Town Forest Dam Removal Project

Jericho Town Forest Dam Updates:

The Jericho Town Forest Dam is a sheet metal dam that is approximately 10ft tall and 60ft wide. The Dam is owned by the Town of Jericho and is located in the Jericho Town Forest. The dam was historically built as a water supply dam by the Village Water District for the Starbird Road subdivision but was abandoned over 30 years ago as development expanded in this area and an alternative and more efficient water supply was constructed. This derelict dam is in poor condition and is leaking around its margins and the impoundment behind the dam is filled with sediment and blocking natural stream flow. The dam impounds two headwater spring seeps that originate just above the impoundment. Downstream of the dam (at the outflow) a small tributary flows into the Lee River, which flows into the Browns River, then the Lamoille and ultimately Lake Champlain.

In May of 2023, the Town of Jericho was awarded a grant (written and submitted by the Jericho Conservation Commission) from Watersheds United Vermont (WUV) in partnership with VT Department of Environmental Conservation (VT DEC). Fitzgerald Environmental Associates (FEA) was hired to conduct preliminary design for the removal of the Town Forest Dam. FEA’s results were shared at public meetings on April 18, 2024, October 29th, 2024 and in front of the Selectboard on October 17, 2024 the preliminary design report is available upon request kdailey@vnrc.org.

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