Blackstone River Hydrologic & Hydraulic Modeling Assessment

The Blackstone River winds its way from Worcester, MA to Pawtucket, RI. Once deemed “one of America's most polluted rivers” and considered by some to be “the birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution," the river is segmented by at least 23 dams, many of which are in deteriorating condition or partially breached.

These dams negatively impact ecological health and recreational opportunities. Parallel to the river, sections of the 19th century Blackstone Canal remain intact as additional relics of the region’s industrial past. Today, locks and breaches allow flow to exit the Blackstone River and enter the canal system, limiting the amount of water available in the river for ecological habitat and recreational access.

Opportunity

As part of the Blackstone Watershed Collaborative's “Kittacuck Restored” project to advance restoration planning across the Blackstone River Watershed, HW is helping the organization and its partners to review existing information on conditions at dams and other sites of interest on the mainstem of the river in order to prioritize potential restoration projects

Solution

The information review included a desktop analysis of physical condition, dam ownership, sediment quality, and other factors relevant to dam removal. HW is also conducting topographic and bathymetric surveys of the 10 potential restoration sites in order to create a unified hydraulic model for the entire mainstem of the river.

Results

The model will be used to rank the potential dam removal and other restoration projects identified, and HW will be sharing findings with varied watershed stakeholders to inform their future restoration efforts.