CRAB and MIT Sea Grant Charting Project Update 2/10/2016

On the evening of January 20, 2016, the Sea Grant College Program at MIT hosted a public meeting to present the results of a feasibility study and to garner support for future work. The focus of the meeting was a presentation. Carl Zimba of CRAB provided an introduction to project while Michael Sacarny of the MIT Sea Grant College Program presented the results of the feasibility studies. The meeting was attended by 11 other people representing various yacht clubs, rowing clubs, watershed organizations, and the state government.

In general, the response was positive and supportive. People were able to ask questions, express their concerns, and offer suggestions. There was also ample discussion about the project moving forward. Near the conclusion of the meeting, there was discussion about funding the effort. The proposed budget of $12,500 is quite modest given the scope of the project. Most of the budget is to purchase equipment which CRAB would own and be able to use for several years. If this project were done commercially, it would likely cost in excess of $100,000. By banding together, using volunteers to measure data and measuring data while doing our routine activity on the river, we should be able to obtain data of sufficient quality.

While we discussed raising funds through crowd-sourcing, it was decided that we would initially concentrate on soliciting funds from the boathouses, yacht clubs, and other river organizations since they will be the direct beneficiaries of the project. If each of the yacht clubs, boathouses and rowing teams on river contributed $500-1000, we would have more than enough money to purchase all the equipment and complete the project this coming year. We'll be reaching out to everyone on the river to discuss how to contribute financially. We have also had discussions with some of the watershed stewardship organizations and tour-boat operators about how they might contribute. Of course, if individuals wish to support the project, we encourage them to do so.

For those interested in financially supporting this project, please send your checques to:
      Dave Amicangioli
      CRAB Treasurer
      25 C Street
      Belmont, MA 02478
Thanks in advance for your support!!!

More Update Information

As part of the due diligence for this project, we have researched what previous measurements have been made. Since we launched this project, we have found the following charts of the Charles River, including one published by the USGS in 2000.

  [1] Charles River, 1882, West Boston Bridge to Navy Yard
  [2] Charles River, 1888, Brookline Street (BU Bridge) to Boston Harbor
  [3] Charles River, 1888, North Beacon Street to Brookline Street (BU Bridge)
  [4] Plan of the Charles River from the Waltham line to Boston Harbor, 1894
  [5] Charles River Basin Contour Map of Upper Basin, 1902, Watertown Dam to nearly Arsenal Street
  [6] Charles River Basin Contour Map of Lower Basin, 1902, Arsenal Street to River Street
  [7] Charles River Basin Contour Map of Lower Basin, 1902, River Street to the Craigie Bridge, courtesy of Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation
  [8] Lechmere Canal, 1902
  [9] Broad Canal, 1902
[10] Water depths, thickness of post-1908 sediment, and sediment sampling locations, lower Charles River (PDF [15 MB], JPG [52 MB]) from USGS Water-Resources Investigations Report 2000-4180

In considering what software is best for the project, we have concluded that ReefMaster provides us with much better control of the data processing and better ability to generate printable maps.