Eels Need A Need A New Subway System In Vernon: Town Officials

VERNON, CT — The eels need a new subway system in the Tankerhoosen corridor and Vernon officials are hoping a federal grant can help facilitate it.

The Vernon Town Council at its Tuesday meeting is expected to formally give town officials the go-ahead to apply for a National Culvert Removal, Replacement and Restoration Grant designed for "aquatic organism passage." That's the bureaucratic term for enhancing the flow along a section of the river.

The grant is administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Town officials said culverts at both Bread and Milk Road and Reservoir Road are undersized and their pipes are "deteriorating" and need to be replaced with larger concrete box culverts.

The culverts at the locations now leave the areas at risk for flooding, aside from restricting aquatic species movement, town officials said.

"The project will restore ecological and hydrologic connectivity at two locations within Vernon's Tankerhoosen River Watershed," town officials said.

The species targeted include the American eel and native trout, officials said.

"The improvements will give migratory and resident aquatic species access to high-quality cold-water habitats," officials said. "Furthermore, replacing restrictive, aging infrastructure with resilient crossing will mitigate flood risks, enhance public safety and improve fish passage in the Connecticut Designated Greenway."

The town is requesting $5,119,200 in federal funding for the project and it comes with a required match of 20 percent — $1,023,840. The local money has already been authorized through state subsidized capital improvement funding.