Cawaco RC&D Helps
Restore Town Creek
by Heidi Richards, Coordinator, Cawaco RC&D Council, Birmingham, AL
|
The wetland will improve the water
quality in Town Creek because stormwater that once ran from the
school parking lot into the stream will now be diverted into the
wetland before draining into the creek. |
The Alabama Department of Environmental Management awarded a grant to the
city of Jasper and Cawaco RC&D Council to help restore Town Creek. The creek now
has more pools and swift-flowing areas in the urban stream and an enhanced
floodplain.
A portion of Town Creek was channelized about 40 years ago. According to the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), channelization interrupts a stream’s
natural flow by making it straighter, filling it, or altering its width or
length. EPA reports that after channelization, streams often experience an increase in bank erosion
and flooding and a decrease in water quality and species diversity.
It is the aim of the Town Creek restoration effort to return the stream
closer to the original form.
A series of boulder and log structures were added along the stream to improve
oxygen levels, nutrient quality, and to prevent excess sediment from getting
into the stream.
A stormwater wetland was constructed near Maddox Middle School to help
improve the water quality of the creek. Stormwater that ran into the stream from
the school parking lot is now diverted into the wetland before draining into the
creek. The wetland provides educational opportunities because of the diversity
of plant and animal life that exists there. The stormwater wetland includes
plants, insects, frogs, salamanders, and turtles. It will be a hands-on learning
laboratory for the school children to experience nature in a natural
environment.
More planting along the creek’s banks will take place in the fall.
The restoration project returned Town Creek closer to its original form. |
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