Simkins Dam project to begin next week
The project to remove Simkins Dam from the Patapsco River began Thursday, minus the drama of earthmoving equipment gouging a hole in its side.
State and federal officials and members of the outdoors community gathered along the river bank outside Ellicott City to celebrate another step in the multi-million dollar effort to clear all the manmade blockages and restore the river to its natural free-flowing state.
"Not only is my head in this one. My heart is in this one," said Eric Schwaab, a top official with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who fished the river as a boy and still lives nearby.
NOAA provided nearly $4 million in federal stimulus money to remove Simkins, built in 1889 to produce hydro-power for a factory, and Union Dam upstream. The Patapsco projects competed against 814 proposals submitted from across the country for $167 million given to NOAA by Congress for coastal restoration projects.
A few technical issues delayed the actual breaching of the dam Thursday, but state officials expect removal of the 10-foot-high concrete barrier to begin next week and conclude by the end of the year. A "dam cam" has been installed that will provide photos of the work every five minutes.
Simkins Dam is the largest to be removed in Maryland. Combined, the removal of Union and Simkins opens 40 miles of Patapsco main stem and tributaries to migrating herring, shad and American eels.
Rebecca Wodder, president of American Rivers, the coordinating group for the project, said demolishing obsolete dams improves habitat for fish and wildlife, creates jobs, enhances public safety and provides better recreational access for residents and visitors.
American Rivers will be submitting a proposal to NOAA in November for design money to plan the removal of Bloede Dam, the last downstream blockage on the Patapsco before it empties into Baltimore's harbor.
Restoration advocates are hoping that their track record in the state and the progress made on the Patapsco will help Maryland secure Open Rivers Initiative funds from NOAA.
To that end, Sen. Barbara Mikulski has already sent a letter to Schwaab urging him to support "uncorking the Patapsco" so that it can flow freely through Patapsco Valley State Park to the Inner Harbor and the Chesapeake Bay.
