Runoff from stormwater pond has affected properties north of Hwy 20
Pelham Town Council has taken a progressive step towards addressing the soil erosion issue in the headwaters of Twelve Mile Creek, focusing on the culvert and stormwater management pond on Highway 20 at Rice Road.
With $70,000 in funding from the Town, the Niagara Chapter of Trout Unlimited Canada will take on the responsibility for delivering a solution, working with engineers at Waters Edge Environmental Solutions, based in Cambridge. Oversight will be conducted by a working group of local stakeholders.
The overarching mission of the Niagara Chapter of Trout Unlimited Canada is to restore and preserve the cold-water habitat in the Niagara Region, with a primary focus on Twelve Mile Creek, the region’s only watershed with an existing population of brook trout. Twelve Mile Creek runs from its headwaters near Fonthill through the Short Hills Provincial Park, and into Lake Ontario at Port Dalhousie. Since its formation in 2012, the chapter has developed environmental partnerships with regional agencies and landowners, and carried out stream bank restoration and mapping.
Brian Green, a Trout Unlimited board member who, along with president Denis Edell, gave a presentation to council last week, told the Voice that the stormwater management pond at Rice Road and Highway 20 is one of two branches of the source of Twelve Mile Creek (the other one starts in Marlene Stewart Streit Park).
“Having a stormwater pond as the source is not ideal, since the pond warms the water,” said Green. “We noticed a tremendous amount of erosion coming out of that pond under and through the culvert under Highway 20. Landowners downstream alerted us that they were getting sediment that was piling up so deep, the stream was meandering into new channels and doing tremendous damage. It’s literally tons of sediment being washed downstream, and it’s not good for the aquatic life.”
Pelham Councillor Lisa Haun voted in support of the $70,000 allocation (council voted unanimously to approve) despite voicing concerns about taxpayer dollars being used to repair soil erosion on private land, and a storm water pond that is under the Region’s jurisdiction. She told council that she would not favour further financial support for the project.
Pelham Councillor Wayne Olson commented that it was the right way forward.
“I’m not sure that $70,000 will do the trick, but I'm pretty confident that Trout Unlimited has enough backing from industry, and organizations like the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, to get the project done,” said Olson. “The Pelham Cares building has lost one deck, and it's likely going to lose another one, due to the erosion. I believe that there is a plan for volunteers from E.L. Crossley to rebuild the deck, and that's just one of the projects for beautification. A memorial park and some trees are going in there, and the Lions Club is going to put in a nature trail.”
The Pelham Cares building has lost one deck, and it's likely going to lose another one, due to the erosion
Green said that when Trout Unlimited alerted Pelham Council and staff about the problem, they agreed that something had to be done. Initial responses to an RFP (request for proposal) suggested that to complete the job, an outlay well in excess of $200,000 would be necessary.
“We connected with Water’s Edge, who came down to review the scope of erosion damage,” said Green. “We asked if they could provide a design that would alleviate the problem, and they responded that they could handle it for under $70,000, allowing us to bypass all of the various procurement problems.”
Trout Unlimited is a registered charitable organization, said Green, which has developed positive partnerships with industries and businesses.
“Our thinking is that once we get a design and an estimate, and some idea of the scope of the job, we can put together a way of getting it done, without assigning blame or going the liability route. Whether we can do that or not, I don't know. But at least we’ve now got permission from the Town to spend their money on a design.”
Green was candid about his response to Haun during the proposal to Council.
“Councillor Haun raised a very good question, asking if we would be coming back to council for more money when we get to the construction phase. My response was that I can't guarantee that we won't. She supported the motion, but said she would not vote in favour of more funding. Fair enough. We're going to do our best not to come back to them.”
Pelham Mayor Marvin Junkin was pleased that council supported the funding, and stressed that the intent is to find solutions, not affix blame.
“We appreciate Trout Unlimited’s involvement in getting this study done. The purpose going forward is strictly to repair the problem, not criticize a storm pond that some people might think is a bad design. We’re not really concerned with that. We just want it fixed.”
