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Bridge Creek Salt Marsh, MA - Conservation Law Foundation



Restore America's Estuaries and its member Conservation Law Foundation joined with other partners to restore natural tidal flows to the degraded 40-acre Bridge Creek salt marsh. Replacement of two culverts restored the dynamic tidal hydrology and water chemistry needed to bring back healthy salt marsh habitats and functions, along with the fish and wildlife they support.

Located in the Town of Barnstable within the state-designated Sandy Neck/Barnstable Harbor Area of Critical Environmental Concern, the Bridge Creek project site consists of 40 acres of coastal wetlands that were altered long ago by the creation of two separate tidal restrictions. Well over a century ago, Route 6A and an adjacent railroad line were both built across Bridge Creek. The original culverts that conveyed the creek beneath the road and rail line were both undersized and failed to pass the full tidal range into upstream wetlands. The combined effect of these two crossings effectively cut off tidal flows from most of the upstream marsh and, over time, severely degraded the entire upstream aquatic system.

In 1996, the Army Corps of Engineers prepared a "Cape Cod Wetlands Investigation" to identify and evaluate significant opportunities for salt marsh restoration. The Bridge Creek salt marsh was one of six priority sites selected for further evaluation of restoration potential. Initial assessments, however, concluded that replacing the culvert under the active rail line was impractical due to the rail service disruptions and associated costs that would be required.

Then, in the Fall of 2001, a unique window of opportunity appeared in the form of a one-month repair closure of the railroad line scheduled for March of 2003. This provided only eighteen months to prepare Phase I of the project for construction – a very short development time for a project of this complexity. The short lead time combined with a narrow and inflexible construction window set the stage for one of the most challenging restoration projects ever undertaken in Massachusetts. By the Spring of 2003, a new 10x10 foot concrete box culvert was installed beneath the rail bed and tidal flow was restored to 24 acres of salt marsh.

In order to realize the full restoration potential of 40 acres, project partners then turned their attention to Phase II: replacement of the remaining undersized culvert beneath Route 6A. In May of 2005, the new Route 6A culvert was installed, returning the full tidal range to the marsh for the first time in over 100 years.

Conservation Law Foundation was one of 38 different partner groups that contributed to both phases of this project, others included the Town of Barnstable, 5 federal agencies, 8 state agencies, 10 corporate partners, 5 non-profit organizations, and 8 private individuals or groups. In all, over $1.5 million dollars worth of funding and services was raised to complete this project.

For more information on the Bridge Creek project, please contact Conservation Law Foundation at 617-350-0990 or visit online at www.clf.org.