History
The Nashua River was heavily used for industry during the colonial period and the early United States. During the late 18th century and early 19th century, the heavy concentration of paper mills and the use of dyes near Fitchburg resulted in pollution that notoriously turned the river various colors downstream from the factories.
In the mid-1960s, Marion Stoddart started a campaign to restore the Nashua River and its tributaries. She built coalitions with labor leaders and business leaders, in particular the paper companies who were the worst polluters of the river. With federal help, eight treatment plants were built or upgraded along the river. A broad conservation buffer was created along about half the river and its two main tributaries. By the early-1990s, most of the industry was still located along the river, but many parts of the river were once again safe for swimming. Her work is the subject of a 30-minute documentary movie.
Recovery has sparked recreational use of the river at places like Mine Falls Park in Nashua.
The largely volunteer Nashua River Watershed Association, based in Groton, Massachusetts, oversees the condition of the river.
Read more about this topic: Nashua River Watershed
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—Gilbert Adair, British author, critic. Sunday Times: Books (London, April 21, 1991)