Community update on Riverside Dam restoration scheduled

A community update will be given in September on plans to clear tons of sediment from the old reservoir area behind Riverside Dam and restore it. The dam is located on the Blanchard River at Riverside Park, 231 McManness Ave. Riverside Park is Hancock County's oldest park. Coordinator Lauren Sandhu, with the Blanchard River Watershed Partnership, gave an update on the status of the project at Tuesday's regular meeting of Findlay City Council. The community update will be held from 10 a.m. to noon on Sept. 23 at the Riverside Park Waterfall Pavilion. During the meeting, engineers from Verdantas, formerly Hull and Associates Inc., of Toledo, will present recommendations on how to best address sediment buildup, and modify the dam to reduce future buildup and allow fish to pass through the river. The large sediment buildup creates water quality issues and interferes with the recreational use of the river. The study was paid for by the city of Findlay with an $80,000 allocation from its federal American Rescue Plan Act funds. In all, Findlay is expected to receive about $4.2 million in grant money from ARPA. The partnership received approval from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency for a plan, written in 2018, to improve the waterway near the dam and the old city reservoir. Once the engineering work is complete, federal and state grants will be sought to pay for the improvements. The Blanchard River Watershed Partnership is entirely grant-funded and works to address problems that affect the health of the Blanchard River Watershed and to educate the public about the river and its tributaries. In May, the Hancock County Board of Commissioners agreed to contribute an additional $80,000 from the county's flood mitigation fund to the project. Sandhu said the money will be used for the pre-construction phase of the project, which will include the design, permits, costs and continued public outreach. The Watershed Partnership will continue to seek grant funding for the construction. An application has been submitted to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration seeking funding from its initiative to restore fish passages in the nation's waterways by removing barriers. The grant focuses on dam modification, fish passages and barrier and sediment removal. A total of $65 million is being made available, and the grants will range in size from $1 million to $5 million. According to the partnership, the dam was constructed in the late 1800s. Sandhu said an archeological review of the historic site has already been conducted, and there were no findings. Since its construction, sediment has steadily been accumulating behind it, greatly impairing the water quality in the area. Two "sediment islands" have developed behind the dam and continue to increase in size. Sediment in the old reservoir area has reduced the average water depth to only 3 or 4 feet, and has caused a decline in fish populations in an area that was once excellent for fishing, according to the partnership. Excess sediment is one of the main water pollutants in the Blanchard River Watershed, according to the partnership. Too much sediment in a waterway can greatly impact fish populations and other organisms in the benthic community. The loss of these organisms can result in food chain collapse, which can lead to the decline of numerous aquatic species. Nutrients such as phosphorous and nitrogen can bind to sediment particles and be carried downstream. Eventually, these nutrients and sediment make their way to Lake Erie, and contribute to the algal blooms that occur each summer, some of which produce toxins that can be harmful to both people and animals. The shallow water also makes it difficult to navigate canoes or kayaks in the area. Modification of the dam, along with the removal of the sediment and debris behind the dam, is meant to reestablish the aquatic habitat and recreational use in the area. The partnership represents the six counties of the Blanchard River Watershed and is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving water quality through project implementation, public outreach and education, and the development of nonpoint source implementation strategic plans. For more information about the Blanchard River or the partnership, visit www.BlanchardRiver.org In 2016, the city and county split the cost of a $15,000 bill to hire Hull & Associates, Dublin, to study the problem. According to the report, it could cost as much as $2.7 million to remove sediment and debris behind the dam. Desired water depths, areas to be dredged, future use and habitat goals, along with restoration plans, would all affect the actual cost of the project. Sandu said no toxins were found in the sediment during the study. In 2016, it was estimated that the engineering and design could cost about $100,000 before construction could begin. EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been updated to correct the amount of funding the city of Findlay expects to receive from the federal American Rescue Plan Act.