Good Morning; My name is Susan Scott and I am speaking on behalf of the City-wide Groundwater Emergency TaskForce.

This Act to Protect Groundwater is necessary because, simply put, only government can ensure that groundwater is maintained at appropriate levels.

Groundwater is essential to protect wood pilings which support many structures throughout Massachusetts. If submerged, wood piles can last a thousand years. But if they’re exposed to air, they can fail in twenty.

Underground infrastructure, mostly installed during the 20th century, has been allowed to drain away groundwater. Until recently, we simply didn’t know any better. Now we do; and so it is crucial that owners and operators of underground infrastructure maintain it such that precious groundwater is not allowed to leak – or be pumped – away.

Its important to recognize that not only tunnels can be a serious threat to adequate groundwater levels – sewers, pipes, and residential and commercial basement sump pumps can rapidly lower groundwater levels, resulting in a threat to the integrity of nearby buildings – a threat of which building owners may not be aware nor can they address.

In my neighborhood – the South End - almost all the buildings are built on wood piles, and so are the bridges crossing the turnpike, subway and railroad. One building on my block was recently abandoned because of severe pile rot. This million dollar property is within 350 feet of 3 bridges. The tax implications arising from insufficient groundwater in such an area is staggering.

Half of Boston is built on filled land, with pile-supported buildings throughout the city - including Back Bay, Chinatown, East Boston, the North End. Virtually all historic buildings on filled land are supported by wood piles – our invaluable and unique Massachusetts heritage. Furthermore, filled wetlands exist throughout the Commonwealth, from Newburyport to Fall River, and where mills were built – in places like Lowell, Springfield and North Adams. Wood piles are a traditional and viable technique still used today to support structures throughout the state.

So the citizens of Massachusetts need groundwater protection through thorough and systematic legislation, not only for Boston but also wherever groundwater-sensitive construction makes it relevant:

• Owners of buildings supported by wood piles need groundwater preserved to ensure the integrity of their buildings;
• Taxpayers need the wood piles that support our bridges protected;
• All users of underground infrastructure (road and rail tunnels, sewers, parking garages, etc.) deserve assurance that these structures are appropriately maintained; and
• No rate payer should be burdened with a water bill that includes costly sewage treatment for precious groundwater that has been pumped away by irresponsible parties – either public or private.