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Shellfish dying, lobster leaving: Mass. marine ecosystem faces hotter, harsher future as climate warms – The Boston Globe

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Shellfish dying, lobster leaving: Mass. marine ecosystem faces hotter, harsher future as climate warms – The Boston Globe


The Boston Research Advisory Group report found that deadly hot marine heat waves — once extremely rare — could become commonplace. Scientists warn that those and other impacts are only going to get worse if the climate continues to warm with dire and possibly irreversible impacts on the ocean.

If the planet does not stop emitting planet-warming greenhouse gasses, marine heat waves could occur off the coast of Massachusetts once every decade if the planet reaches 2 degrees Celsius of warming and perhaps every other year with 3 degrees of warming. The vast majority of excess heat generated by anthropogenic warming is absorbed by the planet’s oceans.

“The possible impacts described in this report are not pleasant,” said Paul Kirshen, a professor of climate adaptation at the University of Massachusetts Boston and an author of the report. “We need to get to net zero emissions and below as soon as possible.”

Unlike on land, where humans can build a seawall to protect from coastal flooding, for example, there is very little that can be done to help ecosystems adapt to warmer water and higher acidity, experts said. The trends noted in the report will be “very difficult” to respond to, Kirshen said.

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The report was created to answer questions posed by leaders of coastal Massachusetts towns and cities about what communities could expect over the next few decades as the climate continues to warm. Many of those towns have local economies that are at least in part dependent on commercial fishing, an industry that is likely to be dramatically changed by a warmer and more acidic Massachusetts Bay.

Native fish populations will likely continue their decline off of Massachusetts’ coast, while species from further south will move in, scientists found. The bay will continue to get acidic and inhospitable for the many fish, plants, and shellfish that live there now.

Oceans absorb about 30 percent of the carbon dioxide that’s released into the atmosphere. When absorbed, carbon dioxide makes sea water more acidic through chemical reactions, putting the entire food web in the marine ecosystem at risk, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

One example: Higher acidity causes shells to deteriorate, which kills shellfish. That will be an early marker of a shift in fishing ecology in Massachusetts Bay, the Boston-area researchers warned.

“Shell fisheries should be monitored … for warning signs,” the report said. As acidity increases, there are fewer carbonate ions in the water, an essential ingredient to build shells.

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Meanwhile, the Atlantic Cod’s numbers have already declined and the American lobster population is moving north. Scientists further expect populations of winter flounder, silver hake, and Atlantic herring to decline as well.

As others move out, species more suited to warmer temperatures are expected to move in, such as summer flounder, black sea bass, blue crab, and butterfish among them.

Jason Krumholz, an oceanographer and associate professor at the University of Connecticut, said that when he started graduate school in 2005, only very rarely did he catch blue crabs in nets. Now, more than half the crabs he catches are blue crabs, he said.

“I’m not that old yet, and this is a change that I’ve seen just in my career,” said Krumholz, one of the authors of the report. “It’s pretty fast.”

The fishing industry could likely adapt to this change by convincing buyers to push different offerings on the menu, Krumholz said. “We may have a lot more flags outside of restaurants with blue crabs on them instead of lobsters in 20 years.”

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Scientists have also observed that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation is slowing down. It’s one of the planet’s most prominent and powerful ocean currents and helps to moderate the climate at sea and on land near the shore.

That’s a wild card for ocean temperatures, said Bruce Anderson, an oceanographer and professor at Boston University and one of the lead authors of the report. The phenomenon could weaken and broaden the Gulf Stream, which brings warm tropical waters to the region.

“It’s really unclear what the Gulf Stream is going to do and how that change is going to affect things like the fisheries or even our climate here in Massachusetts,” Anderson said.

If the Gulf Stream slowdown continues, the water offshore of Massachusetts could see “substantial” warming as subtropical waters diffuse northward into the region, scientists found, further compounding the problems.

Another area of uncertainty: How President-elect Donald Trump’s administration could impact the trajectory of offshore ecosystems.

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Environmental advocates are worried that the incoming Trump administration will try to slash budgets for federal environmental agencies, which could both slow the energy transition from fossil fuels to clean energy and affect efforts to clean up marine pollution.

Many federal grants finance beach cleanups, water quality testing, and other programs to manage the marine environment, said Jeff Watters, vice president of external affairs of the Ocean Conservancy, a nonprofit organization.

“I think they’re more at risk now than they were under the first [Trump] administration,” Watters said, because Congress was able to block some of those defunding efforts last time. “Pollution could absolutely go up; that’s a real possibility.”

Those fears come as marshes and coastal ecosystems are already threatened by plastic and pharmaceutical pollution, and runoff pollution is expected to increase due to stronger storms and an increase in coastal populations, according to the new report.

The pollution in Massachusetts Bay is affected by the behavior of people: What they buy, where they fish, how they recreate, and where they live, said Anderson of Boston University.

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Yet, perhaps in that relationship lies a glimmer of hope: Towns, cities, and individuals can prevent further pollutants from entering the ecosystem. “This is a very sensitive environment to everyday decisions,” Anderson said.


Erin Douglas can be reached at erin.douglas@globe.com. Follow her @erinmdouglas23.





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Massachusetts

Amber Alert out of Stoughton cancelled after children found safe | ABC6

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Amber Alert out of Stoughton cancelled after children found safe | ABC6


Massachusetts State Police are searching for Ashyley Vasquez after a potential child kidnapping of three youths. (Massachusetts State Police)

STOUGHTON, Mass. (WLNE) — Massachusetts State Police said that an Amber Alert for three children out of Stoughton was cancelled after they were found safe.

Massachusetts State Police issued an Amber Alert for three children who were the potential victims of a parental kidnapping around 10 p.m Friday.

29-year-old Ashyley Vasquez was believed to have taken three children and police said they may have been in danger.

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Stoughton police named the children as Aliyah Campos, Aleyshka Campos, and Janiel Trinidad.

Aliyah Campos, Aleyshka Campos, and Janiel Trinidad. (Stoughton Police Department)

Police said Vasquez was believed to be driving a 2023 Toyota Rav4 SUV with Massachusetts registration 2FZD76.





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Here Are The 30 Most Expensive ZIP Codes In Massachusetts, Per Zillow Data

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Here Are The 30 Most Expensive ZIP Codes In Massachusetts, Per Zillow Data


Massachusetts stands among the top five states in the United States in terms of income, boasting a household income of $99,858 and a mean household income of $138,516, according to the Census Bureau. Affluence is a hallmark of many places in Massachusetts, both of regular suburbs and resort areas.

For this article, we wanted to breakdown the most expensive ZIP codes in Massachusetts. Vacation spots in Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, Cape Code, and the Berkshires not surprisingly are home to many of the most expensive ZIP codes. But so does the Boston metro area. Read on to find out the most expensive ZIP codes in Massachusetts in 2024, based on the latest data from Zillow’s home value index.

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The Most Expensive ZIP Codes in Massachusetts

Harnessing data from Zillow’s home value index, as well as the Census Bureau’s 2023 American Community Survey, we analyzed thousands of ZIP codes across the U.S. as part of a general survey. From there, we focused our attention on Massachusetts. The Zillow home value index tracks (as of September 2024) the home values of 484 ZIP codes in Massachusetts. As part of our analysis, we took into consideration the latest monthly home values Zillow has — September 2024 — as well as the average of 12 months of median home values from October 2023 to September 2024. While home values have grown immensely across America since the pandemic-induced buying frenzy, home value appreciation in Massachusetts stands out. One of the most expensive ZIP codes in Massachusetts witnessed home values surge by 84.8% over the last five years.

Some very clear patterns emerge from this analysis. The majority of the most expensive ZIP codes in Massachusetts are contained within just a couple of metropolitan areas. Below are the 25 most expensive ZIP codes in Massachusetts.

The Top 5 Most Expensive ZIP Codes in Massachusetts

ZIP code 02554 is the most expensive one in Massachusetts. This ZIP code covers the affluent island of Nantucket. This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise considering Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard are well-known for attracting wealthy residents. The 12-month average home value is just over $2.7 million, while the median home value was over $2.77 million in September 2024. That is up an incredible 57.5% from five years before, when the median home value was roughly $1.76 million in September 2019.

Moving over to Nantucket’s neighbor, ZIP code 02535 covers the southwestern portion of Martha’s Vineyard. Incomes are high in ZIP code 02535, with the median household income being $135,750 and the average household income $223,352. Just over 29% of households in ZIP code 02535 earn $200,000 or more a year. Back in September 2019, the median home value was nearly $1.478 million, before rising by 58.8% over five years, reaching $2.346 million in September 2024. Notably, though, the median home value fell slightly, by 2%, from the previous September, when it was just under $2.395 million.

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The No. 3 most expensive ZIP code in Massachusetts is 02493, which is centered on Weston, a suburb west of Boston. Household incomes in ZIP code 02493 are much higher than those on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, believe it or not. The median household income in ZIP code 02493 is over $250,000 a year, while the mean household income is $365,202. The majority of households in 02493 earn $200,000 or more. Home value appreciation here has been robust. The median home value rose by 59.1%, from around $1.374 million in September 2019 to $2.186 million in September 2024.

South of the No. 3 most expensive ZIP code is the No. 4, ZIP code 02481. This ZIP code is centered on Wellesley, though actually wraps around the town, including places like Wellesley Farms, Wellesley Lower Falls, and Wellesley College itself. There are some serious high-earners in this ZIP code. The median household income is over $250,000, with the average household income topping $414,000 per year. Here’s another ZIP code where home values increased substantially. From a median of nearly $1.357 million in September 2019, the median home value increased by 53.1%, to reach $2.077 million. Indeed, it’s up 6.3% year-over-year.

The fifth most expensive ZIP code in Massachusetts is based on the village of Waban, which is part of the larger city of Newton: 02468. This is another western suburb of Boston. Like the other expensive suburban ZIP codes of Boston, incomes are very high in 02468. Incredibly, 71.3% of households in 02468 earn $200,000 or more. The median household income here is more than $250,000 per year; the mean household income is $382,509. Home values here rose by 45.3% in five years, not as large a growth rate as the other ZIP codes among our top five, yet still substantial. In September 2024, the median home value breached $2 million.



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At Massachusetts General Hospital, $1.9 billion ‘signature’ Ragon building takes shape – The Boston Globe

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At Massachusetts General Hospital, .9 billion ‘signature’ Ragon building takes shape – The Boston Globe


Three years into its anticipated seven-year timeline, construction is well underway on Massachusetts General Hospital’s massive new $1.9 billion clinical care facility on its Boston campus.

At over 1.5 million square feet, the Phillip and Susan Ragon Building will house the Mass General Cancer Center and the Corrigan Minehan Heart Center. Its two inpatient towers will contain 482 single-bed rooms, and the facility will include rooms for operations, imaging, infusions, and exams.

When the project along Cambridge Street broke ground in 2022, the hospital’s president David F. M. Brown called it “the most important” building constructed in the hospital’s history since its original building was constructed more than two centuries ago.

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“It will create the environment our staff need, and our patients deserve,” he said at the time.

At a recent celebration of the last beam being placed on the building’s East Tower, Jonathan Kraft, chair of the hospital’s board of trustees, said the building will be the “flagship building” of the hospital’s parent organization, Mass General Brigham.

“It will be the signature building of our system and the signature building of the whole health care community in New England,” he said.

The building will rely primarily on renewable electricity and has a net-zero carbon plan for construction and operation, MGH has said. It will potentially house a new T stop on the proposed Red-Blue connector, according to the hospital’s website. Construction is set to be completed in two phases, in 2027 and 2030.

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Construction continued on Massachusetts General Hospital’s $1.9 billion Phillip and Susan Ragon Building.David L. Ryan/Globe Staff
The state-of-the-art building along Cambridge Street will house the Mass General Cancer Center and the Corrigan Minehan Heart Center.David L. Ryan/Globe Staff
The project’s two inpatient towers will contain 482 single-bed rooms, and the facility will include rooms for operations, imaging, infusions, and exams.David L. Ryan/Globe Staff

Stella Tannenbaum can be reached at stella.tannenbaum@globe.com.





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