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Floodplain Restoration Along Big Spring Run in Lancaster County, PA - Project Implementation Perspectives

Ben Uhler
LandStudies, Inc
Lititz, PA

Authors: 
Ben Uhler, LandStudies, Inc., Lititz, PA
Ross Clubb and Bryce Workman, Flyway Excavating, Mount Joy, PA

LandStudies was retained by a local municipality to design and oversee the implementation of a floodplain restoration along a degraded segment of Big Spring Run in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Flyway Excavating was contracted to construct the project, which was completed Spring 2022. The project included the removal of a 6.5-foot dam and the restoration of 2,300 linear feet of degraded stream channel in a predominantly agricultural watershed. The data collected prior to and after this restoration will dovetail with research efforts associated with the larger Big Spring Run Floodplain Restoration Project located ½ mile downstream, which was completed in 2012.

Observed channel instability was related to a variety of past human impacts such as ditching and channelization, floodplain encroachments, poor agricultural practices, dam/pond construction, clear-cutting, and road development. More recent impacts included a culvert crossing and the construction of a 6.5’ dam and pond in the 1950’s. The pond collected sediment originating from upstream bed and bank erosion until the pond bed was within one foot of the top of the dam. The landowner began draining the pond in 2010, which lowered the base level and caused renewed channel incision through the sediments stored within the former pond.

The restoration approach involved reconnecting the channel and floodplain by removing post-settlement sediment from the valley bottom and restoring the natural functions of the floodplain and riparian corridor by creating an integrated stream-wetland complex across the full width of the floodplain. Excavated sediment was spread on upslope pastureland and cropland essentially replacing soil that previously eroded into the stream valley. The project also helped the municipality achieve load reduction goals as part of their pollution reduction plan and MS4 requirements.

This presentation tells the story of project implementation from the perspectives of both the designer and contractor and highlights their partnerships with the local municipality and the landowner to achieve project goals and provide a variety of ecological benefits within the watershed.