The Wareham Water Department has been granted $350,000 in funding from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to purchase 77 acres of cranberry bogs, which will protect water quality by preserving the land above the water department’s wells from future use.

The state grant is one part of the funding for the $1.15 million sale of land from cranberry company A.D. Makepeace to the water department. A Wareham Fire District Special Meeting held in November 2023 authorized up to $1.2 million in spending for the purchase, and the water department has been working with the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs to secure the $350,000 state grant to finance part of the purchase.

The bogs will be retired from active cranberry cultivation. According to the state’s announcement of the grant, it will expand protection for the documented habitat of species of wildlife protected in Massachusetts. 

"I am pleased to see the Healey-Driscoll Administration focus on conserving the vital resources our communities rely on," said State Senator Marc Pacheco, Third Bristol and Plymouth. "These investments into projects in my district allow for crucial work to ensure access to the fundamental need for clean drinking water."