Foundation damage in the Back Bay is a very real and ongoing threat. The wood pilings beneath our 19th century buildings are protected by permanent submersion in the groundwater. But lowered groundwater causes foundation failure when wood, exposed to air, starts to decompose. For a more detailed discussion, click on What you Need to Know About Groundwater.

NABB continues to lobby State and City agencies for solutions to this problem in conjunction with the Groundwater Trust and the recently established Groundwater Emergency Task Force (GET).

The Boston Groundwater Trust was established by the City in the late 1980's to monitor the water table and, when necessary, to recommend raising the groundwater levels to protect our building foundations. In 1990 the Trust became inactive due to a lack of funding from the City. After several years of lobbying by NABB, the Boston Groundwater Trust was reconvened in 1997. The Groundwater Committee continues to advocate programs to protect neighborhood buildings from damage caused by lowered groundwater. This year 38 new wells have been installed in the Back Bay and a redesign of the Arlington Street underpass on Storrow Drive is being studied. To see the latest results from the monitoring program, go to the web site: http://www.bostongroundwater.org .

GET was established in 2003 to lobby for solutions to the city-wide groundwater emergency. It is developing a technical resource manual for homeowners, which will be available on its web site: http://www.groundwateremergency.org.