The Diamond Creek Catchment Climate Resilience Improvements
Martin Street Tide Gate Design and Permitting
Cover Image: Rumney Marsh Reservation (Image Source: Slow-Wheeling to the Sea - Tony Cenicola/The New York Times)
Map of Diamond Creek Catchment Area (Image Source: Weston & Sampson)
Project Overview
The City of Revere is working with consultants from Weston & Sampson to improve the Martin Street tide gate and outfall to Rumney Marsh.
This project will help to reduce flooding in the Diamond Creek Catchment Area and protect the community.
Martin Street Tide Gate
The City of Revere continues to experience localized flooding in the Diamond Creek catchment area, which flows to the Martin Street Tide Gate and discharges to the Diamond Creek in Rumney Marsh.
Martin Street Tide Gate
Presently, this tide gate does not function as designed. It has been stuck both open and closed, which can prevent stormwater from exiting the system and allow sea water to enter the system during high tide.
Climate Change Impacts
Rising Sea Levels
One of the impacts from climate change that Revere expects to see over the next century is sea level rise. Revere has already experienced flooding and water coming further inland.
Image Source: Winthrop Parkway near Revere Beach During a high tide on Dec. 17, 2020 (Jesse Costa / WBUR)
Precipitation
Climate Change also impacts rainfall and snowfall. These graphics identify some of the secondary impacts to changes in precipitation and extreme weather for natural and built infrastructure.
Impacts from Changes in Precipitation in Massachusetts (Image Source: Weston & Sampson)
Impacts of Extreme Weather in Massachusetts (Image Source: Weston & Sampson)
What is a salt marsh?
Salt marshes are coastal wetlands where seawater flows in and out with the tides. They provide many benefits, including:
Benefits of salt marshes (Image Source: Weston & Sampson)
Rumney Marsh
Rumney Marsh is a 600-acre salt marsh located within the Saugus and Pines River Inlet. It is an important natural resource for the State of Massachusetts.
Image Source: Boston Herald
Image Source: Mass.gov
What is a tide gate?
A tide gate is a device used to control water flow in a coastal area where stormwater and streams flow – out to sea and the ocean flows in toward land.
Diagram of a tide gate (Image Source: Weston & Sampson)
Tide gates open to allow stormwater to flow freely out to sea, but close to prevent seawater from flowing back in toward land. The tide gate acts as an outfall to discharge stormwater at low tide, while preventing seawater from flooding into the stormwater system when the outfall is submerged at high tide.
Benefits of tide gates (Image Source: Weston & Sampson)
Project Overview
The Diamond Creek Catchment Climate Resilience Improvements – Tide Gate Design and Permitting Project is funded by the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness grant program.
Design, permitting, and community engagement for the project are expected to occur through June 2025.
Check out Revere’s Engineering Website: https://www.revere.org/departments/engineering
If you have any questions, reach out to Chris Pyman, Weston & Sampson Project Manager, at PymanC@wseinc.com
Prior Work Completed
The Diamond Creek Catchment Improvements Investigation and Assessment Project was completed by Revere's Engineering Department with Weston & Sampson in 2023 to address climate vulnerabilities and identify ways to mitigate flooding in the Diamond Creek catchment area. One of the strategies identified was to reduce the stormwater discharge into the Rumney Marsh and Oak Island Salt Marsh.
See the Storymap for this project here:
Diamond Creek: Catchment Improvements Investigation and Assessment Project StoryMap
