State laying groundwork for culvert improvements
The state Department of Environmental Conservation has announced $101,800 will be spent to develop a culvert-improvement plan for the town of Esopus that will deal with flooding and address streams considered critical to aquatic life.
The environmental engineering firm Tighe & Bond has been hired to develop the plan.
“In addition to the municipal management plan, Tighe & Bond will produce three conceptual culvert mitigation designs and a 100 percent shovel-ready engineering design,” the department said in a press release about the grant.
The grant is part of $316,767 in state funding that also will be used for similar programs for streams in Columbia and Rensselear counties.
“The grants will help communities on the shores of the Hudson River and its tributaries plan for floodmitigation and culvert-replacement projects to restore aquatic habitat for American eel and river herring, ocean species that migrate into the estuary and then into streams to spawn or complete their life cycle,” the press release stated. “Removing these stream barriers also will benefit resident fish, such as trout, and will help communities with existing and projected impacts of localized flooding by removing constrictions.”
Town of Esopus officials last November were given a report that found 25 culverts severely hinder aquatic
Among crossings being reviewed are culverts for the Swarte Kill Wall kill River’s tributaries, the Black Creek, the Twaalfskill Brook, and the Rondout Creek’s tributaries.
life from moving along streams and another 20 culverts have significant or moderate barriers. The reports said that, historically, municipalities have not had aquatic life in mind when developing road projects.
“This is a priority for the estuary program,” state environmental analyst Megan Lung said. “We recognize, absolutely, that the town’s concerns will not always align with what is safe for fish . ... Grants will heavily consider migratory fish . ... We’re also concerned about terrestrial species, so a good culvert isn’t just necessarily good for fish, it’s good for turtles, it’s good for mammals.”
Among crossings being reviewed are culverts for the Swarte Kill-Wallkill River’s tributaries, the Black Creek, the Twaalfskill Brook, and the Rondout Creek’s tributaries.
The funding will prioritize the crossings, along both town and county roads, based on the ability of aquatic life to move along the waterway, the condition of the culvert, and what the impact is on large-scale flooding.