The federal government is going to provide $3,879,000 for the nonprofit organization Riverkeeper, based in Ossining, to remove the Holden Dam on Quassick Creek in Newburgh and restore habitat for fish and wildlife. the dam., which is almost 100 years old, has been deteriorating.
According to Shannon Roback, Riverkeeper’s science director, “Taking down the obsolete Holden Dam will be transform-ative for the City of Newburgh and its residents, and will restore two miles of critical spawning habitat for iconic Hudson River fish species that are rapidly declining. The project will also strengthen resilience around infrastructure and keep an underserved community safe by preventing a catastrophic dam failure.”
The money will come from the National Coastal Resilience Fund. The funding was announced by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Pat Ryan.
According to Riverkeeper, Holden Dam is an obsolete and failing dam, and frequent flooding due to climate and coastal impacts at the dam is causing stream bank erosion. Riverkeeper said there is a threat to the City of Newburgh and Town of New Windsor’s surrounding infrastructure and communities.
In a letter sent to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation expressing support for the dam removal project, Schumer said that in July 2012 and again in October 2012 the increase water speed in the creek caused by the caused the sewer line in Newburgh to collapse. Schumer said the collapse caused five million gallons of untreated sewage and stormwater to be released into the creek.
“This past summer, we saw how catastrophic flooding events can sweep away the livelihoods of Hudson Valley families in an instant,” said Ryan. “As these once-in-a-lifetime events become more severe and frequent, our families and communities deserve immediate action and protection.”
Quassick Creek has been found to be highly susceptible to flash flooding during rain events causing erosion of the stream bank, which destabilizes Newburgh’s main sewer line. A sewer main break at Holden Dam would be catastrophic, undoing $10 million in investment and upgrades by the City.