MassCoastal Permitting and Environmental Monitoring

During the summer of 2021, BETA was contacted by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) to assist with the permitting of significant facility upgrades at the South Coast Rail yard off of Kings Highway in Rochester, Massachusetts. In order to improve equipment repair operations and prepare for the arrival of several new train cars, the MBTA pursued rapid design and permitting to support the expansion of their facility. Work proposed at the facility included placement of substantial fill and the construction of an appurtenant retaining wall, site grading, paving, construction of stormwater best management practices (BMPs), and construction of wetland and stream mitigation areas.

Once retained by the MBTA, BETA worked to swiftly complete environmental monitoring and documentation required under a previously permitted project involving Buffer Zone restoration. BETA secured a Certificate of Compliance from the Rochester Conservation Commission and closed out the existing Order of Conditions. BETA then worked with the MBTA’s engineers to develop a permittable site concept and commenced the preparation of a Notice of Intent to the Rochester Conservation Commission under the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act and a Preconstruction Notification to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under the Massachusetts Section 404 General Permit. As part of the preparation of permits, BETA wetland scientists conducted wetland delineations, GPS-located wetland flagging, and provided CAD support by designing and drafting wetland and stream mitigation plans required for unavoidable impacts from the construction of the retaining wall. Mitigation plans prepared by BETA included replication and restoration of over 4,000 square feet of vegetated wetlands and the relocation of approximately 110 feet of an intermittent stream channel. BETA’s permit applications and mitigation plans demonstrated that resource area impacts were avoided where feasible and mitigated where unavoidable, leading to permit approvals at the local, state, and federal levels.

BETA was further retained for the construction phase of the project and prepared construction specifications for wetland and stream mitigation work. Upon commencement of construction, BETA reviewed and implemented the contractor’s Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) and has been conducting SWPPP inspections as required by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Construction General Permit. BETA wetland scientists have also been providing field support on the construction of the mitigation areas including guidance on grading, reuse and creation of hydric soils, and planting efforts. Construction is ongoing as of this writing and is anticipated to be completed in 2023.