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2017-06-21 / Local
Firm to assess Black River tributary
By KELSEY CHRISTENSEN
kchristensen@eagletimes.com
SPRINGFIELD, Vt. — The town of Springfield has received a grant to assess stream geomorphic conditions on a tributary of the Black River that runs through Valley Street.
The grant, for $3,250, was provided by the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation’s Ecosystem Restoration Program (ERP), a grant funding program for projects related to water quality.
Bear Creek Environmental LLC, a Montpelier-based multidisciplinary firm providing consulting services in stream geomorphic assessment, biological investigation, water quality evaluation, stream habitat restoration, permitting, erosion prevention and sediment control, and geographic information systems, will conduct the study throughout the month of June in Springfield. A final report is expected to be furnished by the end of the construction season, or on Oct. 10.
According to Thomas Kennedy, executive director of the Southern Windsor County Regional Planning Commission (SWCRPC), says the project will examine the condition of the tributary, which is home to steep banks that, if unattended, may cause damage to private properties and structures near the river due to bank failure.
“You don’t want to wait until there’s bank failure,” said Kennedy, noting the damage Hurricane Irene wreaked in towns like Chester.
These projects, Kennedy says, can help towns improve storm management. Bank erosion can also cause sediment loading, which the town is hoping to decrease following the assessment.
“We’re trying to decrease sediment loading, which adds nitrogen and different things into the river,” he said.
The study will examine the man-made activities that have caused changes to the stream, giving the town a better idea of what projects will improve the status of the river in the future.
“Based on what they find in the assessment of the stream, they come up with projects,” Kennedy said.
More wasted tax dollars but hey, its the Springfield way. I am sure they can come up with projects that require even more tax dollars. Funny how that works.
ReplyDelete10:02, it is in the interest of all for the government to pay attention to the geomorphic conditions of the Valley Street brook. As Adam Smith put it, merchants (i.e., the profit-motivated mindset) are not suitable for running government.
ReplyDeleteWhat profit is there in knowing what catastrophe might destroy the town swimming pool (which is why it isn't on Valley Street any more)? In the hurricane of 1927, the Black River caused $500,000 in damage ($7 million in today's dollars.) I estimate that was 25% of the total value of the grand list at the time. Today, to lose 25% of the value along those same streets and roads would be $21 million.
We aren't going to find businesses plunking down their money to see what their 50- or 100-year prospects are or to protect the larger community. It's why we spend tax dollars. And spending them keeps businesses safer.
Chuck. The Valley Street Brook is not the Black River and it is not going to ever cause major flooding to the town of Springfield. The ole swimmmin' hole is empty and filed with silt. It was closed because of safety concerns and not flooding. Most of the corn-eyed brown trout that used to frequent the stream have become extinct although rumors surface occasionally of a unconfirmed sighting. This grant is just the start of another tax payer boondoggle with the tax payer getting no benefit for their wasted funds. Welcome to the swamp.
ReplyDeleteBut the hurricane of 1927 was before the flood control dam was built! Did the town flood when Irene came through? No, because of the dam!
ReplyDeleteBut the hurricane of 1927 was before the flood control dam was built! Did the town flood when Irene came through? No, because of the dam!
ReplyDelete1:20, Bunni Putnam of the Springfield Historical Society once wrote in the Springfield Reporter how the Valley Street brook did tremendous damage to downtown. You should ask her.
ReplyDelete11:27-- it was precisely because of "wasteful government spending" that studies were done to show that the industries of Hartford, Connecticut (Pratt & Whitney, especially, vital to our military) could be saved from flooding by a system of dams constructed to restrict the flow of the Connecticut and its tributaries. The study involved tens of thousands of man-hours (paid by our tax dollars) that measured (with devices paid for by our tax dollars) the season-by-season and situation-by-situation flow rates of every river feeding the Connecticut and computing where each dam (land expropriated at minimal expense (paid for by our tax dollars); dam built by using our tax dollars) needed to be located and establishing a system (paid for by our tax dollars) of monitoring flows to release waters to minimize the risk downstream flooding.