CHERRYFIELD — Water trickled into newly formed pools in the Narraguagus River last week, a milestone for a major dam reconstruction project led by nonprofit conservation organizations and municipal, state and federal agencies.
“I cried a little this week,” said Ellie Mason of the Downeast Salmon Federation, who oversees the work each day. “It all felt so unceremonious and yet so major.”
Mason manages the project for a partnership that includes the Atlantic Salmon Federation, the Downeast Salmon Federation, Maine Coast Heritage Trust, the Maine Department of Marine Resources, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, The Nature Conservancy and the town of Cherryfield.
The project to remove the ice-control dam was the focus of a special Maine Monitor report in September detailing how local conservationists and landowners rallied to remove what was the last dam on the Narragaugus, in an effort to enable endangered wild Atlantic salmon to once again swim freely in the river.
Project organizers held three behind-the-scenes tours this summer, inviting the public to view the work in progress and offer feedback. About 50 people attended the most recent open session Sept. 25, similar to attendance at the first two.
Local resident Sarah Brandon visited the site for each event. She said she lives close enough to “hear the rumble, rumble” of construction trucks driving past her home and “can see a real difference” over the course of the summer.
“The engineering work is impressive,” she said, adding that she looks forward to swimming, canoeing and kayaking in the river next summer. “I appreciate all the watershed.”
Over a two-hour period, local residents spanning various age groups filtered in to view the site, climbing over mounds of dirt and past the interim bypass channel to see where water now flows into the natural river bed.
Project team members stationed at various positions offered explanations of the new scene and answered questions. A sense of giddiness and pride prevailed as residents expressed appreciation for the work and eagerness to see fish, wildlife and vegetation return, as well as expanded outdoor access.
For the past few months, crews have maintained the minimum flow set by the U.S. Geological Survey, directing water through a bypass channel while they built a new fish passageway.
The project began in 2014, when conservation groups met with the Cherryfield Board of Selectmen, fishermen, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and local residents to discuss ways to help salmon and other fish reach cool water for spawning. The town’s concerns about flooding ruled out complete dam removal.
“This structure protects the town from flooding,” Jacob van de Sande of Maine Coast Heritage Trust said. “This wasn’t a dam removal. We just replaced the dam with a much better fish passage.”
He said the new series of pools, which “looks much more natural,” replaced the 1961 structure.
Reconstruction began July 15, with completion set for Oct. 15.
“We’re in a really good position” to meet that deadline comfortably, van de Sande said.
At times, meeting the deadline seemed unlikely.
“This is a lot of work to do,” Mason said. “There has never been a problem that hasn’t been complex in this project. It all has been worth it. It has paid off.”
Hadley Couraud of The Nature Conservancy, a member of the four-person core project team, said water began filling the new pools naturally this week. As the river rises, the pools will widen.
“Where we are standing now will be underwater,” she said.
A $9.1 million NOAA grant funded the project. Sargent Corp. handled construction, and Inter-Fluve led the engineering work.
The next phase is scheduled to begin later in October, weather permitting, and focus on landscaping.
Plans call for work to resume next spring to add trees, a park and a playground, with a walking path to the Downeast Sunrise Trail included in a later phase.
Leslie Goode is a Community Reporting Fellow receiving training through the Journalism New England Career Lab to do civic reporting that provides people in towns across New England with the information they need to be engaged in their community.
Correction: Because of an editing error, this article incorrectly identified Sarah Brandon as a Cherryfield resident. It was updated on Oct. 1.
