As 2018 draws to a close, we thought it prudent to give an update on the progress of restoration activities at the three main stem dams on the Ipswich River.
Why? Because dams:
Impede passage of aquatic life, have profound impacts on river and ecosystem function, have limited life spans, require maintenance, and incur cost and risk to operate.
Ipswich Mills Dam is the first dam encountered along the Ipswich River. Head-of-tide dams like this one are being removed nationwide because they are the most ecologically destructive, impeding fish passage, preventing the gradual transition between salt and fresh environments and obstructing tidal waters from reaching upstream floodplains. We are excited to announce that there will be a public information session regarding the dam removal feasibility study on December 12, 2018 at 7pm at the Ipswich Town Hall (Room A). For more information follow this link to a great video explaining the study. Along with Town of Ipswich staff and lead contractor Horsley & Witten, we will present the final results of the feasibility study and showcase artistic renderings of the post-dam removal landscape based on modeled water-level scenarios. This meeting will discuss next steps, however no decision regarding the Ipswich Mills Dam removal will be made at this meeting. We look forward to this meeting and the public engagement and outreach campaign planned for 2019!
Willowdale Dam is the second dam moving upstream and will be receiving a new and improved fish-way in the coming year. With the vast majority of the Ipswich River watershed located upstream of this site, improving fish passage at Willowdale is a critical component of watershed-wide efforts to restore healthy populations of native fish species. The MA Division of Marine Fisheries is working with the dam owners to replace the existing, deteriorating, poorly designed ladder with a new Alaskan steeppass ladder. The project is currently in the final stages of procuring funding needed to fully install and construct auxiliary structures associated with the new ladder. Thanks to generous funding by the Foote Brothers, the new and improved fishway should be installed between August and October of 2019! In the meantime, the nor’East Chapter of Trout Unlimited helped to restore the existing ladder through ingenuity and perseverance. Their efforts paid off in 2017 with reports of river herring passing the Willowdale Dam for the first time in years. Thanks to DMF, Trout Unlimited and Foote Brothers for their work to improve passage at this site. We look forward to counting many more fish swimming up and over this dam in the coming years.
South Middleton Dam is the final dam encountered along the main stem of the Ipswich River. Removal of this dam will open up 56 miles of river, which could restore access to 119 acres of historically important Alewife habitat. Pre-removal research has been taking place since 2015 and is a collaborative effort between a number of partners (including Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration (MA DER), Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (MA DMF), Massachusetts Division of Fish and Wildlife (MA DFW), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), United States Geologic Survey (USGS), University of New Hampshire (UNH), and University of Massachusetts (UMASS). Pairing this pre-removal data-set with data collected post removal will help researchers better understand how removing a dam impacts the biogeochemistry (biology-geology-chemistry) of the river. This extensive monitoring will be used to develop model dam removal protocols elsewhere. The process to remove this dam has been ongoing since 2008, when feasibility studies regarding sediment and impacts to infrastructure were funded by the Gulf of Maine Council/NOAA Habitat Restoration Partnership and MA DER. As you may have noticed, even with a motivated dam owner, the process to remove a dam can take many years to become reality. Currently, the regulatory process associated with this project is moving forward. We look forward to providing future project updates in 2019.
For those of you who have been following our dam restoration projects over the years, it may seem like progress moves at a snail’s pace. However with patience and perseverance, these exceedingly complex projects will see progress towards river connectivity and habitat restoration in the coming years.
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This is terrific. Thanks so much for the patience, perseverance, oversight, insight, and VISION to cultivate an environment and find solutions that are so important to animals, plants, fish, people and the beautiful Ipswich River.