North River Commission

North River Commission

PO Box 612

Norwell MA 02061

Phone: 781-659-7411

Commission Staff

Judy Grecco Administrator email: northrivercom@verizon.net 

Joseph Strazdes North River Patrol

Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursdays 9 am - 1 pm at the James Library at 24 West St in Norwell. The North River Commission holds public hearings the fourth Thursday of every month at the Norwell Town Hall 345 Main Street.

The North River Commission administers the North River Protective Act. The North River is the only Scenic Protected River in Massachusetts. The NSRWA is a nonprofit advocacy group that helped to pass these protections for the North River in the 1970's. To find out more about the history of the NSRWA visit our History page.

The North River Commission was established by the Massachusetts Departments of Environmental Management (DEM) pursuant to the Scenic and Recreational Rivers Act, G.L.c.21, s. 17B and the North River Commission Act, c.367, s.62 of the Acts of 1978.  

The Protective Order promotes public safety, health, and welfare.  Its aim is to protect public and private property, wildlife, fresh and saltwater fisheries, and irreplaceable wild, scenic and recreational river resources.  The Order protects the North River, as well as parts of associated tributaries in the towns of Scituate, Marshfield, Pembroke, Norwell, Hanover, and Hanson. Here you will find FAQs about the North River Scenic and Recreational River Protective Order to help you understand the Protective Order.

The North River Commission is housed at the James Library in Norwell Center and holds public hearings on the third Thursday of every month at the Norwell Town hall.

Downloadable forms for applicants:

• Request for Determination (pdf)
• Special Permit Application (pdf)
• Special Permit Checklist (pdf)

The North River Commission publishes an annual newsletter with information regarding permits within the North River Corridor.  The Commission mails the newsletter to those within the jurisdiction of the North River Corridor. You can download the last several years North River Notes below:

• 2011 North River Notes
• 2010 North River Notes
• 2009 North River Notes
• 2008 North River Notes
• 2007 North River Notes
• 2006 North River Notes
• 2005 North River Notes

Please note: To open these PDF forms you must have Adobe Reader, a free download available by clicking here.

Commission Representatives

The North River Commission has representatives and alternates from each town on the North River: Pembroke, Hanover, Norwell, Marshfield, Hanson, and Scituate.  Each town's Board of Selectmen designates its representatives for a term of three years, with no limit to the number of terms a person may serve.  The following individuals now serve as representatives of the North River Commission.

North River Commissioners

Hanover	Daniel Jones	John O'Leary Alternate
Hanson	Charles Mann	Ed Casey Alternate
Marshfield	Christopher Head	Maryanne Leonard Alternate
Norwell	Gary Thomas	Dennis Mahoney Alternate
Pembroke	James Hannon Chairman	Willard Boulter, Jr. Alternate
Scituate	Joseph Norton Jr.	Joseph Norton Sr. Alternate