Reviving a river: Free-flowing waters at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project.

The majority of the heavy lifting at Great Works is complete, so we'd like to share a series of photos capturing the incredible progress made since June this year -- a representation of many years of conservation efforts. 



See more Great Works dam updates. 

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project.

Our Maine hydro licensing coordinator, Steve Shepard, says, "Imagine running these rapids. I hear it was done last week, though the fish have been doing it for weeks!"

 

See more Great Works dam updates. 

Not just rocks: The mussels of our rivers and streams

Today you’re hearing from Meagan Racey, who handles public affairs and media relations for Ecological Services, on her recent encounter with freshwater mussels. This post is part of a series running all month on freshwater mussels, highlighting their importance to the Northeast landscape and the concerted efforts underway to ensure their future in our waters.

The sky beamed blue above, and the sun shined down on me below as I sliced the clear water with my paddle—shwoosh down the right side of the kayak, and shwoosh down the left side. From the shoreline, a great blue heron watched me wearily, and up ahead a bald eagle peered from the treetop. Minnows darted under the water and water bugs glided across the top.

It’s hard to beat a day on the water. My trip down a portion of New England’s longest river, the Connecticut River, started at Greenfield, Mass., and amid all the beautiful details I mentioned above, one unmentioned characteristic struck me the most – the littering of freshwater mussels poking up from the bottom of the clear river.

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project.

As the Penobscot River Restoration Trust says: "The next best thing to the sight of a newly restored, free-flowing stretch of river? The sound of water coursing through natural ledges and cobbles. An amazing transformation has been taking place on this stretch of the Penobscot River!"

Reviving a river: From the Atlantic Salmon Federation

Andy Goode, vice president of U.S. programs
for the Atlantic Salmon Federation.

Today you're hearing from Andy Goode, the vice president of U.S. programs for the Atlantic Salmon Federation, an international conservation organization dedicated to the conservation, protection and restoration of wild Atlantic salmon and the ecosystems on which their well being and survival depend. ASF is a partner in the internationally recognized Penobscot River Restoration Project, re-opening nearly 1,000 mile of habitat for endangered Atlantic salmon, sturgeon, river herring and eight other species of sea-run fish in Maine.


The Penobscot Project offers a rare, far ranging, and for the foreseeable future, our only opportunity to restore a significant run of Atlantic salmon in the southern range of the species. For the first time in 200 years this project will directly address the primary threat to Atlantic salmon restoration by reducing multiple dams in Maine’s largest salmon river, thus offering the real potential to reverse the longterm decline of salmon in the United States.

Roanoke makes river more popular for fish and recreation

Two years later, and the new and improved bridge that crosses the Roanoke River in Roanoke, Va., is still a gift to the fish that make the river their home, as well as to the people of the city.

Completed on May 20, 2010, the installation of the new bridge was the final step in the Wiley Drive Bridge replacement project that including replacing the previous bridge with one that would better serve the fish and other visitors to the Roanoke River.

The main purpose of the project was to allow more movement for groups of Roanoke logperch, a fish protected under the Endangered Species Act, that have been documented in upper and lower sections of the river. The former bridge acted almost as a dam, keeping the populations separated from one another and lowering genetic diversity. 

Before and after the bridge replacement. Credit: USFWS

 

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project.

Our Maine hydro licensing coordinator, Steve Shepard, tells us, "The folks with the big toys are making steady progress!"

Work is starting on the remains of the Legacy Dam which dates back to days of hydromechanical power when there were reportedly 120 mills between Old Town and Bangor. 

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project. 

The two big timber crib sections in the background are nearly demolished! Two excavators in the foreground are demolishing another concrete section with hoe rams (impressive hydraulic hammers that have 4-5 tons of impact).

In the center of the photo, the excavator near the dam is completing a fish passage channel that will become the thalweg of the river, or its lowest point. After that is complete, the coffer dam will be removed, and the water will drop to something close to the new level. 

Credit: Steve Shepard/USFWS

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project. 

Demolition is proceeding smoothly with the help of very low flows and the ability to work within the coffer dam. The outer timber crib section is nearly gone and the next one may be chewed up by the end of the week.  

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project. 

These photos are not from the same perspective as previous, but you get a better appreciation of the current state of the dam. The concrete section at left is nearly gone and most river flow passes through this breach.

Credit: Steve Shepard/USFWS

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project.

The contractor was able to get back to work late last week (hurray!). Check out the photos taken by the Penobscot River Restoration Trust.

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project.

This graph shows that the water has remained flooded. It was at less than 7,000 cubic feet per second when it was breached and then peaked at 70,000 cubic feet per second. We're hopeful that work can start back up in another week.

Dammed once, restored now

Today you're hearing from Eric Schrading, private lands coordinator in our New Jersey Field Office, as part of our series on fish passage.

The expense of owning a dam can be quite surprising to a landowner. Dr. Calvin Shen owned a 220 acre farm on Pohatcong Creek in central New Jersey, and on that creek was an earthen dam.

In late 2008, Dr. Shen realized the unreasonable costs of maintaining that 80-year-old Class 2 dam. That’s when he reached out to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to explore ways to breach the dam and restore the Pohatcong Creek.

News Roundup

Today we're taking a break from featuring endangered species by state, but take a few minutes to see what we heard this week! Check back next week for features on the wonderful states of Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia and Virginia.

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NJ Cape May County Herald: Water and Praises Flow at Cox Hall Creek Event
VILLAS — Like an epic movie, it was 11 years in the making but the ending is monumental. On Wed., June 20, officials from Lower Township and county agencies cut a ribbon dedicating the Cox Hall Creek Improvement Project which removed a derelict sewage pumping station and sent a pipe to Delaware Bay to allow cleansing salt water in the phragmites reed clogged creek.

Over hundreds of years, attempts to control water flow has allowed invasive plants to crowd out other wildlife. This project is part of a long-term effort to control invasive wildlife along the Delaware Bay of New Jersey. A team is working to restore 87 acres of wetlands to control water quality and flooding, as well as provide habitats for our native wildlife. Through our Delaware Bay Estuary Project and New Jersey Field Office, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provided much-needed resources to complete this project.

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Reviving a river: Dam breached!

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project. 

The dam was breached this past Saturday! Watch the video here (you may want to skip ahead to minute 11).

Courtesy Penobscot River Restoration Trust

 
However, Old Town has seen some pretty serious rain lately. It may be a couple weeks before folks can get back to work. 

Credit: Steven Shepard/USFWS

 
See older photos here. 

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project.
 
The photo is taken from the Bradley shore on the east side looking at the dam from downstream. You can see the 1930s fishway in the center, with the pulp mill on the left.

We'll be seeing a lot more change on the section at left as continues. 



Credit: Steven Shepard/USFWS



This is part of a series on fish passage. Read the other blog posts here.

 

Reviving a river: From the coast

Last week we celebrated the beginning of dam removal at the Great Works Dam in the Penobscot River in Maine. Today, you’ll hear from senior biologist Jed Wright in our Gulf of Maine Coastal Program. This office provided the project with the first federal funding and is making major contributions to restoring fish passage throughout the Penobscot River watershed.

The Gulf of Maine Coastal Program has been a strong supporter of the Penobscot River Restoration Project. We’ve provided both funding and technical assistance to the project, and we’re now building upon this unique opportunity by identifying and implementing priority fish passage projects at dams and road crossings throughout the Penobscot River. 

Reviving a river: Getting fish around those dams

Today, you’re hearing again from the head of our Maine field office, Laury Zicari. Last time we talked about the long history of native fish in Maine. Now, learn how we help get fish up and around those dams using fishways. 

 

Working to relicense hydropower projects while accommodating native fish is a challenge.

This past week, our team got together to do their annual compliance inspection. The team includes our Federal Energy Regulatory Commission hydropower relicensing biologist, Steve, the Natural Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) engineer Don, three fishway engineers from the our regional office, two NMFS law enforcement agents and hydroplant operators.
The inspection focused on compliance with fishway operating criteria and turbine operation protocols at the larger hydroelectric plants. 

Who’s talking about the Penobscot?

Hear, hear, make way for the fish! The joy for the Penobscot's future splashed all over the news, with more than 50 articles popping up over the weekend through yesterday.

Take a look at what they had to say:

"The dams will fall and the salmon will rise.

That may sound like prophesy, but it’s as certain as scientific predictions get these days, particularly in matters of ecological restoration." From a National Geographic blog

Reviving a river: From the field

Yesterday, we celebrated the first step to removing the huge Great Works Dam on the Penobscot River. Today, you’ll hear from the head of our Maine field office, Laury Zicari. This office has done a tremendous amount of work to ensure that measures are taken to avoid, minimize, or compensate for the impacts on fish and wildlife from dams along the Penobscot.

Greetings from the Great State of Maine and the Maine Field Office!

I have worked in Ecological Services for about 22 years, transferring to Maine last year. This a great place to do the work of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Any map of Maine will show you the long history connecting our state with fish. You'll see many marvelous fish-related names derived from the language of the Native Americans that lived here long before European settlers arrived:

• Cobbosseecontee – Abenaki for “plenty of sturgeon” 
• Kenduskeag - Abenaki for “eel place or eel weir place” 
• Passagassawakeag – Malecite for “place for spearing sturgeon by torchlight”
• Passamaquoddy – Abenaki or Micmac for “plenty of pollock jumping”
• Wassookeag – Abenaki for “shining fish place”
• Alamoosook – Anglicized Malacite for "at the fish spawning place”
• Mattamiscontis – Abenaki for “alewife stream”
• Mattawamkeag – Abenaki for “fishing place beyond gravel bar”
• Androscoggin – Abenaki for “place where fish are cured”
• Medddybemps – Passamaquoddy-Abenaki for “plenty of alewives”

(From Brian McCauley's "The Names of Maine – How Maine Places got their names and What They Mean," 2004)