CONCRETE CHANNEL TRANSFORMED USING NATURAL STREAM DESIGN
Riverview Creek flows along a concrete channel for almost 120 meters through the Riverview Park and Zoo before the waters enter the Otonabee River. The Creek is classified as a warm water stream and efforts to restore natural channel features and functions is the focus of a major stream restoration project being coordinated by the Otonabee Region Conservation Authority with the support of several community partners.
The headwater of Riverview Creek is located approximately 4.5 kilometers upstream from the Riverview Park and Zoo. For most of its length, the creek is a highly visible, urban watercourse that has been significantly altered. The cement channel has been in place for more than 50 years; it provides very limited habitat for aquatic species, such as fish and benthic macro-invertebrates (the bugs that live in the sediment on the bottom of streams). The cement channel causes the velocity of the water to speed up which leads to erosion and further sediment being washed into the Otonabee River.
The restoration of Riverview Creek will be done in three phases: 1) removal of the existing concrete channel lining, 2) channel re-alignment, and 3) stabilization of the streambanks. The creek channel will be re-aligned using techniques to replicate the meander pattern of a natural channel. The streambanks will be stabilized using a combination of rock and natural materials. Finally, a selection of native trees, shrubs and wildflowers will be planted in the streambanks to increase habitat and improve water quality by acting as a natural buffer that also prevents soil erosion.
Students from Peterborough Collegiate and Vocational School will join the Otonabee Region Conservation Authority and representatives from partnering organizations in the planting of 200 native trees, shrubs and wildflowers. Interpretive signage will be installed so that visitors to the Riverview Park and Zoo can learn about the project, specifically the importance of maintaining healthy watercourses. The Riverview Park and Zoo attracts over 250,000 visitors each year.
The Otonabee Region Conservation Authority acknowledges the support of its partners; namely, Riverview Park and Zoo, Peterborough Utilities Services, the Ontario Trillium Foundation, Environmental Damages Fund of Environment Canada, Kiwanis Club of the Kawarthas, Community Stream Stewards, Peterborough Collegiate Vocational School and the Otonabee Region Conservation Foundation.