. Alewife Reservation & Alewife Brook master plan. Wetlands; Wetland conservation. FIGURE 13. View of Yates Pond from the top of the Alewife subway station. In addition to the soils, the hydrology of the Alewife area is also radically altered from its original condition. The major tributaries to Little River, Wellington Brook and Winn's Brook, and the original hydrological connec- tion with Spy Pond all enter the system now via underground pipes. Flow from Fresh Pond, the original source of water in Alewife Brook, was blocked in the 1870s, and most of Alewife Brook, upstream of its conflue
. Alewife Reservation & Alewife Brook master plan. Wetlands; Wetland conservation. FIGURE 13. View of Yates Pond from the top of the Alewife subway station. In addition to the soils, the hydrology of the Alewife area is also radically altered from its original condition. The major tributaries to Little River, Wellington Brook and Winn's Brook, and the original hydrological connec- tion with Spy Pond all enter the system now via underground pipes. Flow from Fresh Pond, the original source of water in Alewife Brook, was blocked in the 1870s, and most of Alewife Brook, upstream of its confluence with Little River, was buried in a pipe in the 1940s. The construction of Craddock Dam (since removed) and Amelia Earhart Dam on the Mystic River blocked tidal flow from Bos- ton Harbor, converting the Great Swamp from a tidal marsh to a freshwater wetland. Finally, the meandering Alewife Brook downstream of its confluence with the Little River was straight- ened and made to flow in a concrete channel to speed drainage of water from upstream. Ur- banization in the surrounding areas decreased groundwater recharge, resulting in lower base flow. The increased stormwater runoff from the contributing watershed also causes in- creased peak flows. These sudden, high inputs of large amounts of stormwater into the pond and stream system contribute to bank erosion. Despite these modifications to the hydrological system, all the original hydrological connec- tions remain in one form or another, except for the connection to Fresh Pond. Water quality in Little River and Alewife Brook is poor because of stormwater and sanitary sewer discharges. The degraded condition of Alewife wetlands also means they are less ef- fective at their natural function of buffering and improving water quality. More than 60 stormwater and combined sewer outfalls (CSO) discharge directly to the study area, while Spy Pond, Wellington Brook, and Winn's Pond bring significant quantities of contaminated stormwater
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