Note: This article originally appeared in the Back Bay Courant.

As anyone who has examined an old map of Boston knows, the entire Back Bay and the flats of Beacon Hill once were water. The massive construction projects of the 19th century that built up those areas essentially required millions of tons of landfill. But the water that was once there is still close to us. It lurks underneath the surface as groundwater and, indeed, it is the groundwater itself that is critical to the stability and safety of many buildings in the area.

Nineteenth century construction techniques called for building upon wooden pilings sunk deep into the earth. Modern wood preservation techniques were not then available, but they were unneeded. The pilings sat in groundwater and water acts as a preservative.

Builders back then knew, however, that the long-term preservation of the pilings depended upon the stability of the groundwater. If the pilings were exposed to air — say because the level of groundwater fell — they would begin to rot. As a consequence, literally hundreds of observation wells were built throughout the flats and Back Bay. The idea was that city managers would regularly monitor the groundwater levels. If any changes were occurring, corrective action, such as recharging the water, could be taken.

That was the idea. The problem is that, over 100 years later, we have been less than responsible about the matter. No one monitors groundwater levels. Indeed, most of the observation wells are now clogged and hence unusable. And worse, there have been scattered reports that groundwater levels are indeed changing and that some buildings have structural cracks as a result. Buildings in other neighborhoods, such as the Fenway and Bay Village, may also be affected from varying groundwater levels.

Almost a decade ago the City made an effort to address the problem when it created the Groundwater Trust, a quasi-independent organization charged with assessing the groundwater situation. But the Trust has languished for years without members, without meetings and without formally adopted bylaws.

That's now changing. Spearheaded by architect and Back Bay activist Tim Mitchell, the Trust has been reconstituted. He met with resistance at first. City officials needed to be persuaded of the seriousness of the problem and needed assurance that city involvement wouldn't suddenly cause the city's financial liability to climb.

That's all been done. Representatives from the Back Bay, Beacon Hill and the Fenway have been appointed to the Trust and the organization has been meeting regularly with city officials. Even better, the city has committed money to the Trust so that it can hire an engineering firm to reopen the observation wells and figure out what is going on.

In all likelihood there are real problems that will have to be addressed. Recent construction, the presence of underground tunnels and the Mass Pike all interfere with groundwater flows and groundwater levels. We could of course just ignore the whole thing. But that would just be a recipe for turning a problem into a disaster.