The first permanent Rising Waters sculpture was installed on the banks of the Fore River at Watson Park in Braintree, MA. As the public outreach component of a green infrastructure project, the sculpture and its sign explain why the walking path between the playing fields and tidal Fore River was elevated by a berm. The sculpture tips show the predicted high-high tide levels in 2030 and 2070, helping the public visualize the future.

When water reaches the high end of the sculpture, in 2070 by current predictions, the raised path will be removed. The playing fields will become wetlands, which will provide a natural buffer from storm flooding and protect the shoreline from further erosion. Wetlands are also a rich habitat that increase biodiversity as nature's nursery for birds, aquatic life, and plants.

The sculpture is being used as a citizen science project by the State of Massachusetts. Trained observers and park visitors are invited to take photographs of the sculpture and upload them to a website. The photos will help track actual sea level rise and become part of an on-going record, helping scientists make more accurate predictions. The first group of photos below show low and high tide on January 22nd and 23rd, 2023, at a flood time.

Thanks to Jake Scherlis for his role in the design of the sculpture, Braintree Conservation Commission for bringing Climate Creatives to this site, and Michael Fein Photography. Woods Hole Group designed and engineered the berm and coastal bank restoration, and SumCo Construction did the site construction and sculpture installation. This Town of Braintree shoreline management project was funded by a Coastal Resilience grant from the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management and local Community Preservation Act funds.

To share our process, we have included some of our alternative designs in the gallery at the bottom.