Mystic earth month

Get ready for Earth Month on the Mystic! From your backyard to the harbor: impact starts with you. Here are some fun and impactful actions you can take around the watershed this month:

Join a volunteer event and learn about a park near you:

Cambridge:

April 19 | 9AM-1PM | City of Cambridge Earth Day Celebration | Details
April 26 | 10AM | Earth Day Alewife Greenway Path Clean-Up and CSO Tour | Save the Alewife Brook | Details

Charlestown:

April 10 | 4:30-6:30PM | Charlestown Peace Park Celebration | Charlestown Coalition & Turn It Around Charlestown | Details

Chelsea:

April 26 | 9AM-12PM | Earth Day Celebration — city-wide clean-up and beautification | GreenRoots | Details

East Boston:

April 12 | 10AM-12PM | Friends of the Mary Ellen Welch Greenway Cleanup | Details
April 26 | 9AM-12PM | Earth Day Celebration — city-wide clean-up and beautification | GreenRoots | Details
April 26 | 9:30-11:30AM | Rescheduled due to Rain (TBD) | Earth Day Cleanup at Belle Isle Marsh | DCR & Friends of Belle Isle Marsh | Details

Everett:

April 26 | 9Am-12PM | Everett Earth Day at Gateway Park — wetland and bare-root tree planting | City of Everett and Mystic River Watershed Association | Details

Medford:

April 19 | 10AM-12:30PM | The Mayor's Citywide Cleanup | Mayor Lungo-Koehn | Details
April 26 | 9AM-12PM | DCR Park Serve Day at Middlesex Fells: Flynn Rink | DCR | Details
April 26 | 10AM-12PM | DCR Park Serve Day at Torbert Macdonald Park | DCR & Mystic River Watershed Association | Details

Malden:

April 5 | 10AM-12PM | Waitt's Mount Cleanup | Idle Hands Craft Ales & Great Malden Outdoors | Details
April 6 | 1-4PM | Spring Malden River Cleanup | Friends of the Malden River, Tisch College, Tufts Athletics, Gentle Giant Rowing, and MyRWA | Details
April 12 | 10AM-12PM | Arbor Day with Malden River Works and Malden's Tree Warden — tree planting and care | Details

Somerville:

April 26 Now April 27 | Earth Day Workday & Celebration | Groundwork Somerville (AM) | Somerville Community Growing Center (PM) | Details

Stoneham:

April 26 | 9AM-2PM | DCR Park Serve Day at Botume House | Details
April 26 | 10AM-1PM | Stoneham Spring Cleanup and Earth Day Celebration | Keep Stoneham Beautiful | Details
April 20 | 9AM-2PM | DCR Park Serve Day at Virginia Wood | Details
April 20 | 9AM - 2PM | DCR Park Serve Day at Middlesex Fells Sheepfold | Details

Not in the watershed? Check out the other places around MA that are hosting Park Serve Day cleanups with DCR here. You can also participate in the Boston City Nature Challenge from April 29th to May 4th and help collect biodiversity observations on iNaturalist!

Mapping Hydration/Water Refill Stations:

Plastic water bottles are one of the most frequently found litter items in our parks. Hydration/Water Refill Stations can help reduce this source of plastic pollution by providing park users with a way to fill their reusable bottles and stay hydrated while recreating. This year, we are working to create a map of all the hydration and water refill stations in the Mystic River watershed and we'd love your help!

MAP HYDRATION STATIONS NEAR YOU

Baseline Water Quality Monitoring:

Join us at the MyRWA office on Saturday, April 5th from 10AM-12PM to learn how to be a part of our baseline water quality monitoring program. Volunteers in this program collect monthly data that inform our advocacy and intervention efforts to improve water quality across the watershed.

ATTEND THE WATER QUALITY MONITOR TRAINING

**LEARN ABOUT LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS**

In less than 5 minutes:

Read our comment letter supporting an EPA permit that would regulate stormwater runoff from privately owned properties in the watershed with an impervious surface cover of an acre or more.

Watch our recent video on phosphorus pollution and a small but mighty solution — the stormwater infiltration trench.
Scroll through our Trash Free Mystic webpage to learn about the trash problem and how we're working to reduce the short-term and long-term impacts of trash in our rivers.

In 1-2 hours:

Join us at a virtual Combined Sewer Overflow Listening Session on April 3rd from 6-8PM hosted by staff from the cities of Cambridge and Somerville and the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA).
Attend the Mystic Shoreline Revitalization Plan April Public Meeting on April 17th from 6-7:30PM to learn about accessibility and ecological improvements for the Mystic River shoreline in West Medford, as well as the eastern shoreline of the Mystic Lakes in Medford and Winchester.

Hear from MyRWA and Friends of Horn Pond at the Woburn Public Library on April 28th from 6:30-8PM about improving aquatic biodiversity in Horn Pond.
Grab a paint brush and help refresh the mural at the Mystic Lakes Dam with us and artist Yetti Frenkel on May 3rd. This mural is a great way to learn about new places in the watershed and wildlife you might see while you explore!

In AN AFTERNOON:

Discover the newly established Mystic Highlands Greenway with Bike to the Sea at their April Fools’ Ride on April 5th from 11AM-1PM

Visit the Green Malden Fair at Pine Banks Park on April 26th from 12-3PM to learn about Malden's sustainability efforts & to recycle your unwanted items. Stop by the MyRWA table to say hi!
Visit the Museum of Science for their Rise Up Boston: A Climate Event on April 26th from 11AM-3PM for hands-on activities that explore the impacts of climate change. Stop by the Innovation: Earth exhibit to check out a feature on Wicked Cool Mystic!

Help propel our work forward to protect water quality, restore important habitat, build climate resilience, transform parks and paths, and inspire youth and community members.

Sign up for our annual herring run & paddle

The Mystic River Herring Run and Paddle runs every May and celebrates the return of the river herring. The event includes a 5K run/walk race, three paddle distances (3 miles, 9 miles or 12 miles), and a bike ride with Bike to the Sea. Your participation in Herring Run & Paddle directly supports our organization and raises awareness about the incredible herring migration in our river and the importance of clean water and parks to recreate in.

Join the 29th annual herring run & paddle