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Problems at Waltham dam mean large parts of the Charles in Newton could be a fetid mud flat this summer

UPDATE: The state Department of Conservation and Recreation will lower the level of the Charles at the dam by three feet Sunday night to allow for inspection of the dam's catwalk and flashboards, which are showing "significant deterioration of structural components." The dam itself is fine, the state says. The extra water will be diverted into the Mother Brook in Dedham. Read more.

Ian Lamont reports a particularly leaky Moody Street dam has let so much water downstream that mudflats are already appearing upstream. He quotes a report from longtime river watcher Michael St. Clair:

... I have been measuring the level of Charles waters above the Moody dam for years, and the water level is being lowered by about 2 inches per day. We are currently at mid summer [low] levels with no end in sight of slowing the rate of flow. This will result in large mud flats near areas like Norumbega recreation area in Auburndale and other areas of Newton that border the Charles. This is disruptive for recreation users, for wildlife, for reasons of smell and ugliness. ...

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Comments

Hmmm, this could also impact the canoe and kayak race this weekend.

This will be the 11th annual Earth Day River Cleanup on Saturday, and the 28th annual "Run of the Charles" on Sunday. The race in one of the largest organized canoe/kayak races in the country with more than 1800 racers in 24 different race classifications and lengths.

see www.crwa.org for more information.

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"...dam has let so much water downstream mudflats are already appearing downstream."

If I read the blog post correctly, the mudflats are appearing UPSTREAM from the Moody Street dam, right?

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I am going to go take a break now. Too many stupid mistakes today!

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You do need a break... it's still wrong. :-)
>dam has let so much water upstream mudflats are already appearing downstream.

EDITS: Nevermind. You're not that tired, and fixed it again. Love your work, Adam! Now go have a Friday afternoon respite. :-)

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Mother Brook has finally come down in the last few days, so there should be room for the extra flow. On the other hand, I thought the Mother Brook gate on the Charles river was stuck in place.

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Curious why you say "finally" -- as though it was something you were waiting for.
Anyway -- The level in the mill pond above the Centennial Dam in Dedham (one of three remaining dams on Mother Brook) was lowered by opening a valve at the base of the dam. Based upon this Globe story, I assume this was done to make it easier and safer to divert a large portion of the Charles River flow into the Brook without risking the Centennial dam. The pond filled up rapidly once the flow diversion bagan late on Sunday. The pond was full by Monday morning, with water depth about one foot above the lip of the dam.
The USGS river flow web site shows that the flow into Mother Brook is about 400 cubic feet/second. That is about two-thirds of what was flowing in the river at Waltham, so only 220 cu ft/sec is flowing there now (as of about 9 PM Monday night).
During the recent storms, the flow into Mother Brook reached 800 cu ft/sec, twice what it is absorbing now. The state monitored Centennial Dam closely daily during the storms because it leaks somewhat and is considered a "high risk" dam. Some people at the adjacent Mother Brook Condominiums had been told by state officials that the mill pond would be lowered to enable repairs of the Centennial Dam, but I now suspect that was not the case.
As for the "gate" on the Charles that regulates flow into Mother Brook, repairs were done about 18 months ago that, I think, fixed the condition you referred to.

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