Ipswich Mills Dam Removal Project Nationally Recognized Among 43 Projects to Receive U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Funding
On April 23, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that 29 states will receive just over $70 million to support 43 projects that will address outdated or obsolete dams, culverts, levees, and other barriers fragmenting the nation’s rivers and streams. The Ipswich River Watershed Association was awarded $1.2 million to fund the removal of the Ipswich Mills Dam, one of two projects in Massachusetts to receive funding.
The above rendering of how the Ipswich River may look after removal of the dam was created by Leah Feeney for the Ipswich River Watershed Association.
The removal of the Ipswich Mills Dam will restore and improve fish passage and habitat connectivity along approximately 186 miles of upstream mainstem river and tributary habitat, as well as 343 acres of spawning habitat. In addition to improved fish passage/habitat, the project will also result in improved water quality, flood reduction, liability removal, and recreational improvements. Elements of the project include dam removal, stabilization, and in-stream adjustments, as well as structural mitigation for key infrastructure expected to be impacted by the dam removal. This project will complete three ongoing upstream fish passage projects along the Ipswich River by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the removal of this final head of tide dam will open almost the entire Ipswich watershed.
“The US Fish and Wildlife Service is proud to be a partner in the Ipswich Mills Dam removal project supported by the National Fish Passage Program Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding,” said Cathy Bozek, the National Fish Passage Program Coordinator for the Northeast. “This project will restore and reconnect important habitat for many migratory fish species, build climate resiliency, and boost economic benefits for the surrounding communities.”
The 1.2 million dollars provides implementation funding for the long-planned removal of the Ipswich Mills Dam, including construction contingencies, ensuring that this project will not require additional funding from town residents. The funding secured with this and previous grants is enough to get the project fully permitted and through the construction and restoration phases once permitting is complete. Funding for the Ipswich Mills Dam removal project has been provided by: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (US FWS), Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration (MA DER), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Massachusetts Environmental Trust, as well as private foundations.
The Ipswich Mills Dam Removal is one part of a larger effort led by the Ipswich River Watershed Association to restore stream and habitat connectivity to streams and rivers across the Ipswich River Watershed and surrounding communities. Since 2022, the Ipswich River Watershed Association and its project partners have brought $4.6 million in federal dollars to infrastructure and restoration projects on the North Shore. In addition to this funding from the US FWS, IRWA was also awarded two grants from NOAA in 2022 and 2023.
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Congratulations! So pleased as an Ipswich resident.