Randolph dam removed for benefit of fish

An excavator removes metal sections of a dam in Randolph on Tuesday. Photo by Mike Polhamus/VTDigger

Crews removed a sheet metal dam from the Third Branch of the White River in downtown Randolph on Tuesday afternoon, opening nearly 100 miles of upstream habitat to migrating fish.

The dam beneath the Vermont Route 12 bridge at the north end of the village had been installed several decades ago to protect a bridge that was removed in 2007.

Environmental advocates said the dam’s removal offers numerous benefits, including better recreational access, flood protection for local businesses and improved conditions for aquatic creatures.

Workers survey the site of the dam in Randolph before its removal Tuesday. Photo by Mike Polhamus/VTDigger

The structure fell quickly once workers set upon it with earth-moving machinery Tuesday afternoon. About two dozen onlookers cheered occasionally as a heavy equipment operator pulled sections of the dam from the river and piled them on the bank. Within minutes the operator had opened a channel, and water flowed through unimpeded.

The dam had prevented upstream fish migration, said Mary Russ, executive director of the White River Partnership. Her organization is one of several that collaborated over the last several years to bring about the removal, Russ said.

Russ said she’s seen brown trout try to jump the dam to get upstream.

“They’re good leapers, but they couldn’t get over,” she said. “It’s a complete barrier.”

Others involved in the effort include The Nature Conservancy, American Rivers and the state, Russ said.

The dam’s removal gives migrating fish access to important cold-water reaches upstream, Russ said. That gives fish greater resilience in the face of the climate’s warming, she said.

The dam also elevated the river’s flood height and restricted the river’s capacity, she said, thus threatening nearby businesses whose foundations sit not much above river level.

It’s taken environmental advocates almost four years and $200,000 to get the dam out of the river, said The Nature Conservancy’s Vermont state director, Heather Furman.

Furman says there are 1,200 dams in Vermont. Of those, 200 don’t serve any purpose, and The Nature Conservancy wants to see them removed. Another 100 are useful, she says, because they produce power or reduce the likelihood of flooding. The TNC hasn’t arrived at a definite stance on the remaining 900.

The Nature Conservancy and other environmental organizations are seeking legislation during next year’s session to further that effort, Furman said.