October 27, 2026 Submitted By Henry R. Hidell, III
For every mature oak tree that is removed from Hingham’s landscape, the town loses an estimated 45,000 to 50,000 gallons of aquifer recharge. If 100 oak trees are removed annually, an estimated 5,000,000 gallons of recharge is lost from Hingham’s aquifer. (“Groundwater Recharge and Evapotranspiration for Two Natural Ecosystems Covered with Oak and Heather,” U.L. Ladekart, et al., Journal of Hydrology, 2005.)
Our New England forests of native hardwood trees significantly contribute to recharging aquifers. Their deep roots provide pathways and channels that supply water deep into an aquifer. They also provide canopy interception and drip modulation: precipitation caught in leaves and branches slows rainfall onto the ground surface, reducing runoff that would otherwise not be transmitted to the aquifer. A third way trees contribute to recharge is through their organic debris, in the form of fallen leaves and wood, which provides a mechanism for retained moisture to seep deeply into the aquifer.
Hingham has two regulatory authorities that oversee the trees and forests of the town. The first is the Conservation Commission, which has a regulation relating to tree removal and replacement in wetlands and their buffer zones. The second is the Hingham Zoning By-Law’s “Tree Protection Standards and Definitions,” which apply to private property. These regulations exist because our town recognizes the critical importance of trees in environmental functions, including aquifer recharge.
The Hingham Zoning By-Law tree standards are enforced by the Hingham Planning Board through the Site Plan Review process.
Trees are typically one of the most vulnerable natural features of a watershed. Each tree removed, for whatever reason, damages the aquifer. This is particularly true in the fragile Weir River Watershed.
A Weir River Watershed Study completed in the early 2000s by GZA Consulting, entitled “Weir River Watershed Plan,” is a long-range plan for aquifer and watershed protection. The principal conclusions of the GZA study are critical to understanding and maintaining the aquifer. The report determined that the Weir River Watershed is a “small, highly sensitive, low-storage coastal aquifer system where groundwater, surface water, wetlands, and tidal influence are tightly interconnected.”
The report also advised that it has “limited recharge, high drought vulnerability, and a significant stress on Accord Pond and municipal wells.” According to the report, “The Weir River is not a large, robust groundwater system; it is fragile and easily stressed.”
These characteristics reflect an aquifer and watershed that require as much recharge as possible.
Yet every activity undertaken in our towns that permits additional property development contributes to the functional deterioration of an already stressed aquifer. Roof areas, roads, parking lots, impervious driveways, patios, and decks that drain into streams and drainage systems that empty into the ocean represent water lost to aquifer recharge.
Indeed, continued real estate development in the towns of Hingham, Hull, and Cohasset is a crucial cause of the Level 2, “Significant Drought” designation that has plagued the town in recent years.
The Weir River Water System is facing degradation of its aquifer due to drought and overdrafting resulting from population growth and land development. Aquifer recovery is taking longer, and even periods of full recharge are becoming shorter and shorter. This latter condition results from increased residential and commercial construction in the towns served by the WRWS.
Available water for recharge is often directed to the ocean and bays. As we continue to cut down acres of trees in Hingham, gallons of recharge go with them.
Land that may be clear-cut, such as the site of the Bristol Brothers development proposed in South Hingham, would lead to significant deficits in aquifer recharge. These deficits could easily overstress the aquifer and clearly result in inadequate water for the existing population. The towns of Hingham and Hull, along with part of Cohasset, could be severely damaged economically by decreased availability of fire protection or adequate sanitation.
We have a significant water resource crisis in Hingham today that must inform the decisions of all town boards and commissions. Without adequate water, there will be no viable economy to support the town.
As a practicing hydrogeologist, I consider the present situation a crisis that must be addressed immediately.