The Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority (NVCA) is asking Clearview council for financial support for its Mad River Flow Restoration Project to improve drainage and the overall health of the watershed.
NVCA manager of stewardship services Fred Dobbs put the request to council May 30, explaining that the unsanctioned redirection of the Mad River is the long-term cause of a number of problems.
The site of the Mad River breach is located at the NVCA’s Duckworth property in the south-east corner of Clearview, adjacent to the Second Line Sunnidale, north of Angus.
The property was purchased by the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), in partnership with NVCA, in the early 1990s but they didn’t realize that the original landowner had constructed unapproved drainage channels.
The Mad River used to flow under a bridge on the Second Lin but is being diverted to a separate culvert on McKinnon Road, built to accommodate drainage of farm fields. The breaches in the bank of the river ultimately led to the Mad River flows to divert into the drainage network, said Dobbs.
“In this case the Mad River actually eroded sideways to the east into this unsanctioned drainage network and as a result, the Mad River has slowly lost flow to the Second Line municipal drain to the point where today about 60 per cent of the flow in the river, both during low-flow conditions and high, is now short circuiting to the east towards the Second Line drain and the Nottawasaga River,” he said.
North of the Second Line bridge the flow is so low that the river is not flushing sediment from its bed and vegetation is starting to grow, impacting Northern Pike fish habitat and a migratory route for Rainbow Trout and Chinook Salmon heading to the Creemore area. A canoe route managed by the NCC and the NVCA is also at risk of being lost.
Perhaps more important from a municipal standpoint, said Dobbs, the Second Line drain is now receiving a large flow from the Mad River, eroding the McKinnon Road culvert and flooding at the roads in the area. A recent study also showed the situation is impacting water quality in the Nottawasaga River.
NVCA is proposing to work with a mechanic to plug two breach sites to reestablish the healthy flow of the Mad River. It is estimated the project will cost $70,000. The NVCA has been allowed to redirect $45,000 in federal funding for the project, the NCC is pitching in $5,000 and the Township of Clearview is being asked to contribute the balance of $20,000.
Connie Leishman, Clearview’s NVCA council rep, said flooding is an issue on McKinnon Road and residents in the area have voiced concerns about being cut off by high water.
“In the long run the $20,000 would be saved by [fixing] the breaches in the river, because it won’t wash out the road and you know how much roads cost,” she said.
Dobbs said they hope to begin construction of earthen plugs at both breaches by late summer.
“I was ecstatic when I hear you were working on this,” said Councillor Deborah Bronée adding that standing water in the area has become a problem.
Council directed staff to see if the funds are available. They hope to have an answer by June 13.