One of Prince William County’s stream restoration projects has recently received the top award for Project of the Year from the American Public Works Association.
Recognized as the best restoration job in the state, the work on Dewey Creek will help establish the county as a leader in the field, according to a release from Prince William County.
“We want to be seen as a model of how to do this,” Marc Aveni, Prince William County Environmental Services Chief said in a release.
He explained that these stream restoration projects are important to the environment as well as to the businesses and people living near these streams.
“The environmental community likes it because we’re restoring the stream, and the public likes it because it looks like a park when we’re done and it can increase property values,” Averi commented.
Tom Dombrowski, a county environmental engineer also chimed in on the importance of these projects to the community.
“It provides the opportunity for education, habitat improvement, fish passage, infrastructure protection and pollution control. It also protects sewer lines. It improves water quality and helps clean up the Chesapeake Bay,” Dombrowski said in a release.
For those interested, photos of the creek before the project took place can be found on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Flickr.
This article was written by Staff Writer Patricia Keitz.
