The Grand River Conservation Authority’s (GRCA) rehabilitation of the 500-metre section of the Conestogo River in Drayton was to begin this week.
The GRCA said the work must be carried out during a period of low flow in the river, which may affect the timing and total duration of the project. It is expected the project will be completed by mid to late October.
The GRCA board awarded the contract for the work through a tender process to R&M Construction, in the amount of $258,431, at its Aug. 28 meeting.
During the construction period, the section of the trail that runs along the Conestogo River from Main Street to Mill Street will be closed to the public for access by work equipment and for public safety. Barriers will be placed at both ends of the trail.
The work will be carried out in two phases: upstream and then downstream of Main Street. The work upstream of Main Street will be accessed through the fire hall parking lot, while the work downstream will be accessed via the end of Mill Street.
The rehabilitation project will consist of the removal of coarse sediments that have accumulated along the channel, and removal of trees along the dyke. The trees to be removed are primarily Manitoba maple, many of which were damaged in the ice storm in 2014.
“The removal of the trees is necessary to ensure the maintenance and continued function of the dyke,” the GRCA stated in a press release.
“The work will provide reduction of nuisance flooding levels in the upstream portions of the town.”
Ecosystem Recovery Inc. developed the design and tender for the project, which will be carried out entirely out of the “wetted low flow portion” of the river channel, due to the presence of rainbow mussels, which are protected as an endangered species at risk under both federal and provincial legislation.
Funding for this project has been included in the GRCA’s water control structures maintenance budgets, and the province will match the funding through its Water and Erosion Control Infrastructure (WECI) program.
