About Us

The Voice of Our 3 Rivers and Watershed

We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit watershed organization located in Concord, Mass., founded by concerned river users in 1986. Anglers, hunters, hikers, birders, conservationists, and paddlers banded together to “Clean up our Assabet” by forming the Organization for the Assabet River (OAR). We added the Sudbury and Concord rivers in 2011, becoming OARS.

 

In the decades since our founding, OARS has guided, advocated for, and monitored the transformation of our 3 (SuAsCo) rivers from clogged watercourses with foul-smelling biomass to the scenic rivers we all know and love today. The SuAsCo rivers and their tributaries now provide natural beauty and water resources as they pass through the 399-square-mile watershed and its 33 towns and three cities within easy reach of greater Boston. Our work is not done, and climate change challenges our progress.

Our Mission & Vision

Protect, improve, and preserve the Sudbury, Assabet, and Concord rivers and watershed for all people and wildlife.

 

 

A watershed with resilient streams and rivers that provide healthy wildlife habitat, water supply, beauty, education, and recreational opportunities for all. OARS is an effective, innovative, inclusive, and science-based organization that works to achieve and sustain this vision into the future.

What We Have Achieved Together

MANAGING 2 MAJOR DAM REMOVAL PROJECTS

Freeing the natural flow of our rivers

 

  • Wheeler Pond dam removal in Berlin on North Brook, will restore coldwater fish habitat and remove a major flood hazard
  • Talbot Mills dam removal on the Concord River in Billerica, is the most consequential dam removal in the state for restoring diadromous fish

CURBED STORMWATER POLLUTION

 

  • 2023: Installed public pollinator raingarden at Marlborough Senior Center to recharge stormwater
  • 2023: Cohosted stormwater infrastructure financing workshops in collaborated with Mass. Rivers Alliance

LAUNCHED WATER CHESTNUT APP

Look out for OARS water chestnut signs along the SuAsCo Rivers

 

  • 2023: Installed educational signs at river access points to guide river users to app and information on removal methods
  • 2022: Launched OARS’ water chestnut reporting app to map, and track volunteers’ removal efforts

NEGOTIATED 4 CLEAN WATER ACT SETTLEMENTS

Improving water quality

 

OARS advocacy and legal wins on wastewater permits

  • 2022: Increased permitting consistency
  • 2021: Prevented backsliding
  • 2021 & 2009: Blocked increased discharge
  • 2004: Achieved precedent-setting phosphorus discharge limits
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ESTABLISHED THE SuAsCo CLIMATE RESILIENCY COALITION

 

  • 2020: Building collaboration across municipal boundaries to increase climate resiliency of water resources. Supporting implementation of Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness plans

LAUNCHED 3 RIVERS REPORT CARD

Update due summer of 2024

 

  • 2024: Released 2023 Rivers Report Card
  • 2019: Released 2018 River Report Card

Re-issued every 5 years, the Report Card presents the health of our rivers with clear grades and graphics. Developed with diverse stakeholders, it grades 21 indicators of river health important to our communities.

PUBLISHED WATER CHESTNUT GUIDANCE AND MANAGEMENT PLAN

Update due summer of 2024

 

  • 2017: First comprehensive source of management information for invasive water chestnut in the U.S. with a 5-year management plan for our 3 rivers

INSTALLED FIRST ACCESIBLE DOCK

Increasing access to river recreation

 

  • 2017: Blue and Green Trails project installed handicap-friendly dock on the Assabet River in Maynard and a trail system and boardwalk in Acton

CONCORD RIVER REMOVED FROM IMPAIRED WATERS LIST

Duckweed disappears from free-flowing river sections

 

  • 2016: Advocacy to reduce phosphorus has visible results! Concord River was removed from the Impaired Waters List for phosphorus in 2016. Excess biomass continues in impoundments behind dams

LAUNCHED WATER WISE WORKSHOPS

Increasing access to environmental education

 

  • 2004: Offering hands-on lake/riverside watershed education every summer. Hosted through MetroWest Boys & Girls Clubs since 2011

CONDUCTED OVER 30 YEARS OF UNINTERRUPTED WATER QUALITY MONITORING

 

  • Over 240 samples collected per year from 32 sampling sites
  • Over 25 Community Science Volunteers per year

OVER 35 YEARS OF ANNUAL RIVER CLEAN-UPS

 

  • OARS hosts annual SuAsCo river cleanups, mobilizing groups of volunteers who remove tires and other trash from the rivers and along the shoreline throughout the watershed

16 YEARS OF OARS’ WILD & SCENIC FILM FESTIVAL

 

  • This popular trademark OARS event held in Maynard every year brings people together to celebrate community and inspire action
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More About Us

Our Story

From the foul smelling rivers clogged with eutrophic growth to the wild and scenic SuAsCo rivers we love today

WE HAVE COME A LONG WAY

Our Team

Meet the team working together for a clean, protected, and resilient SuAsCo watershed

MEET THE TEAM

Careers

Do you want to work for a creative, mission-driven organization striving for a clean, protected, resilient SuAsCo watershed? Join our passionate, interdisciplinary team

SEE OUR LATEST OPPORTUNITIES

Partnerships

Meet the partners and organizations that help amplify our impact, unite communities, and ensure the long-term health of our rivers and watershed

MEET OUR PARTNERS

Our Financials

OARS values accountability and transparency because we rely on public support and the generosity of our community. See the impact your investment has on our program goals

OUR FINANCIALS

Donate

Help ensure the health and resilience of our 3 rivers for future generations by giving a gift today, our work depends on you!

GIVE TODAY
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