Protecting Mattapan's Communities & the Neponset River
Green Castle Hill Group Inc., in collaboration with Solutions At Work, is leading a community-driven initiative for environmental justice, public health, and accountability.
- Stronger Together. Healthier Communities. A Cleaner, Safer Neponset River.
Our Mission
Empowering residents, elevating community voice, and driving accountability to ensure a healthy environment and a just future for Mattapan.
Community Power
Environmental Justice
Health & Equity
- Letter of Intent submitted to the Nathan Cummings Foundation, requesting a $100,000 Venture Grant for Environmental Justice & Racial & Economic Justice programming.
The Crisis
A River That Carries Decades of Harm
Communities living along the Neponset River in Mattapan, predominantly Black, African American, and Caribbean immigrant residents, are facing the long-term consequences of historic industrial contamination within the Neponset River ecosystem. The river, impacted by PCB and heavy metal pollution associated with a federally designated Superfund site, continues to pose environmental and public health risks that disproportionately burden surrounding neighborhoods.
This contamination has degraded water quality and disrupted the river’s ecological balance, contributing to declines in fish and wildlife populations, contamination of plant life, and the loss of safe, accessible natural spaces. At the same time, residents face ongoing exposure risks, while community concerns point to patterns of chronic illness, including elevated cancer rates linked to toxic exposure.
Despite these conditions, there has been a persistent failure in regulatory enforcement, transparency, and accountability, with impacted communities historically excluded from decisions about remediation, monitoring, and public health response. This initiative exists to change that.
PCB Contamination
Confirmed by EPA, designated a Superfund Site on March 14, 2022
Majority-Black
Community along the Neponset River corridor, Mattapan, Boston
Elevated Cancer Rates
Reported by residents and linked to long-term toxic exposure
Verified by Federal & Independent Sources
The Official Record
This isn’t just our coalition’s account — it’s confirmed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and independently tracked by the Neponset River Watershed Association (NepRWA), a nonprofit watchdog that has advocated for this river’s cleanup for over 20 years.
Mother Brook to T&H Dam
The first mile of the Superfund site, between Mother Brook and the T&H Dam in Hyde Park and Milton. Both riverbanks and the entire river bottom will be excavated and reconstructed, and the crumbling T&H Dam removed.
$80M
Estimated Cost
12 mo.
Final Design (2026)
3–4 yrs
Construction Window
T&H Dam to Lower Mills
A 2.7-mile stretch running directly through Hyde Park, Mattapan, Dorchester, and Milton. Less contaminated than Phase I, but key decisions, including the future of the Baker Dam, remain undecided as studies continue.
2.7 mi
Site Length
4
Neighborhoods Affected
Know Your River
Contamination doesn’t affect every activity equally. Here’s what’s actually safe along the Lower Neponset today, based on official EPA and NepRWA guidance, useful information for any resident or family living nearby.
Source: NepRWA & EPA Public FAQ
Full FAQ, fact sheets, and multilingual resources (English, Spanish, Haitian Creole) are maintained by NepRWA and the EPA.
Want Mattapan's Voice in the Room?
The EPA’s Community Advisory Group meets monthly and is actively seeking stronger representation from Mattapan residents alongside Hyde Park, Dorchester, and Milton. This is a direct way to shape the cleanup happening in your neighborhood.
The Coalition
Three Organizations. One Mission for Mattapan.
This initiative is strengthened through a strategic partnership built on decades of community trust, neighborhood governance, and grassroots engagement, bringing together the right organizations for a problem too big for any one of them to solve alone.
Our Strategy
How We're
Driving Change
This initiative deploys an integrated environmental justice strategy that combines community power-building, data-driven advocacy, and institutional accountability — not isolated services, but a framework for systemic change.
Accountability
How We're
Measuring Progress
Transparency isn’t an afterthought, it’s built into how this coalition defines success. Here’s what we’re tracking, together with the community:
- Resident participation and leadership representation within the Task Force
- Volume and quality of community-generated environmental data
- Policy engagements and formal recommendations submitted to regulators
- Measurable increases in environmental health literacy across Mattapan
- Evidence of institutional response and regulatory engagement
Accountability
Help Us Reach
Mattapan Families Now
While our coalition pursues long-term institutional funding through the Nathan Cummings Foundation, immediate needs — like household water filtration units — can’t wait. Every contribution to our GoFundMe campaign goes directly toward protecting families along the Neponset River today.
100% of community contributions are coordinated across Green Castle Hill Group, Solutions At Work, and Mattapan CDC to ensure resources reach the households that need them most.
MAKE AN IMPACT
This Is Bigger Than
Any One Organization
Every dollar directly supports housing advocacy, environmental protection, cannabis equity programs, and community organizing. Green Castle Hill Group Inc.