A Banner Year for Removing Dams and Reconnecting Rivers in Vermont
What do the communities of Ripton, Barre Town, Tunbridge, Newport Town, Berkshire, West Dover, Springfield, Barre, and West Rutland all have in common? Each town has removed a derelict dam this summer, restoring a river to its natural state. In fact, 9 dams were removed this past summer, which is the most planned dam removals ever completed in Vermont in a single year.
These newly free-flowing rivers have their own stories to tell – The Brandy Brook, Stevens Branch, First Branch of the White River, Tributary of the North Branch of the Deerfield River, Mudd Creek, Trout Brook, Mile Brook, and Youngs Brook – all had dams that blocked flow for decades and, in some cases, centuries. Now they can find a new path, one that provides better habitat for fish, birds, and wildlife living in and along the rivers, and reduces flood risks for homes, businesses, and infrastructure. These projects contribute to the local economy by engaging excavation contractors in almost $4 million worth of work, as well as enhancing outdoor recreation opportunities by making Vermont’s waters cleaner, safer, and more accessible.
Watch: Montpelier Dam Removal Tour
Learn about the Bailey (or Shaw’s) dam in Montpelier in this short 4-minute video, then embark on a tour of Montpelier’s riverfront, including all four dams Vermont River Conservancy is working to remove. These projects will mitigate flood impacts, create recreation opportunities, and make the river a better place for humans and wildlife alike.
Behind Montpelier’s Bailey Dam
Learn about the Bailey (or Shaw’s) dam in Montpelier in this short 4-minute video, then embark on a tour of Montpelier’s riverfront, including all four dams Vermont River Conservancy is working to remove. These projects will mitigate flood impacts, create recreation opportunities, and make the river a better place for humans and wildlife alike.
Community explores changing landscape at Bakersfield Dam Removal
On Wednesday, August 30th, 35 dam removal and stream restoration practitioners, as well as members of the public, visited a project site in Bakersfield, VT to learn lessons from the removal of the Johnsons Mill Dam. Read the full blog post here.
Devastating Flooding Highlights Danger of Dams
As heartbreaking floods have damaged large parts of Vermont, the FreeVermontRivers team has been more aware than ever of the risks dams can pose and the benefits of removing them. We are aware that dams across the state have been threatened or failed, causing increased damage and fear. If you own or are part of a community that is endangered by a dam, please reach out with your concerns. Perhaps there is a path to removal we can pursue together. If you need support or are interested in volunteering, please find a list of resources here.
Fitzgerald Environmental Associates LLC Selected to Design Three Dam Removals Along the Brewster River
Three dams along the Brewster River, a tributary to the Lamoille River, have removal designs underway by Fitzgerald Environmental Associates. Removal of the three dams will help improve the water quality, habitat, and recreation in the Brewster and Lamoille Rivers.
Connolly Pond Dam Removal is Underway in Shrewsbury, VT
Removal began in late June, 2023. The dam is being removed in the interest of public safety to reduce flood risk, and reconnect and restore a headwater tributary to the Mill River, which ultimately flows to the Otter Creek and then Lake Champlain. The dam is reported to have been constructed c. 1965 for fire suppression, and to provide a water source for farm crops and livestock, and as a pond for recreation. The project is designed to reconnect the headwaters to the Mill River and ultimately Lake Champlain. Many co-benefits result from dam removals including restoring natural sediment transport, reduced erosion, restored aquatic organism passage, reconnection with the floodplain to support flood resilience, restored wetlands, stream channel processes, and a restored ecosystem with increased biodiversity.
WATCH: Ghost Dams in the News!
Someone recently called VNRC a team of Ghostbusters for dam removal. We’re more than okay with that! Watch this segment from WCAX-TV and learn all about a ghost dam in Jericho, one of the winners of our recent “ghost dam hunt”! Read more about ghost dams and our work to remove derelict dams here.
Vermont Agency of Natural Resources Secretary Highlights the Importance of Dam Removals
The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources highlighted the importance of dam removals by visiting the Dunklee Pond Dam and Pelletier Dam removal sites. Agency of Natural Resources Secretary Julie Moore was joined by river partners to discuss recent dam removal projects in the Rutland area and the importance of dam removals to Vermonters and Visitors.
LISTEN: VNRC’s Karina Dailey Discusses Pelletier Dam Removal on Restoration Roundup Podcast
Dam removal is an important way to restore natural flows, habitat, and surrounding vegetation to rivers. Many dams in Vermont are long-standing, with a history of being used for industrial work or creation of recreational spaces such as fishing ponds or swimming holes, but projects like this allow for the passage of aquatic life and the restoration of rivers and their associated floodplains. The Pelletier Dam project has received its funding and permits, begun and nearly finished construction (or de-construction!), and is moving on to the revegetation and monitoring stage.
In this podcast, you can hear Karina Dailey, VNRC’s Restoration Ecologist, along with other guests Shawn Good (Vermont Fish & Wildlife), and Gabe Bolin (Stone Environmental), discuss the process and future plans for this site, learn more about the history of dams, the general goals and tools of dam removal and restoration, how native wildlife interacts with dams (both man-made and beaver-made), and how launching a massive removal project can face challenges but ultimately come through with exciting results. LISTEN HERE on the Restoration Roundup podcast.
Crooked Creek Dam Removal in Colchester, VT is Complete!
Crooked Creek Dam Removal in Colchester, VT is Complete! The work on this dam removal was led by Allaire Diamond from Vermont Land Trust (VLT).
Another View of Curtis Pond
The following is a letter to the editor in response to the piece “Maple Corner Gives a Dam,” published on August 3 in Seven Days:
[“Maple Corner Gives a Dam,” August 3] fails to map the watershed connection: Pekin Brook and the wetlands that support Curtis Pond are headwaters to the Kingsbury Branch, which flows to the Winooski River and, ultimately, Lake Champlain. Once, this river flowed freely, moving sediment, nutrients, fish and other organisms downstream. Then, in 1900, Curtis Pond Dam was built to create a millpond.
This man-made barrier caused the water to stop moving, resulting in warmer water temperature, less dissolved oxygen and a sediment-starved downstream. The trout were replaced by sunfish, the biodiversity dropped, nutrients were trapped and the emergent wetland vegetation suffocated.
Reconnecting rivers is a nature-based solution to climate change, and it’s no secret that Lake Champlain is in trouble. Local watershed associations and conservation districts, regional planners, and state and federal partners are working hard with communities to weigh the benefits and impacts and prioritize projects that achieve the most water quality, habitat and public safety improvements while at the same time supporting improved public access for recreation, including fishing, swimming and boating. Vermont’s future depends on clean water, and removal of derelict dams is part of the clean water puzzle. Read more here.
WATCH: Montague Dam in Post Mills, VT is complete!
Ron Rhodes and CT River Conservancy were the lead on this project.
Removal Work Has Started at Pelletier Dam in Castleton, VT
The removal of the Pelletier Dam in Castleton has begun. This derelict stone dam, located on North Breton Brook off of East Hubbardton Road and approximately 0.85 river miles upstream from the confluence with the Castleton River, was originally built around 1792 to power an industrial marble mill (the Sherman Marble Mill complex). In addition to water power, the dam impoundment was also used for commercial ice harvesting. After the closing of the Marble Mill in this location, the dam was acquired by the State of Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department who recognize that the ecological benefits of dam removal far outweigh the barrier that blocks trout species from moving up and down North Breton Brook. “For over 200 years the dam has caused a significant impediment to stream flow, sediment transport, water quality, public safety and fish passage along North Breton Brook and the Castleton River. The removal of this dam will reconnect approximately 37 miles of wild trout habitat and restore approximately 3000 feet of riparian floodplain and stream habitat,” said Karina Dailey, Restoration Ecologist of Vermont Natural Resources Council.
The spring 2022 issue of the Watershed Forestry Partnership newsletter is out!
This issue includes stories about removing the Dunklee Pond Dam; restoration work to benefit birds and bees; using willows multiple ways in restoration projects; and more! Thank you to those of you who submitted stories and updates for this issue. The first page of the newsletter is below, and the complete issue is attached and available online here.
Mayor Allaire, VNRC and Partners Celebrate the Removal of Dunklee Pond Dam
On October 7, 2021, Mayor Allaire, VNRC and its partners met along Tenney Brook in Rutland to celebrate the removal of Dunklee Pond Dam. The derelict dam was removed to benefit public safety, fish and wildlife, water quality, and flood resilience. Removal of this deteriorating structure also mitigates what was a major flood risk to nearby homes. With approximately 13 miles of habitat reconnected, Tenney Brook is once again a free-flowing river, allowing for the natural movement of fish and other aquatic organisms as well as terrestrial birds and animals.
The Vermont Natural Resources Council (VNRC) began the dam removal in early August following a three-year design and permitting process. Bill Lovett, Fire Chief for the City of Rutland, said they had to evacuate the nearby homes along Tenney Brook a total of eight times during heavy rainfall events. Read more here.
Dunklee Pond cleanup underway
This article originally ran in the Rutland Herald on August 10, 2021
Almost 2 years after the city’s emergency demolition of the Dunklee Pond Dam, the state is cleaning up what’s left.
A team led by the Vermont Natural Resources Council is overseeing the removal of the dam’s remains. The city had been talking with the state about removing the dam, which sits on Tenney Brook on private property across Main Street from Rotary Park, since 2016 because of the potential downstream effects if the aging dam were to fail.
A storm in mid-October 2019 caused the dam to overtop and shifted a retaining wall in its structure by 3½ inches, prompting the city to take emergency action the following month. Read more here.
Press release: Vermont Natural Resources Council begins Dunklee Pond Dam removal in Rutland
Removal of the Dunklee Pond Dam on Tenney Brook in the City of Rutland, Vermont is now underway following a three-year design and permitting process. The dam is classified as a Significant Hazard Potential Dam, meaning there is potential for loss of life and “appreciable” economic loss should it fail. Most recently, it has posed a substantial flood risk to nearby homes.
The Vermont Natural Resources Council (VNRC), in conjunction with Vermont River Conservancy (VRC), has been leading this project since dam owners Michelle and Snehal Shah requested assistance to remove it. Read more here.