Some large river restoration projects are made possible only through the help and engagement of great partners.
The Shuford Dam removal project is an excellent example, where American Rivers partnered with Carolina Land and Lakes Resource Conservation and Development Council, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and others to remove an old and outdated dam.
The two-phase demolition began in July 2016 and will be completed in the fall of 2016. The project has been in development since 2012, so four years later we “go to construction” or demolish the dam.
The Shuford Mill Dam, formerly a 35 ft. tall, 275 ft. wide masonry and concrete dam on the Henry Fork River in Brookford, NC, was constructed in the late 1800s to power an adjacent textile mill, but stopped being maintained years ago after the mill closed and the dam no longer served a purpose.
The dam removal eliminates the public safety risk of an unmaintained dam, improves the local community’s ability to recreate safely on the Henry Fork River, and restores the river back to its natural free flowing state.
The ecological goals of the dam removal are to reconnect fish populations above and below the dam and improve the instream habitat by letting the river flow freely.