Trout Brook long had been buried in a pipe by the railroads, which laid tracks atop the streambed to ensure a smooth descent into the downtown yards.
Now a new and winding streambed for the brook, which runs through a stormwater tunnel near Interstate 35, has been carved down the middle of the 42-acre Trout Brook NatureSanctuary and Regional Trail, which is slated for official opening next spring.
It’s called “daylighting,” the process of unearthing a stream typically filled in by urban development, and it’s an increasingly popular strategy to improve water quality and aid neighborhoods in need of natural amenities...Daylighting streams is occurring across the country and overseas, in places such as Hutchinson, Kan.; Yonkers, N.Y.; and Seoul, South Korea. National Geographic reported last year that more than 70 percent of streams are paved over in some cities...
Further details at the StarTribune. Photo credit Kevin Duchschere
There's a stream running through my alma mater's campus. There used to be river otters there, but urban development over the stream made the ecosystem collapse. :/ It'd be nice if they'd daylight it.
ReplyDelete