a culvert and tide gate.  The conservation commission is working with CZM, WRP, and other partners to explore restoration options via altered tide gate management.  Musquashicut Pond is also a significant influence on the Gulf River, a waterbody that affects the ecosystem of Cohasset Harbor.  This latter fact is significant to town of Cohasset project partners. 

·        Straits Pond, an ACEF site with greater than 50 acres of affected area, documented as site #HUWR3; the pond is the terminus of the Weir River and the boundary between the towns of Cohasset and Hull. The pond has a salt mash fringe that is being replaced by rapidly invading Phragmites.  Straits Pond is a 92 acre open water system that is restricted from tidal flow by a culvert and tide gate control structure. Severe midge outbreaks occur seasonally.  Options for restoring tidal flow are being studied to address the midge issues and restore healthy pond habitats.

·        Green Harbor River, Tidal Restriction Site # MAGH18 with over 100 acres of affected area, has a marsh behind the flood gates in the process of changing from salt marsh to fresh water marsh. Green Harbor River has been blocked from tidal flows for over 100 years by a dike with tide gates. Hundreds of acres of upstream habitats are degraded and much of the former salt marsh has converted to shrub marsh. The town of Marshfield is now exploring options to restore tidal flow through the gates.

 ·        Inner Little Harbor: The Upper Little Harbor Protection Association is investigating restoration options for this tidally-restricted coastal habitat. A dam built across the mouth of the system restricts tidal flushing to ~28 acres of inter-tidal areas. Management of the water control structure is currently being debated by various community stakeholders.  Each of these sties has significant ecological importance and aesthetic, cultural, and recreational value to their respective communities.

An invitation to examine the merits of a “semester by the sea” program for high school students Wouldn’t it be great if our high school students had academic year opportunities to “take a semester off”- so to speak- to distinguish themselves as science scholars, or to master maritime skills that will last a lifetime?  Can’t you imagine how this would further distinguish them as college applicants- students who pursued a passion and accomplished extraordinary community-based projects? It’s very possible to imagine, and to imagine such a program that isn’t “time off” but “time on,” and allows students to graduate on time. Introduction and Invitation

This is an invitation to contribute comments and questions about the merit and value of establishing in Cohasset a semester “internship” program for juniors and seniors.  It’s a concept that is “outside the box,” based on the premise that an opportunity to engage in intensive coastal research, or an opportunity to develop proficiencies in traditional maritime skills such as wooden boat building and restoration would be welcome opportunities in our community.  Knowing well that these opportunities are indeed welcomed and valued, this paper sets forth the proposition that we should establish the structure for achieving this goal. 

Please accept this paper as an invitation to further examine this concept, determine its goals, clarify its outcomes, define its structure, and secure its funding. 

most recent post will be on the top of this list - so rewrite this one as the most recent one…then hit “SAVE”

Jack try rewriting this into your first post!