Living with and adapting to rising temperatures, changing patterns of precipitation, extreme weather events, and sea level rise are all challenges for MassDEP's water programs. From protecting wetlands systems that provide natural flood attenuation and prevent storm damage, addressing changes in water quality that come with higher temperatures, preparing for drought conditions as well as flash floods, ensuring a sustainable framework for large scale water withdrawals, and anticipating sea level rise, MassDEP's work in this area is comprehensive and deep.
Wetlands Program
The Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act protects important water-related lands such as wetlands, floodplains, riverfront areas, and other areas from destruction or alteration. Under the Act, no one may “remove, fill, dredge, or alter” any wetland, floodplain, bank, land under a water body, land within 100 feet of a wetland, or land within 200 feet of a perennial stream or river (25 feet of a few urban rivers), without a permit (known as an Order of Conditions) from the local conservation commission that protects the wetland “interests” identified in the Act. MassDEP issues and administers regulations under the Act (310 CMR 10.00), and related guidance and policy documents

River and Stream Continuity Project
In 2004 MassDEP began working with the River & Stream Continuity Partnership, led by UMass Extension to develop the first draft of the Massachusetts River and Stream Crossing Standards. In 2014, MassDEP incorporated an updated version River and Stream Crossing Standards developed by the partnership into the Wetlands Regulations. The standards are important to designing crossings that allow movement of water and passage of fish and other wildlife species. Sizing and other design elements can improve habitat continuity, and increase the resilience of built crossing structures to stresses of precipitation, flash flooding and erosion – all of which are exacerbated by climate change. MassDEP also provides technical assistance to communities conducting stream crossing assessments or proposing culvert repair or replacement work.
Drought Management
MassDEP participates with other Massachusetts state and federal officials in the Drought Management Task Force which collects and assesses data for drought management and makes recommendations related to drought conditions, minimization and management to the Secretary of EEA, the Secretary of Public Safety and Security, and the Governor.
Sustainable Water Management (WMA)
The Water Management Act program oversees large volume water withdrawals in the commonwealth. In 2014, MassDEP promulgated revised Water Management Act regulations that adopted a new methodology for defining Safe Yield and incorporating stream flow criteria into in Water Management Act permits. MassDEP implements the permitting requirements for new groundwater sources and increases in groundwater withdrawals from existing sources. The permitting process includes evaluation of the impacts of withdrawals on streamflow during periods of flood and drought and consideration of offsets and mitigation measures.
Natural Resource Damages (NRD) Restoration Projects
MassDEP develops claims on behalf of the Secretary of EOEEA for damages to natural resources such as fish, wildlife, wetlands and groundwater. Claims that are brought for damages to natural resources in Massachusetts can be resolved with commitments to fund and complete restoration projects. NRD settlements frequently have components related to climate change mitigation/adaptation (e.g. wetlands restoration, damage removal/fish passage, culvert replacement). To ensure that NRD restoration investments such as land conservation and wetland restoration can deliver climate adaptation and/or resiliency benefits to the public MassDEP works to:
- Quantify the restoration, adaptation and/or resilience benefits provided
- Identify stewardship opportunities to improve or protect these benefits or monitoring activities to better quantify these benefits; and
- Develop criteria to evaluate future NRD projects that can provide these benefits
Waterways Program
The use and development of Massachusetts' tidelands—a vitally important public resource—is governed by the Public Waterfront Act. The Act is implemented through the waterways regulations, which regulate activities on both coastal and inland waterways, including construction, dredging, and filling of tidelands, certain rivers, and other waterbodies. To protect the interests of the Commonwealth in these areas, MassDEP is responsible for reviewing and issuing licenses for structures and uses on tidelands to ensure they serve "water-dependent uses or otherwise serve a proper public purpose."
Stormwater Management / Low Impact Development
As climate changes bring more precipitation in more intense intervals, stormwater management becomes more challenging. The 2016 Massachusetts Small MS4 General Permit took effect on July 1, 2018. The permit mandates enhanced stormwater management programs. Each covered municipality is required to customize its local ordinances, bylaws, practices, and procedures to take into consideration Low Impact Development (LID) and green infrastructure (GI), and other factors that may affect the creation of impervious cover improvements by June 30, 2022. MassDEP provides outreach and technical assistance to the over 200 municipalities subject to the permit.
Water Utility Resilience Program
MassDEP's Water Utility Resilience Program has assisted municipal resilience efforts to improve their capacity to provide continuous service in the reality of changing climatic conditions and aging infrastructure. The program supports a variety of efforts ranging from critical infrastructure mapping and emerging contaminants assistance to emergency preparedness and security training. These efforts help to assess backup power capacity, provide support for critical infrastructure operations during and after severe weather events, and facilitate related climate resilience planning, response and recovery efforts.
Water Utilities and Energy Assistance
Since 2007 MassDEP has worked with EPA, DOER and MassCEC, energy utilities, UMass Amherst, The Mass. Renewable Energy Trust, and the consortium for Energy Efficiency as well as others, to improve the energy efficiency of drinking water and wastewater systems in the commonwealth, and support the generation of clean energy by those systems. The program has evolved from supporting the use of energy audits, roundtable meetings, and project implementation assistance, to grant programs designed to fill the gaps in financing that are critical to moving efficiency and clean energy generation efforts forward. The effort is part of the Clean Energy Results Program.
Eelgrass mapping
Results from studies in Massachusetts and several related national and international research programs have identified the detrimental effects of nutrient enrichment and eutrophication in coastal waters including large-scale declines of seagrass meadows. These studies suggest that seagrass can potentially serve as sentinels of coastal environmental change associated with natural and anthropogenic disturbances. With appropriate temporal and spatial scaling, monitoring environmental quality and mapping the changes in seagrass distribution and abundance can provide scientists and managers with tools for detecting and diagnosing environmental conditions responsible for the loss or gain of seagrasses. Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) initiated a statewide "eelgrass change analysis program" in 1994. The program is now administered under a cooperative agreement with the Massachusetts Maritime Academy.
Improving Water Quality through 208 Plan Support on Cape Cod
The "208 Plan," certified by former Governor Baker to improve water quality on Cape Cod, emphasizes local decision-making to determine the best, most cost-effective solutions to reduce nitrogen pollution. The plan encourages communities to share treatment systems to reduce costs, and supports innovation and natural solutions where possible. In certifying the plan, the administration also directed MassDEP to develop a watershed-based permitting program to provide communities flexibility in their efforts to address water quality issues in their watersheds. These efforts may also address concurrent impacts on water quality from climate change, which include higher water temperatures and amplification of conditions conductive to eutrophication.