Bedford Works Toward Building a More Resilient Community

December 16, 2019

How vulnerable is our town as we look ahead to potential climate change and its impact on our infrastructure?

Thoughtful residents would say, “In the light of recent severe weather events-think snowstorms or high winds bringing down power lines”-we are already at a time when preparedness is key to the wellbeing of the town.

On December 11, Town officials, Committee chairs (Selectmen, Planning, etc.), Department Heads (Police, Fire, DPW) and representatives of community organizations including Mothers Out Front and the League of Women Voters, spent eight hours grappling with these questions at a “Community Resilience Building Workshop” led by environmental consultants Beals and Thomas. The workshop’s goal was to identify hazards from climate change, assess the town’s strengths and vulnerabilities, and develop and prioritize mitigating actions.

Here is the background:

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  • In July of this year Town Manager Sarah Stanton received a Planning Grant from the Commonwealth’s Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) program, created by Governor Baker in 2016. The program provides support for cities and towns in Massachusetts to begin the process of planning for climate change resiliency and implementing priority projects. The state awards communities with funding to complete vulnerability assessments and develop action-oriented resiliency plans.  Read more here: https://www.mass.gov/municipal-vulnerability-preparedness-mvp-program.
  • Stanton formed a team, headed by Town Engineer Adrienne St. John, to hire an environmental consultant to lead a workshop identifying hazards unique to Bedford.
  • The December Community Resilience Building Workshop brought together a broad cross-section of the town, offering different perspectives on climate change.
  • In March 2020, the consultants will leverage the research coming out of the workshop to update the town’s existing Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP), which was first drawn up in 2010. Having an HMP plan in place means that in an emergency, funding aid can be provided by FEMA. The plan must be updated every five years. See https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2018/10/26/SHMCAP-September2018-Full-Plan-web.pdf; https://www.mass.gov/service-details/local-hazard-mitigation-planning
  • To further involve Bedford residents, a public “listening” event will take place in April 2020 when all townspeople will have the opportunity to voice opinions and ideas on climate change preparedness.
  • In June 2020, Beals and Thomas will deliver a final report to the state.

Based on the engagement with townspeople that has already happened and that will continue into 2020, the Beals and Thomas report will summarize – and prioritize- the town’s concerns. Bedford will then be able to apply to the Commonwealth for an Action Grant to complete a major project as identified through the workshop and hearings.  Action Grants can range from small sums to substantial amounts. For example, in 2018, Natick received $9,000 to plant trees to mitigate heat islands wile Salem won more than $300,000 for extensive sewer work.

The December workshop was more than a “lecture” – it was a hands-on exercise in which the 40 or more stakeholders attending were divided into groups for an intensive exploration of the town’s strengths and vulnerabilities. This reporter was privileged to be in a workgroup with the Police Chief and three professional employees of the DPW, who provided helpful background on our group’s wide-ranging questions.  Some of these questions were:

  • Are the bridges in town safe?
  • What can we do about frequent downed power lines that cut off neighborhoods?
  • Is our town-wide communication system robust enough to reach all populations in town, including certain particularly vulnerable ones (residents with accessibility issues, or non-English speaking residents who may not understand our current reverse 911 notifications.)
  • How secure is our water supply?
  • How prone are our waterways (Shawsheen, Vine Brook, Concord river) to flooding?
  • What are the regulations homeowners need to know regarding stormwater?
  • What facilities do we now have in place in case of a town-wide emergency, such as an extended power outage? In severe weather events over the past few years, we have offered a heating/cooling/phone charging station where residents could come and stay for a few hours but we are not set up for a true “shelter,” with sleeping and medical facilities. Is there a shelter nearby?
  • How would we handle a massive traffic jam, if residents were trying to get to a safe place in a severe weather event or another environmental hazard?

At the conclusion of the workshop, each roundtable group presented its major concerns and ideas for remedial action.  In subsequent articles, The Citizen will explore these in more detail.

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