Franklin Surveys was hired as the land surveyor for a large scale river restoration project conducted in and around Whitford Pond, in southeastern Connecticut. The project is being headed up by Save the Sound, formerly known as Connecticut Fund for the Environment/Save the Sound. Whitford Pond is an impoundment created by the construction of an earth and stone dam over 100 years ago. The dam formerly provided power to a lumber mill, but the mill is long gone. Now the dam serves as an significant obstacle for the passage of herring, among other diadromous fish species. Whitford Brook, which flows through Whitford Pond, is a tributary to the Mystic River.
Our work on the project started with the establishment of a control point network. The survey required setting dozens of control points in order to observe the features and topography of the 50-acre area, in addition to several hundred wetlands delineation flags (placed by others). Within the impoundment, we surveyed the bottom of the submerged ground surface using extendable rods, probing for the elevations of both the top and bottom of accumulated sediment. Those readings were performed while seated in a kayak, with an instrument positioned and re-positioned at various vantage points along the shore. Our topographic & bathymetric survey mapped not only the pond bottom but also the details of the dam structure.
The 300-foot-long dam includes a main section, built of stone, as well as a side spillway with a steep stone drop and a narrow spillway channel. Ultimately, Franklin Surveys provided mapping of the entire pond and surrounding area, along with a set of profile view cross sections and a longitudinal profile of Whitford Brook. Projects such as this one or our work at Alewife Cove demonstrate the cross-discipline work required in environmental management projects.
In January 2020, there was a breach in the dam and the pond’s water level significantly decreased as water freely flowed into Whitford Brook.