Mill River Restoration: December 2012

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Mill River to Mother Nature: "It's your turn, now."

12/11/12 - Today marked completion of human-led work at the Hopewell Mills Dam site, and the start of Mother Nature's lead role.

Photo 1: Mill River looking upstream through the former spillway site. Contractors installed tree trunks as bird perches on the floodplain.

Contractors planted the site last week with native trees and shrubs. Hydroseeding took place today (that's the bright green you see in the photos). Next week I'll add a few before - during - after photo sequences. After that, the blog will take a break until the Whittenton Dam Removal Project begins upstream in few months.

Photo 2&3: These pictures look downstream towards the former spillway. In the photo above, logs and rootwads installed as habitat poke out of the stream bank.

Photo 4: This picture looks upstream from the former dam, across the impoundment, towards the Reed & Barton mill (brick buildings and smoke stack associated with the mill are in the distance). The weird green color comes from the hydroseeding.

Project Partners

About the Project

The Mill River Restoration is a collaborative project that will restore the Mill River in Taunton, Massachusetts to a free flowing river that provides passage for fish into Lake Sabbatia and the Canoe River watershed above. Restoration of the river's floodplain and river habitats will help protect the City of Taunton from flooding, provide a recreational resource and improve the health of the city.

The first step in the project is the removal of the Hopewell Mills dam located at the Taunton State Hospital. This will provide passage for fish that migrate to the river from the ocean, including river herring, shad and American eels.