1 Death By A 1,000 Culverts and What Communities are Doing to Reconnect Their Streams Moodna Intermunicipal Watershed Council October 26th, 2017 2 Hudson River Estuary Program Building a future for nature & people in the Hudson Valley 1. Clean water 2. Resilient communities A healthy ecosystem supports AdaptingProtectingDefines our to signature climate home; provideschange; species & 3. A vital estuary ecosystem An accessiblehealthy communities gem - understood, the webinspiration,Watershedguided of life bythat recreation tonature supports river; & them treasured, & protected by all watershedeconomic to vitality faucet 4. Fish, wildlife, & habitat 5. Natural scenery 6. Access & education 3 Aquatic Connectivity • Streams are highways • Problem culverts and dams are Fox Creek road blocks • Connected streams are stronger Otter Kill Hollowville Creek Connected Streams 4 Barriers Impact: • Habitat • Maintenance/Replacement costs • Aquatic communities • Damowner liability • Sediment and debris • Dam failure potential • Water quality • Recreation value • Hydrology • Property value 5 Albany 6 Quassaick Creek NYC 7 Quassaick Creek, Newburgh 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 Glass Eels Caught/Day Eels Glass 0 3/7/17 3/21/17 4/4/17 4/18/17 5/2/17 5/16/17 8 Culvert Prioritization Project 1. Assess culverts and bridges on public roads for passability and capacity 2. Work with municipalities to replace problem culverts 9 10 11 12 Case study for Disconnections reconnection Town of Ancram 13 Town of Ancram • We assessed their culverts in 2014 • They got a grant to fix 2 problem culverts in 2015 • Two problem culverts got upsized and better passage in 2016 and 2017 14 Town of Ancram • Wrote their own grant • $220,000 for tributary restoration • 3 culvert replacement designs, replace 2 The Saga Continues… • With Trout Unlimited, just got a $50K grant to prioritize all town culverts 15 Case study for Disconnections reconnection Town of Stony Point Saw Kill 16 Town of Stony Point • Townwide culvert management plan • County and regional Soil and Water Conservation District • Adding in: • surveys of privately owned culverts • condition of the crossing • risk to town from flooding and failure • Stream Simulation modeling for highest priority location 17 Case study for City reconnection of Troy Wynants Kill 18 19 20 21 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Nj8HASjG3I&feature=youtu.be 22 Funding Grants!!!! • Tributary Restoration grants from the Hudson River Estuary Program • Federal money and help • NYSDEC Water Quality Improvement Project Ancram • Climate Smart Communities, hazard mitigation grants, municipal budgets Rt. 9, Stuyvesant Rt. 7, Ancram Foundry Brook 23 Thanks Connect with us: Facebook: www.facebook.com/NYSDEC Andrew Meyer Twitter: twitter.com/NYSDEC Hudson River Estuary Program Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/nysdec New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in cooperation with Cornell University NYS Water Resources Institute [email protected] 845-256-3135 Connect with us: Facebook: www.facebook.com/NYSDEC Twitter: twitter.com/NYSDEC Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/nysdec .