Amherst awarded grant for dredging of three Atkins Reservoir basins

The Town of Amherst has been awarded a $260,000 grant to support the design and permitting of dredging three sedimentation basins at Atkins Reservoir.

According to the Town, this grant funding is from the FY25 Inland Dredging Pilot Project of the Massachusetts Dredging Program coordinated by the Executive Office of Economic Development (EOED). 

Elizabeth Willson, Environmental Scientist for the Department of Public Works, said: “The Atkins Reservoir sedimentation basins have needed dredging for many years. Previous sedimentation rate studies at the basins showed they have minimal storage capacity left and will soon fail, causing sedimentation in the reservoir. Preserving the storage capacity and water quality of Atkins Reservoir is crucial to providing healthy drinking water to the residents of Amherst.”  

The Atkins Reservoir dredging project involves removal of an estimated 1,800 cubic yards of material from three sedimentation basins that treat surface water prior to entering the Atkins Reservoir.

All basins are currently at or near full capacity, impairing their ability to trap and divert material from the reservoir.

The Town said that the primary purposes of dredging the basins are to improve treatment of surface water before it enters the reservoir and to avoid sedimentation in the reservoir which diminishes its storage capacity.