Sometimes removing a dam removes the limiting factor to a river’s health, and we can back away and let the river recover. But other times removing just one stressor isn’t enough. That’s the case with the Jones River. In 2011 we helped to achieve the successful removal of the Wapping Road Dam from the Jones, and also accepted Jones River Flow Restoration as a DER Priority Project. Last year we sponsored a pre-feasibility “site reconnaissance” study of the Elm Street Dam, at the river’s head of tide. And this year we’re seeing progress being made on multiple fronts, including a recent design of a culvert replacement in the headwaters, just downstream of the Forge Pond Dam, the last barrier to fish passage on the Jones.

The Lake Street culvert was identified in a recent feasibility study as a potential barrier to fish migration. Replacing it to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards is an important component of restoring fish passage to Silver Lake, the Jones River’s headwaters. We are working with partners on the steps necessary to construct a fish ladder over the Forge Pond Dam, partners include the Jones River Watershed Association and our colleagues at the MA Division of Marine Fisheries, who have extensive expertise in fish passage design and construction. In addition to fish passage issues, high flow events can overtop the current culvert, posing risks to nearby infrastructure.

The Town of Kingston received funding from MassDEP’s Water Management Act grant program  for design of the new culvert, which was completed this June (for the current round of funding see here). DER’s Stream Continuity Specialist Tim Chorey has provided technical assistance to the project team. Moving forward, Kingston and the Jones River Watershed Association have applied for funds to replace the Lake Street culvert as well as to advance the removal of the Elm Street Dam. We at DER are supporting combined surface- and ground-water modeling of Silver Lake and the adjoining watersheds used for Brockton’s water supply, to assess ways to not only provide the needed flows to the proposed fishway but to support a more natural flow regime. These are all pieces of the puzzle of restoring the aquatic health of the Jones River.

Original article published in September 2015 here.