A 19th century dam across the Bellamy River in Dover went down today.
Its removal is intended to restore a fishery spawning ground in the Seacoast region.
NHPR Correspondent Roger Wood has the story.
From Dover down to Little Bay, the Bellamy River meanders in the shadow of the busy Spaulding Turnpike.
It's also the head of tide between salt water in Little Bay and fresh water upstream.
When it was built in the 1800’s, a timber dam provided water power for textile mills that produced among other things uniforms for Union Soldiers during the Civil War.
It has also kept migratory fish from their spawning grounds.
Now, thanks to a $35 thousand dollar project paid for by a partnership of Federal and state agencies, as well as private corporations, the dam is gone.
Rollie Schmitten, with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, congratulated the partnership at a ceremony just downriver from the dam site.
(Schmitten) :11
“The Bellamy River is the only tidal river in the Great Bay Estuary that did not facilitate fish passage. That was until today.â€
The river opening will allow rainbow smelt and river herring to spawn further upstream.
Officials hope that will help the species rebound and boost recreational and commercial fishing.
Assistant Fish and Game Department Director Daniel Lynch, pointed out that dams have been on the river since the 1600’s.
And that has hurt the spawning of many fish species.
(Lynch) :09
“The removal of this dam opens approximately a quarter mile of river that provides an uninterrupted interface between fresh water and salt water.â€
The project is part of a larger commitment to allow fish passage all the way to the Bellamy Reservoir several miles away in Madbury.
But there are still other dams in the way.
Ronald Laurence chairs the public/private partnership involved in the Bellamy Dam removal.
(Laurence) :09
“There are quite a few, and this is just the beginning of a larger effort to create some fish passage through fish passage ladders or dam removals in the future.â€
No one has specific plans to continue the process,of dam removal.
But officials at the Dover ceremony pointed out that the owners of two more upstream dams have expressed interest to environmental groups in making fish passage possible.
For NHPR News, this is Roger Wood.
