Libby River project nears end

Black Point Road opens to traffic again

By Lucas Knowles
Editor
    Black Point Road was opened again to traffic as a marsh restoration project along the Libby River neared its end.
    The project, which began last week, is designed to increase tidal flow in the Libby River portion of the Scarborough Marsh and to reverse the process of that area becoming fresh water marsh.
    While construction was being done to the portion of Black Point Road that crosses Libby River, which is located near the intersection with Route 77, a detour took vehicles around the construction and up Pleasant Hill Road.
    The major part of the project was to install larger culverts underneath the road to increase tidal flow.
    The project was a joint effort between the National Resources Conservation Service, The U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife, The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, the Maine Department of Marine Resources, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Ducks Unlimited, the Scarborough Sanitary District, the Portland Water District, the Maine Department of Transportation and the Friends of Scarborough Marsh.
    Ryan Hodgman, an environmental coordinator for the Maine Department of Transportation who oversaw the construction, said MDOT’s involvement in the project was unique for the department because it was more of a “resource agency” undertaking rather than a MDOT project.
    “The reason we are involved is that (Black Point Road) is our road and we should be involved with whatever is there,” Hodgman said.
    According to Hodgman, the project was meant to “increase the amount of tidal exchange to the inland side watershed,” to curb the growth of the invasive species phragmites and to provide “a more natural ecosystem.”
    C.D. Armstrong, president of Friends of Scarborough Marsh, said since the amount of salt water marsh is becoming more and more scarce, every effort should be made to preserve it.
    “There is only a limited amount of salt marsh and it is difficult to make new salt marsh,” Armstrong said. “That is why we need to make a significant effort to not let it turn into something else…in this case, salt water marsh was turning into fresh water marsh.”
    Armstrong said one of the major reasons for the increase in fresh water in that area of the marsh is development of the land close by.
    “The increase in development upstream has pretty dramatically changed things in the marsh, we think,” Armstrong said. “All of the runoff and new surface has created a lot of fresh water there.”
    Armstrong said the new culverts will increase the number of “tidal flushings” in the area, which will cause fresh water to drain quicker from the Libby River marsh.
    There was little debate that the size of the culverts at that location being too small and causing tidal restrictions, but the question that had been ongoing locally and on a state level was how large the new culverts needed to be. After several years, a consensus was reached.
    Armstrong estimated that the improvements will affect 50 acres of the Libby River portion of Scarborough Marsh.
    When it came to the construction of phase of the project, there were two choices for organizers – either to have one lane open and the construction go longer or have the construction be done for a shorter time and have motorists use a detour. Those involved with the project opted to have a shorter construction period and to implement a detour.
    John Small, a crew leader for the MDOT who was working on the project, said he had done similar jobs before, but “nothing on the scale” of the Libby River marsh project. He said his crew was working as quickly as possible, including working through heavy rains.
    Hodgman estimated that the new portion of road would be paved and the project would be “90 percent done” by Thanksgiving.