Sudbury scouts construct retaining wall on Nobscot conservation land

Jack Mannherz of Troop 61 Sudbury led 18 scouts in building a retaining wall on Nobscot conservation land at Brimstone Lane. Advancing toward Eagle, the highest rank in Boy Scouts.

Jack organized and directed this construction as his Eagle Scout community service project. Completed on Sunday, May 12, the assembly of the wall consumed 164 hours of labor. After gaining town approval, fund raising, purchasing of lumber, and other preparations on Jacks part, the construction went smoothly and was finished earlier than anticipated.

Before the retaining wall was built, Brimstone Lane was a location with many sections of loose dirt that would erode after heavy precipitation. Loose dirt held together by the tree roots of pine saplings would wash downhill and into the nearby trails parking area. In order to prevent this, the retaining wall was built out of sturdy landscaping timbers reinforced with steel rebar, capable of holding back large amounts of loose dirt. Built up 2 feet tall, the area behind the wall was filled with compacted clay to compensate for the dirt lost by past erosion. Gravel in front of the wall allows runoff water to drain easily into the ground. The end result of this project was a 69 feet long section of Brimstones hill reinforced to withstand erosion from the heaviest of rains in years to come.

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Sudbury scouts construct retaining wall on Nobscot conservation land