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A watershed is all the land where rain and melting snow flow into the same body of water. As water moves across the land, it can carry oil, trash, fertilizer, and other pollution.
All living things depend on clean water, including fish, birds, plants, and people. Keeping watersheds healthy helps protect wildlife and keep water clean for our communities.
In Roger Williams Park, water flows into the ponds from nearby streets, roofs, yards, and a below-ground channel connected to Mashapaug Pond. Mashapaug Pond has been affected by pollution from past industry and stormwater runoff.
To help improve water quality, the Providence Parks Department installed a “treatment train”—a series of systems that filter and clean incoming water. Because the watershed extends beyond the park, actions across the community affect water quality here.
Sign 1: The Roger Williams Park Watershed
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Learn more about the history of Mashapaug Pond
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Learn more about the Treatment Train
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Learn more about Mashapaug Pond Water Quality Monitoring
By Paige Therien
Healthy fish populations are signs of a healthy ecosystem. When water becomes polluted or too warm, fish may struggle to survive.
The ponds in Roger Williams Park are home to largemouth bass, bluegill, American eel, yellow perch, and other species. Some fish help keep the ecosystem balanced, while others can cause problems.
One example is common carp, an invasive fish that lowers water quality. Carp stir up mud from the pond bottom and uproot aquatic plants. This can make the water cloudy and harm other wildlife. The Stormwater Innovation Center is studying carp in the park’s ponds and testing ways to reduce their numbers.
Fishing is a popular activity in the park, but fish from these ponds should not be eaten because of poor water quality. Work is underway to make the ponds healthier in the future. Check out the Providence Urban Wildlife Conservation Partnership’s annual freshwater fishing event to learn more about fishing in the park!
Sign 2: Fish of Roger Williams Park
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Learn more about the SIC’s carp management: https://www.stormwaterinnovation.org/carp-management
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Learn more about the Providence Urban Wildlife Conservation Partnership and events: https://www.providenceri.gov/parks/urban-wildlife-refuge/
Sign 3: A Landscape Shaped by Water and People
About 20,000 years ago, Rhode Island was covered by a glacier called the Laurentide Ice Sheet. As the glacier melted, streams and ponds formed across the land. One of those streams, Mashapaug Brook, once flowed through what is now Roger Williams Park. It connected Mashapaug Pond to the Pawtuxet River.
For many generations, the Narragansett Indian Tribe cared for and lived on this land. In the 1600s, Narragansett leaders Canonicus and Miantonomo deeded land to Roger Williams. In 1871, his descendant Betsey Williams donated that land to create this park.
In 1878, landscape architect Horace Cleveland was chosen to design the park. He envisioned a space where nature and people could thrive together. To create the park we see today, Mashapaug Brook was rerouted, wetlands were transformed into lakes, and winding roads and trails were designed to follow the natural shape of the land.
Today, the park continues to be shaped by the people who visit and care for it.
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Learn more about the Narragansett Indian Tribe: https://narragansettindiannation.org/
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Learn more about Roger Williams Park:
1878 map of Roger Williams Park by Horace Cleveland, courtesy of the Museum of Natural History and Planetarium.
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The Urban Pond Procession was an annual arts and environmental festival that ran from 2008 to 2017, bringing awareness to water quality issues in Mashapaug Pond. Photo by Don Nguon.
Sign 4: Protecting Our Park Waterways
When too many nutrients enter the water—from fertilizer, pet waste, waterfowl droppings, or mud from the pond bottom—algae can grow very quickly. This process, called eutrophication, uses up oxygen that fish and other aquatic life need to survive. Harmful algal blooms occur when certain algae that produce toxins grow too quickly.
To help protect the ponds, the City of Providence uses green infrastructure. These are natural systems like rain gardens and bioswales that help slow down rainwater and filter it before it reaches the ponds.
Here’s how you can help reduce the amount of nutrients entering our waterways:
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Pick up pet waste
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Use less fertilizer
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Plant native vegetation
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Don’t feed waterfowl
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Dispose of yard waste properly
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Reduce litter
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Capture rain with barrels or gardens
By Jessy Minker
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Learn about how to manage stormwater at home: https://www.stormwaterinnovation.org/athome
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Learn more about eutrophication: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnYkMQ4Xz7g
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Learn more about Green Infrastructure Monitoring and Improvement at Roger Williams Park
Roger Williams Park is home to many kinds of birds. Some live here year-round, like great blue herons and belted kingfishers. Others come here to breed in the warmer months or pass through during their spring and fall migrations. Birds are signs of a healthy environment. Clean water supports the fish and insects some birds eat, while trees and other plants provide additional food sources and nesting habitat.
The park is also home to Canada geese. Originally a migratory species only visiting Rhode Island in spring and fall, they are now found in the state year-round. Large numbers of geese can lower water quality. Their waste adds nutrients to the water, and they remove plants along the shoreline that help keep the water clean. The Stormwater Innovation Center organizes volunteer monitoring of the park’s Canada Goose population to better understand their impact on water quality.
Feeding geese and ducks encourages unnaturally high numbers of birds, making these water quality problems worse. Please don’t feed the birds!
Sign 5: Birds of
Roger Williams Park
By Karla Muñoz
By Tom Wojick
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Learn more about and listen to the sounds of belted kingfishers, great blue herons, and Canada geese
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Visit the Museum of Natural History and Planetarium to learn more about the birds in their collection, and attend their monthly bird walks in the park.
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Learn about the Stormwater Innovation Center’s Canada Goose study: https://www.stormwaterinnovation.org/canada-goose-survey
Sign 6: Community Science at Roger Williams Park
The Providence Parks Department invites the community to engage with city parks through community science and stewardship, highlighting that our parks are a place for experiential learning and shared responsibility.
One important community science project in Roger Williams Park is URI Watershed Watch. Volunteers test pond water and measure things like temperature, oxygen levels, and nutrients. These measurements help scientists understand pond health over time.
In another project, RainSnap, volunteers take photos of green infrastructure during rainstorms. This helps scientists see how water moves through the park and how stormwater systems are working.
Together, this information helps guide restoration and protect wildlife and water in the park.
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Learn more about SIC volunteer opportunities: https://www.stormwaterinnovation.org/volunteering
This product has been funded wholly or in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under Assistance Agreement CE00A01306 to the recipient. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, nor does the U.S. EPA endorse trade names or recommend the use of any products, services, or enterprises mentioned in this document.