American rivers aims to remove the washburn mill DAM on the mohawk river to restore river connectivity to 39.3 miles

This 90-year-old DAM, in colebrook, new hampshire, is the first DAM on the river and no longer serves a purpose but fully blocks river connectivity for fish, wildlife, and fluvial processes. The project will improve public safety, habitat connectivity, fisheries population resilience, and stream health for a suite of species including wild brook trout. Partners include the NH fish and game and department of environmental services. The DAM is a priority for removal and meets cold-water habitat restoration goals under several state and regional management plans. Directly north of the DAM the USFWS has funded a culvert replacement project on the west branch of the mohawk that will be going to construction in FY23. This area is the best of the best for brook trout habitat and population. The town of colebrook, NH is listed as disadvantaged by the climate and economic justice screening tool and JUSTICE40 tracts may 2022 under climate change and clean energy and energy efficiency categories. The EPA ejscreen lists the town as disadvantaged under socioeconomic indicators where IT hits five out of nine categories. Public benefits included short term job creation, improved public safety by removing a hazard, and improved recreational opportunities through habitat and population resilience for recreational trout fisheries. The river and adjacent lands are known for fly fishing and upland recreation. This project will provide permanent and self-sustaining restoration of river habitat. American rivers has completed the engineering design, historic consultation, and pre-permitting process. Project implementation is planned for fall of FY23 24. Removal of the washburn DAM will open 39.3 miles and 10 acres of pristine cold water brook trout habitat. The area has the highest quality brook trout habitat as surveyed annually by the state. The area also supports documented wood turtle habitat and helps state listed round white fish, which nashua NFH grows and stocks in partnership with the state. Creating the open network on a watershed scale will give the brook trout their best opportunity to thrive at all life stages. Reconnecting the headwaters is provides essential access to cold water refugia, spawning and rearing grounds. Reestablishing movement of course sediment from behind the DAM will also restore downstream habitat. Allowing access to natural prime spawning habitats, thermal refugia and allowing for better genetic diversity, will allow species to persist in the face of climate change. Brook trout within this system will be able to withstand a 6 degree or high temperature change with climate change, making this area essential for survival with climate change. These benefits build on the USFWS funded culvert replacement upstream of the DAM in 2020. The project is designed to restore fluvial processes and allow for a range of flows to adapt to fluctuating conditions. The northern tributaries of the connecticut river provide freshwater breeding and spawning habitat critical for populations of important resident species, including wild brook trout, longnose and white sucker, slimy sculpin, burbot, longnose and blacknose dace, creek chub, wild rainbow and brown trout, and wood turtle. The trout unlimited brook trout atlas evaluates patches of brook trout population for resiliency and ranks the mohawk river and several tributaries as a redundant population, indicating a moderately sized population likely to withstand environmental disturbances. Additional upstream tributaries support reproducing populations of other trout species and are considered to have potential for reestablishment of native brook trout. The NH wildlife action plan lists aquatic connectivity as a high priority, and the removal of the washburn DAM is a high priority for the NH fish and games fisheries habitat program.