2022 Boston Groundwater Trust Forum:How Climate Change May Threaten the Foundations of Boston

The Boston Groundwater Trust will be hosting an important City-Wide Forum on Tuesday, Sept. 20, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Boston Public Library in Copley Place, Downtown Boston, that will examine how climate change over the coming years may threaten the very foundations upon which Downtown Boston has been built.       The Honorable Mayor of Boston Michelle Wu will be giving the opening remarks at the Forum, along with other state and local elected officials.  Garrett Dash Nelson, President & Head Curator Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library, will be giving remarks concerning how the landfilling of Back Bay and other areas came to be.  The Keynote Speaker will be Wilko Koning, Senior Project Leader, Waternet, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, who will be speaking about the experiences of Amsterdam in dealing with climate change and lowering groundwater levels.  .

There will also be a panel of experts on the state of groundwater levels under our own Boston City streets, and a how a changing climate including the potential for long-term drought conditions may drastically alter the Boston we all now know.  The panel includes:  John Sullivan, Chief Engineer, BWSC; Former City Councilor Matt O’Malley, Vicinity; Vandana Rao, Director of Water Policy, EOE&EA; Jayne F. Knott, Ph.D., Principal, JFK Environmental Services; and Kate England, Boston Director of Green Infrastructure. 

According to Rob Whitney, Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Boston Groundwater Trust:  “The potential impact of long-term climate change and drought conditions on the ground water levels below large portions of our City is just now being discussed.  This forum will explore how climate change and rising temperatures in the future may limit the amount of water to replenish groundwater, and the adverse effect that this could have on the wooden pilings that underpin many of our Boston buildings and homes.” `

To register for this free event, visit bostongroundwater.org.

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