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8/22/16
PUBLIC INTEREST CENTER, (614) 644-2160
MEDIA CONTACT: Lindey Amer
CITIZEN CONTACT: Mike Settles
Ohio EPA and National Park Service Invite Public Discussion on Canal Diversion Dam Project
Ohio EPA and The National Park Service will host a public open house on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016, to discuss the results of an environmental assessment regarding the Canal Diversion Dam in the Cuyahoga River, just north of the Station Road bridge trailhead at towpath mile marker 17 in Brecksville.
The meeting will be held from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Happy Days Lodge, 500 West Streetsboro Road, Peninsula. (The presentation will begin at 5:15 p.m.)
The environmental assessment was developed by Ohio EPA, The National Park Service, Cleveland Metroparks, The Ohio Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Friends of the Crooked River. The assessment identifies an ecological restoration strategy to improve water quality while preserving the Ohio and Erie Canal’s cultural integrity as a National Historic Landmark. The dam negatively affects water quality of the Cuyahoga River, impacting ongoing efforts to achieve Ohio’s Water Quality Standards.
As a result of the environmental assessment, the proposed action for the Canal Diversion Dam is to completely remove the dam, restoring the river to its natural flow conditions. A pump will be designed and built to provide the desired amount of water to preserve the Ohio & Erie Canal.
Ohio EPA is working with the National Park Service and community stakeholders to evaluate the dam’s removal options to best help restore the Cuyahoga River to natural conditions. The environmental assessment and supporting documents are available for public review and comment through Sept. 29 at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/brecksvilledam.
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The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1972 to consolidate efforts to protect and improve air quality, water quality and waste management in Ohio. Since then, air pollutants dropped by as much as 90 percent; large rivers meeting standards improved from 21 percent to 89 percent; and hundreds of polluting, open dumps were replaced with engineered landfills and an increased emphasis on waste reduction and recycling.
Ohio EPA and National Park Service Invite Public Discussion on Canal Diversion Dam Project
Source: Ohio Environmental News