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Boston Harbor Marine Debris
Prevention
and Removal Project
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Boston Line & Service Co., TBHA’s contractor,
removing debris
from Boston Harbor.
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Launched in 2000, The Boston Harbor Association’s Boston Harbor Marine Debris Prevention and Removal Program has removed more than 250 tons of floating debris from Boston Harbor.
Thanks to generous funding from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA), Massport, the City of Boston, and Eastern Salt Company, TBHA’s Marine Debris Prevention and Removal Program is in its eleventh summer of making Boston Harbor cleaner and more accessible for swimmers, boaters, and marine life.
From June through September 2010, The Boston Harbor Association’s on-water contractor, Boston Line & Service Co. removed floating debris from the Inner Harbor, Fort Point Channel, Chelsea Creek, and the Lower Mystic River.
The most common types of debris removed from the Harbor are plastic bottles, paper and styrofoam cups, plastic wrappers, and cigarette butts, particularly in high-activity areas such as Fort Point Channel, Long Wharf, Central Wharf, and Rowes Wharf. Floating wooden pilings that have come loose from the wharves are also removed.
As part of TBHA’s sustainability efforts to create a greener Boston Harbor, the debris that can be recycled is sorted for recycling. Metal beverage and plastic containers are collected by Save That Stuff, Inc. and are used to make new products. The remainder (wood, scrap, metal, paper, glass, cardboard) is transported to a materials recycling facility where the materials are sorted for possible reuse.
To remind boaters of what they can do to prevent pollution, The Boston Harbor Association distributes a Boaters’ Guide to marinas and yacht clubs, which provides a comprehensive list of pumpout facilities for boaters to use in compliance with the “No Discharge Area” designation of Boston Harbor.
In addition, TBHA works with local Conservation Commissions and waterfront property owners to ensure that trash receptacles are emptied at least on a daily basis during summer months to avoid overflow and debris into the water.
In comment letters on waterfront projects, The Boston Harbor Association requests that annual operations and maintenance plans be developed to ensure that debris is minimized on-site and removed daily or more frequently to prevent marine debris.
For more information on TBHA's Marine Debris Cleanup Program, please contact The Boston Harbor Association at 617-482-1722.
Working
Port Advocacy and Education
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A cargo vessel unloads at Conley Terminal
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Sustainability of the Working Port of Boston is critical to the long term
health and prosperity of the Boston Harbor and economy. Long a champion of
sound environmental practices, The Boston Harbor Association continues to
support measures taken by various port entities to reduce their
environmental impacts. Steps taken to date by the Massachusetts Port
Authority, for example, include the usage of less polluting Tier II
engines for gantry cranes in Conley Terminal to proposed future expansion
of shore power electric plug-ins to all thirteen berths at the Boston Fish
Pier. At The Coastal Society’s National 21st Biennial National Conference in June 2008, TBHA Executive Director Vivien Li outlined efforts underway to realizing a Green Port of Boston.
To obtain a copy of Li's June 2008 “Sustainability of the Port
of Boston” presentation, please contact The Boston Harbor Association at 617-482-1722 or
mail@tbha.org.
> Learn more about Working Port
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Students learn how to test water quality
on a 16 June 2009 trip to Deer Island. |
Educational Programs
TBHA offers unique and exciting programs for the general public, as well
as organized groups and classes that educate and engender a sense of
stewardship. Each year, these events and programs create opportunities
that bring aspects of the Harbor to life for children and adults.
> Learn more about our Education Programs
 HarborWalk
Thanks to the
efforts of The Boston Harbor Association, Boston Harbor's waterfront is a
wonderful area for walking, sightseeing, fishing, or simply enjoying
spectacular views of the Harbor! Join The Boston Harbor Association in
celebrating this unique resource by attending one of our programs,
exploring the bostonharborwalk.com
website, or go on your own with a free
downloadable audio tour.
> Learn more about HarborWalk
Back to the Beaches
“Back to the Beaches” activities organized by The Boston Harbor Association (TBHA), with funding from the Boston Water and Sewer Commission, have drawn thousands of residents to Boston’s newest beach on Spectacle Island.
Thanks to beach improvements by the Department of Conservation and Recreation and a cleaner Harbor, the public can enjoy greatly restored and enhanced Boston Harbor beaches. TBHA and others continue to monitor improvements in water quality and advocate for new facilities on Boston’s beaches. TBHA also organizes community service projects to promote environmental stewardship and public use of them.
In summer 2010, thousands of Boston residents joined TBHA for free cruises to Spectacle Island’s beautiful life-guarded beach, where kids played with beach toys provided by TBHA, everyone enjoyed new changing and shower facilities and educational displays at the Visitor’s Center, and many chose to explore the winding trails that wrap around the island’s two drumlins, providing stunning panoramic views of Boston Harbor and the city skyline.
Enjoying the beach on Spectacle Island.
> Learn more about Back to the Beaches
The Boston Harbor Islands
Visitors to Boston have a
unique opportunity to view the Boston skyline from the Boston Harbor
Islands, which host a variety of activities including hiking, swimming and
fishing. The islands are home to such unique features as the oldest
operating lighthouse in the country, one of the largest wastewater
treatment plants in the country, and a spectacular new park on top of
capped landfill.
>Learn more about the Boston
Harbor Islands
Policy Positions
The Boston Harbor Association gets results! TBHA's policy positions are
carefully developed by TBHA Trustees, TBHA Committees, and staff who have
technical expertise. Consequently, these highly regarded comments make a
dramatic impact in planning and development on Boston's waterfront.
>
Learn more about TBHA Policy Positions
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