Project Background and Goals
The Schenks Branch Tributary (SBT) restoration project involved the restoration of Schenks Branch Tributary, a stream in McIntire Park, from the railroad right-of-way to the John Warner Parkway bridge overpass. The 840 linear feet of stream, which runs through the Botanical Garden of the Piedmont (BGP), was experiencing active severe erosion of its banks and bed, sending excessive amounts of sediment and nutrients downstream to waterways listed as impaired by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Some of the unstable, eroding stream banks were as high as 12 feet tall and data collected indicate that 436,000 pounds of sediment eroded away from the stream every year. As a result, the stream offered extremely poor habitat for aquatic organisms and was largely inaccessible to the public for recreational or educational purposes. The goals of the restoration project were to reduce pollution, increase ecological function, improve habitat for aquatic and riparian plant and animal species, promote educational opportunities, and provide better public access all while integrating seamlessly into the BGP. The BGP envisions the restored stream as a central, key feature around which other facets of the gardens will be programmed. They plan to use the stream as an outdoor classroom, where the community can learn about stream ecology, water quality, and stream restoration.
Project Design
The City hired Hazen and Sawyer, an environmental engineering firm, to assess the current condition of the stream and design a restoration approach that will bring the stream back to a stable and healthy state. The Schenks Branch Tributary design utilizes an approach that aims to emulate natural, stable river systems. Extensive data collection, surveying, engineering, and modeling informed the design process. The design also utilized a “reference reach”, or a healthy local stream that has similar characteristics, to help inform design parameters.
