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Check out this short interview with our very own Marieka Chaplin and CCNB’s Louise Comeau. This short clip discusses connections with nature and actions that you can take to help our planet every day – not just Earth Day!
A project 5 years in the making, the Campbell Creek dam removal has been completed and the former headpond has been replanted with native grasses, willows, and trees. Our project team put together a short video documenting the process. Check it out and see how all of our project partners worked together to bring this wonderful project to fruition and how we hope it will positively impact the ecosystem.
Built in 1919, the Campbell Creek dam was a well-known landmark in Marysville. It once provided water to the Marysville Cotton Mill — the largest of its kind in the Maritimes, but with the closure of the mill in the 1970s, the dam became obsolete and began to deteriorate.
After assessing the dam in recent years, engineers recommended its removal as it was a liability in terms of safety. It also negatively affected fish habitat and aquatic connectivity for over a century. The dam did not meet the Canadian Dam Association guidelines with respect to the hydraulic capacity of the spillways, stability, seepage and erosion, or public safety and fish passage was non-existent.
This project consisted of several phases, including baseline monitoring of the site using biological, physical and chemical parameters, site preparation, the removal of the dam, and the restoration of the site following removal.
This phase started in the summer of 2020 and involved removing a blockage from the sluicegate that was keeping the headpond filled with water. Draining the headpond was done one season before the removal of the dam in order to allow riparian vegetation to establish, as well as helping to retain the structure of the soil in the area prior to the construction process. The dam was also notched to prevent the headpond from being able to fill in future.
This phase was the largest phase of the project and took place this past summer and fall (2021). The dam removal occurred during the low-flow period of the year, as this was when water levels would be the lowest and the soils would be the driest – meaning that they would be more able to support the heavy machinery required for construction. Site access was also designed prior to this in a way that would minimize the disturbance to soil and vegetation.
Due to the age of the dam and the fact that the headpond was situated on a potential paleo-shoreline, archeological surveying of the site and monitoring throughout the construction process was necessitated. Provincial archaeologists conducted photogrammetric mapping and dendrochronological dating of the oldest parts of the dam and we were fortunate to receive support from Colbr Consulting through their outreach program to conduct testing and monitoring prior to and during construction.
Prior to, and during the dam removal, several fish rescues were performed to mitigate any fish mortality in the construction process. The fish rescue involved electrofishing the stream above and around the construction zone and releasing all of the fish downstream of the dam, at a safe distance from the construction. A barrier was installed at both ends of the area to prevent fish or other aquatic creatures from entering the dam removal site during construction.
The removal of the dam took place over several weeks and involved clearing a temporary access route to the headpond for the heavy machinery, transporting the machinery and equipment into the site, and demolishing the dam. During this time the course of the creek had to be re-directed several times as the machinery worked from one side of the river to the other, crushing and removing the concrete. The concrete of the dam was laid to rest on site, buried in the streambank and covered in topsoil to be planted with vegetation. As of the 22nd of September 2021, the dam had been completely removed and we were ready for phase 3 – Restoration!
Post-dam removal the newly established creek channel was constructed to facilitate fish passage, with a roughened channel comprising boulders of local bedrock and a series of pools to help fish navigate the slope upstream.
The former headpond was planted with over 3000 native Acadian forest species including: red oak, eastern white pine, red spruce, yellow and white birch. Due to tricky site access, which did not allow vehicle through the headpond, all vegetation had to be carried into site by hand. Planting was carried out with the support of a stellar crew from Community Forests Canada, who planted the entire site in a single afternoon, a truly Herculean effort.
In addition to tree planting, over 900 native riparian shrubs were staked and planted along the newly established river banks and the construction zone was seeded with appropriate grass by hand to mitigate erosion and sedimentation.
Ecological restoration and recovery do not occur overnight – these are long-term processes that we have sought to support and optimize through the removal of the dam and restoration of the stream channel and headpond.
While there was a large amount of monitoring done prior to the project, additional monitoring was also required immediately following the dam removal, and will be conducted for several years into the future. This monitoring will continue each year until 2024 to assess the impact of the dam removal on the local ecosystem.
Environmental monitoring will include studying the changes in local ecology, water quality, hydrology and river morphology that have resulted from the removal of the dam as the stream returns to its natural state. It will also include studying benthic macroinvertebrates, and environmental DNA sampling for species-at-risk. We expect that environmental parameters will improve over time, but monitoring will ensure that this is the case, allowing us to determine whether further interventions are needed, and ensure that the ecosystem is returning to its natural state.
By removing the Campbell Creek dam, this project has not only removed a public safety liability, but has also initiated the process of the restoration of Campbell Creek, worked to improve water quality, and improved the habitat for native fish. For the first time in over a century, Campbell Creek is freely flowing!
Again, we would like to thank our numerous partners who came together to bring this project to fruition, and we feel privileged to be part of this Wolastoquey-led initiative. The removal of the dam and restoration of the former headpond will provide habitat for aquatic species-at-risk: Atlantic salmon and American eel, as well as other coldwater fish (brook trout & sea lamprey), and terrestrial species. In addition, the restored creek will provide improved water quality, landscape connectivity and downstream regulation of water & sediment flow.
Our project partners include: the Maliseet Nation Conservation Council, Saint Mary’s First Nation, Wolastoqey Nation New Brunswick, the City of Fredericton, the Atlantic Salmon Federation, Community Forests Canada, Colbr Consulting and Hilcon Engineering. Funding for this work was provided by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the Atlantic Salmon Conservation Foundation and WWF-Canada.
Happy New Year! To ring in the new year, we wanted to celebrate a few of our accomplishments from 2021. Scroll through to check them out!
In February and March, we hosted several Night Hikes and Owl Prowls at Mactaquac Park. The events incorporated snowshoeing, stargazing, and learning about night time critters. Community members of all ages came out to see what the park had to offer! Special thanks to Ian Smith and Ducks Unlimited Canada for helping out with these events.
In May, we started tree planting for the season. Despite the pandemic, we were able to plant hundreds of trees with the help of countless volunteers. Tree species that were planted included silver and red maple, butternut, and bur oak, among many others. A big thanks to everyone that came out to help!
In June, we launched our seed collection project, collecting over 220L of native maple seeds to plant in the coming years. These seeds were collected from maple trees within the watershed, and were then shipped to the Scott & Stewart Nursery in Nova Scotia. The pictures above show over 20,000 seedlings that are currently being cared for at the nursery. These trees will be planted in the upcoming tree planting season!
In July, we hosted a series of community workshops aimed at helping those within the watershed enjoy the outdoors and learn about what nature has to offer! The workshops included outdoor yoga, a monarch monitoring blitz, a tour of our Marysville Flats restoration site, and an intro to fly fishing. The events were all well attended and enjoyed by many community members!
In August, we hosted our first Paddle Along the Nashwaak event. Community members showed up to canoe or kayak down the Nashwaak River, learning about our various restoration activities along the way. This event was so popular that we held another one in September! Special thanks to Second Nature Outdoors for partnering with us for this wonderful event.
In September, we launched the Acadian (Wabanaki) Forest Project. Through this project, landowners within the watershed can be visited by a Registered Professional Forester (RPF) to gain insight on how they can manage their land sustainably. For more information on this project, check out The Acadian Forest Project on our website.
In October, we completed the removal of the Campbell Creek Dam, a project that was years in the making. Now that the dam has been removed, we will continue to restore and monitor this piece of land to ensure that it remains healthy! Thank you to the countless groups that brought this project to fruition. Our project partners included: the Maliseet Nation Conservation Council, Saint Mary’s First Nation, Wolastoqey Nation New Brunswick, the City of Fredericton, the Atlantic Salmon Federation, Community Forests Canada, Colbr Consulting and Hilcon Engineering. Funding for this work was provided by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the Atlantic Salmon Conservation Foundation and WWF-Canada.
Finally, in November, we completed the tree planting phase of the Marysville Restoration Project. After working on this site for over 10 years, the last piece of land was planted in the fall. The conservation of this piece of land was made official in December, when we were granted a conservation easement for the site. The easement is now held by the NWAI in partnership with the City of Fredericton, and protects Marysville Flats in perpetuity.
Overall, 2021 has been an extremely successful year. Thank you to all of our funders and volunteers for contributing to our efforts – we could not have done it without you!
Once plentiful, it now only grows in about one percent of its original range in New Brunswick.
Conservationists are working together to save one of the last old growth tree species on New Brunswick’s floodplain.
Bur oak is ecologically and culturally important in the province. Historically, it grows along the floodplain of the St. John River and its tributaries. Once plentiful, it now only grows in about one per cent of its original range in the province.
It was harvested to make oak barrels in the 18th and 19th centuries and has fallen victim to deforestation and agricultural development, according to Jesse Saindon.
Saindon is the owner and grower at Liberty Tree Nursery in Beaver Dam, outside of Fredericton and part of a group of conservationists working to recover the bur oak population.
“It provides habitat, food for wildlife as well as carbon sequestration and reduces the risk of erosion and flooding,” said Saindon.
For his part, Saindon has grown at least 2,000 bur oak seedlings at his nursery over the past three years. He gathers acorns in areas where bur oaks are doing well.
“There are some trees that I know of that I’ll go with a ladder and collect them early before the blue jays and squirrels and stuff get them…. If you time it well you can be there on the particular windy day or in the three days where they really start falling off the tree and you’re essentially just picking them off the ground everywhere you go.”
The Nashwaak Watershed Association buys many of the seedlings Saindon grows and has been busy planting them along the floodplain of the Nashwaak River.
Executive director Marieka Chaplin said, with the help of volunteers, the group has planted about 1,000 a year since 2016.
“That’s where we excel because we like to bring community members on board so that they also see the value of on-the-ground restoration. And they can see, you know, planting a tree, as we all know, has so many benefits.”
“And if you add on the fact that you are preventing extirpation of a significant tree, then it just makes that experience so much richer.”
Chaplin said the number of bur oak left in the province could fit within five square kilometres.
“Having bur oaks in the floodplain improves biological diversity and creates habitat for many other species… Currently the numbers are so low that the species actually faces extirpation from New Brunswick,” said Chaplin.
The plan for restoration is still being worked out with partners, such as Global Conservation Solutions, a consultancy that helps groups with conservation plans, said Chaplin.
“We’ve got a long way to go. And we do know that survivorship for this particular tree is low…. So I don’t think we can plant enough at this point in time. And so we’ll just keep on going.”
Check out the article from CBC News here: Conservationists work to save dwindling population of bur oak trees
In New Brunswick’s first-of-its-kind conservation easement, a deal struck to reforest Marysville Flats
Hadeel Ibrahim, CBC News
Before settlement, a swath of floodplain forest on Fredericton’s north side was ideal habitat for species now sparse or endangered – tall and reaching bur oaks and silver maple, soaring bald eagles and bank swallows.
Over the course of history, the area was clear cut for farming, destroying the wetland forest along the Nashwaak River. With no root systems to hold the soil together, flooding started washing it into the river.
The Nashwaak Watershed Association has been trying for 10 years to reverse this destruction, planting thousands of trees and hoping for the return of the eagles and wood turtles.
This year, the association was able to get a permanent protection for the land from the City of Fredericton, the first conservation easement granted by a municipality in the province, according to the group’s Marieka Chaplin.
The 23 acres (about nine hectares) of wetlands called Marysville Flats is not a hotbed for development, said Chaplin, the executive director of the Nashwaak Watershed Association, but the easement means peace of mind for conservationists.
“What this conservation means is it protects it in perpetuity,” she told Information Morning Fredericton.
“It’s also part of a larger view towards how we can steward land, and how we can better look after it and restore it.”
Chaplin said this particular area, near the former cotton mill on McGloin Street and adjacent to the Marysville Heritage Centre, is ecologically significant.
“There are many rare species that call it its home,” she said.
This includes bald eagles, bank swallows, which love the riverbanks on the Nashwaak, as well as the wood turtle.
Those animals love to coexist with particular types of trees, ones the association has been replanting in the area. They include silver maple trees, butternut, ash an native red-tipped willows. Those trees also prevent erosion and retain moisture.
“We’re also really keen to be planting bur oak, which is a species of special concern here in our province,” she said. “It’s one of those rare species that would have been much more part of the floodplain tree canopy before it was cleared.”
She said the trees planted with the help of volunteers have been thriving.
The property still belongs to the city. According to a report submitted to council, the city bought the land in 2009 because of its possible recreational value.
The easement, a fairly new concept made possible by New Brunswick legislation passed in 2011, “is a legal agreement that allows landowners to protect and preserve property through an agreement with a third-party agency while also maintaining ownership of the property,” the city report said.
“These rights run with the land in perpetuity unless certain conditions are not met (e.g. the third-party agency ceases to exist).”
Chaplin said volunteers and conservationists planted 14,000 trees this year and plan to plant more next year.
She said the association has its eyes on similar properties that could be protected using this new method: Neill’s Flats off Gibson Street.
“We’re also hoping to work with the city to eventually establish a conservation easement there, acknowledging…it is quite a bit of work on the part of the city to get that legal mechanism in place,” Chaplin said. “[We’re] very committed to restoring and re-wilding important parts of the watershed.”
Check out the story from CBC News here: Large swath of wetland on Fredericton’s north side is now permanently protected.
