Mill River Bank Repair Project


Secretary’s Certificate on EENF Issued

The Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs issued her Certificate on the Mill River Bank Repair Project on February 14, 2025. The Certificate can be viewed and downloaded here.

The Secretary allowed for the preparation of a Single Environmental Impact Report (SEIR) because the EENF described and analyzed all project aspects, impacts, and alternatives, provided a detailed baseline, and demonstrated the design and planning avoided environmental damage. The SEIR is being prepared in accordance with the Scope as described in the Secretary’s Certificate and will be filed in the Spring of 2025.

Expanded Environmental Notification Form Re-filed with MEPA Office

On December 30, 2024, the Expanded Environmental Notification Form (EENF) for the Mill River Bank Repair Project was filed with the MEPA Office. The EENF can be viewed and downloaded here.

The public notice is expected to appear on December 31, 2024 in the Hampshire Gazette. The Project will also be published in the Environmental Monitor, scheduled for January 8, 2025. Once the EENF is published in the Environmental Monitor, the public comment period will be open. Public comments can be submitted via email to the assigned MEPA analyst listed in the Environmental Monitor or to MEPA@mass.gov. The Environmental Monitor can be viewed here.

The Project is described below.
 

Expanded environmental Notification Form to be Refiled 

Since withdrawing the EENF from review, Smith College and GZA have provided information and met with the regulatory authorities. The Mill River Bank Repair Project is a separate effort from Smith’s ongoing geothermal energy project. Renewed Environmental Justice outreach is currently underway, and the EENF will be re-filed with the MEPA Office in winter 2024/2025.


Expanded Environmental Notification Form Withdrawn from MEPA Review

On July 26, 2024, the Expanded Environmental Notification Form (EENF) for the Mill River Bank Repair Project (Project) was withdrawn from the MEPA Office. The withdrawal was requested in response to information about a separate effort proposed by Smith College adjacent to the Project. GZA and Smith College will work together to clarify the intent, timeline, and impacts from the two separate efforts to address a regulatory concern that the two projects should be evaluated as one effort. Once a consensus is reached with regulators, the EENF will be refiled. 
 

Expanded Environmental Notification Form Filed with Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) Office

On June 17, 2024, the Expanded Environmental Notification Form (EENF) for the Mill River Bank Repair Project was filed with the MEPA Office. The EENF can be viewed and downloaded here.

The public notice is expected to appear on June 20, 2024 in the Hampshire Gazette. The Project will also be published in the Environmental Monitor, scheduled for June 26, 2024. Once the EENF is published in the Environmental Monitor, a MEPA Analyst will be assigned to review the Project. Public comments can be submitted via email to the MEPA analyst listed in the Environmental Monitor or to MEPA@mass.gov. The Environmental Monitor can be viewed here.

The Project includes the stabilization of two discrete portions of riverbank along the Mill River at the Smith College athletic fields near Paradise Pond, improvements to a portion of the walking path adjacent to one of these areas, and improvements to the pedestrian bridge supports. The streambanks are identified as:

  • Work Area 1 – Stabilization of approximately 400 linear feet of streambank upstream of Paradise Pond; and
  • Work Area 2 – Stabilization of approximately 400 linear feet of streambank underneath and downstream of the Lamont Footbridge, downstream of the Paradise Pond dam. Improvements to the streamside walking trail and improvements to the pedestrian bridge supports.

These two stream bank failure areas show evidence of undercut banks, eroding hillside, and cracking observed at the top of the bank slope. To arrest ongoing erosion and prevent future bank failure, the Project proposes to stabilize these banks using nature-based design solutions including log jam and root wad installations which are intended to protect the bank from ongoing erosive forces while limiting the total impact area and retaining most of the existing vegetation. Stone slope protection will be installed in limited locations where the use of log jams and root wads is not appropriate.

Additional Project components include improving the drainage along portions of the exiting gravel path which circumnavigates the athletic fields, maintenance of existing stormwater outfalls, and improvements to the pedestrian bridge footings.

No buildings or structures are proposed.

Potential Environmental Justice Impacts:

The Project's primary intent is to stabilize eroding riverbanks and will not result in a change in use of the Smith College athletic fields. Potential short-term environmental or health impacts are generally associated with construction and may include:

  • Use of diesel construction equipment;
  • Trucking of materials or equipment to and from the Site; 
  • Potential sediment mobilization during in-stream work; and
  • Temporary loss of use of the fields in access and staging areas. 

Potential long term impacts may include:

  • Limited tree removal along the river.

Project Benefits:

The primary project benefit is to stabilize the banks and protect existing infrastructure which includes the existing athletic fields as well as utilities and a sewer interceptor located in the upstream section of bank to be repaired (Work Area 1). If a bank failure occurred, damage to the utilities, as well as the athletic fields, could resulr in a temporary or permanent loss of use for the community of this outdoor recreational facility.

Further, a bank failure would introduce soil into the Mill River resulting in increased turbidity, potentially disrupting normal river flows, potentially causing further erosion and flooding, and increasing the sediment load behind the Paradise Pond Dam which would limit the Pond’s water storage capacity. Finally, an uncontrolled bank failure would indiscriminately remove mature woody vegetation which shades the Mill River and provides a natural buffer to increased water and air temperatures as well as providing rare species habitat.

Additional Project components include improving the drainage along portions of the existing gravel path which circumnavigates the athletic fields and maintenance of existing stormwater outfalls. Improvements to the pedestrian bridge supports are also proposed while access to the structure is possible during the bank stabilization work. No buildings or structures are proposed.

Project Community Outreach Meeting:

A Community Outreach Meeting was held on April 20, 2024, from 1-3 PM at the Smith College Conference Center Paradise Room 102. 
 

Documents (all links below are PDF files):