As drought exposes the Quabbin’s shoreline, watershed towns are pressing eastern Massachusetts for funding and a seat at the table for reservoir decisions.
With the reservoir nearly 10 feet below full capacity amid an ongoing drought, residents of the western Massachusetts towns that surround and protect the Quabbin are renewing their long-running demands for regional equity.
In an open letter released this week and addressed to eastern Massachusetts communities, residents from Pelham, New Salem, Petersham and other Quabbin-adjacent towns warned that drought conditions are colliding with a governance structure they say leaves watershed communities bearing water-use restrictions, development limits and shrinking local revenues while lacking both compensation and representation.
“With exposed shorelines throughout the Quabbin, the lack of more meaningful action by MWRA is concerning,” the letter reads. “What’s also concerning is the continued absence of regional equity when it comes to the stewardship of the Quabbin watershed.”
The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, which supplies wholesale water and sewer service to about 3.1 million people and more than 5,500 businesses in 61 eastern and central Massachusetts communities, manages the reservoir alongside the Department of Conservation and Recreation. While the Quabbin lies entirely in western Massachusetts, only one member of the 11-person MWRA board — Monson Town Administrator Jennifer Wolowicz — lives west of Worcester County.
The letter comes as several Quabbin-region towns, including Belchertown and Ware, face state-imposed water-use restrictions, and smaller communities reliant on private wells monitor groundwater supplies.
“When we face water restrictions during drought conditions, those restrictions are rarely matched by conservation measures in MWRA system communities,” the letter states. “It would seem fair that when we are under drought conditions, water users should also be taking steps to safeguard the water we are sending east.”
The letter says the local governments in 12 watershed towns help steward the 412-billion-gallon resource and 120,000 acres of protected watershed, adding that local governments enforce land-use and environmental protections that limit development and tax revenue for the towns.
“The cruel irony is inescapable: our people cannot drink the Quabbin water that we protect,” the letter continues. “Private wells throughout our region are dry or are tainted with PFAS … Meanwhile, we are often unable to fully fund our schools, police or fire departments, or maintain our roads, bridges, and public buildings.”
In a statement, MWRA said it “greatly values the partnership of communities and residents across our watersheds, and appreciates their advocacy. This collaborative partnership has helped to create and protect the Quabbin and Wachusett Reservoirs – some of Massachusetts most important natural resources.”
Petersham resident Ellen Anderson said the Quabbin and Wachusett reservoirs represent some of the state’s most successful environmental policy — rooted in early recognition that forests and intact ecosystems protect water quality better than engineered solutions.
“They recognized that having forests and nature around the water supply is a free way of keeping the water clean,” Anderson said. “If you’ve tried to mimic the way nature keeps water clean, you can’t do it. It’s inexplicable and amazing.”
Anderson said small towns like hers struggle to afford the environmental protection the system depends on, and she wants greater public input and host-community representation in MWRA planning.
Pelham Select Board member Bob Agoglia said Pelham’s entire town is zoned as a water protection district, limiting development, commercial activity and even how residents store vehicles or equipment.
“We’re very vigilant about things like that,” he said. “All of this is to protect the quality of water that goes east.”
At the center of the communities’ call is legislation filed by Sen. Jo Comerford of Northampton and Rep. Aaron Saunders of Belchertown. Their bill (S 546 / H 1042) would require the MWRA to deposit $35 million annually, indexed to inflation, into a new Quabbin Host Community Trust Fund to support municipal services, public safety and capital needs in watershed communities. The bill would also expand MWRA board representation to include three residents from Quabbin watershed communities in Franklin, Hampshire and Worcester counties.
The Senate version of the bill was reported favorably out of the Environment and Natural Resources Committee in August and sent to the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. Sens. Dylan Fernandes, Edward Kennedy, Michael Moore, Rebecca Rausch and Michael Rush voted in favor. Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr reserved his rights.
In their letter, the residents appeal directly to their eastern counterparts.
“We believe that fellow community members in eastern Massachusetts would be willing to pay a few pennies more each month,” they wrote, “so that our children could have equitable access to public education, our residents could access public safety protections, and our families could drink water free of contaminants.”
Sam Drysdale is a reporter for State House News Service and State Affairs Pro. Reach her at [email protected].
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