Cuddebackville Dam facts for kids

The Cuddebackville Dam was a concrete dam located on the Neversink River in Deerpark, Orange County, New York. It was near the town of Cuddebackville. This dam was taken down in October 2004 to help the animals and plants living in the river. It was the very first dam removed in New York State specifically for environmental reasons.

Why the Cuddebackville Dam Was Built

The Cuddebackville Dam was actually made of two separate parts, with a small island between them. The first part was built in the 1820s. Its job was to move water from the Neversink River into the Delaware and Hudson Canal, also known as the D&H Canal.

The second part of the dam was built later, in 1903. This part was about six feet (1.8 meters) high and 125 feet (38 meters) wide. It was built to send water to special machines called turbines to make electricity. The water flowed into a small canal that led to a hydropower plant. This plant stopped working in 1945 because new power lines made it easier to get electricity from other places. After that, the dam became owned by Orange County.

Helping River Life: Why the Dam Was Removed

The Neversink River is home to many different kinds of water animals and plants. Some of these species are even on the list of federally endangered species, meaning they are at risk of disappearing forever. The river is also famous around the world for fly-fishing because its water is so clean.

However, the Cuddebackville Dam was causing problems for this amazing river life. Two species in particular were in danger: the Dwarf Wedge Mussel and the American Shad.

Dwarf Wedgemussel: A Tiny Endangered Animal

The Neversink River has many different kinds of freshwater mussels, more than almost anywhere else in the upper Delaware River Basin. One of these, the dwarf wedgemussel, is a federally endangered species. The Cuddebackville Dam was making things worse for these mussels.

The dam was blocking the mussels, causing them to gather in one small area instead of spreading out along the river. Before the dam was removed, no dwarf wedgemussels could be found past the dam. This made them very vulnerable. If a big flood, oil spill, chemical spill, or epidemic happened in that one spot, it could have wiped out all the mussels in the Neversink River. Protecting the dwarf wedgemussel was a main reason for taking the dam down.

American Shad: Fish on the Move

The Cuddebackville Dam also created problems for fish like the American shad and trout in the Neversink River. The dam stopped these fish from moving upstream (against the river's flow). The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation had seen groups of 100 to 1,000 fish trying to swim up the river, only to be blocked by the dam.

How the Dam Was Removed

To protect the endangered river life, the Cuddebackville Dam was removed in October 2004. This big project was a team effort between the Nature Conservancy and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. While dams had been removed for environmental reasons in other states, the Cuddebackville Dam was the first in New York State to be taken down just for the environment.

The removal cost about $2.2 million. The Nature Conservancy paid for 35% of this cost, and the Army Corps of Engineers covered the rest.

The Nature Conservancy's Role

The Nature Conservancy is an organization known for buying land that is important for the environment, especially if it's at risk of being developed. The removal of the Cuddebackville Dam was a new step for them. It showed they were expanding their work to protect an entire ecosystem to save an endangered species.

Their interest in the Neversink River began in 1993, a few years after the Dwarf Wedge Mussel was found and put on the endangered species list. In 1993, the Nature Conservancy bought 170 acres of land along the Neversink River and created the Neversink Preserve. This was done to protect the newly discovered mussels. Over time, they bought more land, and now the Neversink Preserve covers 630 acres (2.5 square kilometers). However, they realized that just owning the land wasn't enough to protect the Dwarf Wedge Mussel because of their complex life cycle and the dam's harmful effects.

The Army Corps of Engineers' New Focus

The removal of the Cuddebackville Dam also showed a change for the Army Corps of Engineers. For over a century, this organization had mostly focused on building dams and other structures. But taking down the Cuddebackville Dam marked a new direction for them. It showed they were starting to remove dams and pay more attention to how their projects affect the environment. This also suggests a changing mindset among newer engineers, who might be more against building dams than those before them. This project was also the first time the Army Corps of Engineers worked with a non-profit group like the Nature Conservancy since a federal law in 1999 allowed such partnerships.

American Shad

Images for kids

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  Neversink River at Cuddebackville