Late last month Maryland Trout Unlimited (MTU) Board member Darin Crew led eight FTJF Board and Stewardship Committee members on a hike to learn about and see directly the stream restoration work along a nearly 600 ft. section of the Jones Falls in the County, just south of I-83.
As one among the group put it: “I was amazed to learn that Brown trout are an integral part of this section of the Jones Falls. [MTU] has achieved part of its mission of stream restoration, showing that it can be done!”
What follows is a reprint of Darin’s September 12, 2017, blog post about the project for Blue Water Baltimore.
“A Shocking Discovery in the Jones Falls”
Some like it hot. Trout like it cool. To put [it] in scientific terms, they are a “coldwater obligate” species — meaning if the water is too warm (or too dirty), you won’t find any. As we work to make our waters swimmable and fishable, we need to make sure trout populations can thrive. And since trout are so sensitive to pollution and warm water, we can use them as a ‘barometer’ of ecosystem health.
Last year, Blue Water Baltimore implemented the Jones Falls Stream Restoration project, the largest single-site restoration project in our organization’s history. We replaced 560 linear feet of concrete channel with natural features, creating deep pools that lower ambient water temperature. This work will provide significant water quality improvements, with a projected reduction of over 100 pounds of nitrogen pollution annually.
To read the rest of Darin’s blog post, click here.
-The Editors
Friends of The Jones Falls 