Our Restoration and Stewardship Projects
The scientific data we collect helps inform our efforts to protect and restores instream habitats and streambanks across the watershed. Check out some of our recent restoration and stewardship projects below!
Stay informed about upcoming volunteer opportunities with PRWC by visiting our events page, following us on social media, and subscribing to our e-newsletter!
Riparian Buffer Restoration at Three Rivers
Working closely with the Town of Woodbury and community partners, PRWC helped restore the riparian buffer at Three Rivers Park in Woodbury, which has faced repeated flooding and erosion issues since the river was realigned and channelized following the Great Flood of 1955.
In September 2023, a 100 ft-tall maple tree was dislodged from the streambank during a storm. This area was one of the narrowest sections of vegetated buffer at the park, making it most vulnerable to repeated flood damage. A committee, made up of multiple agency representatives and community partners (including PRWC) was established by the Town to make recommendations for improvements that would integrate public access, support agriculture and recreation, address floodplain connectivity and flood resilience, and reduce pollutant loads to the Pomperaug River and Long Island Sound.
In March 2025, the eroded bank was regraded, reconnecting the river to its floodplain, and native grasses and live stakes were planted throughout the washout area. In partnership with Woodbury Parks and Rec., PRWC raised community donations to purchase additional native shrubs, such as elderberry and speckled alder, which were planted at the site by PRWC staff in April 2025. The Three Rivers Riparian Buffer restoration project will ensure long-term bank stabilization while providing lasting benefits for water quality, wildlife habitat, and hazard mitigation.
Storm Drain Marking
Since 2014, PRWC staff and volunteers have installed thousands of storm drain markers throughout the towns of Woodbury, Southbury, Bethlehem, and Watertown, CT.
Storm drains are openings along curbs and in streets and parking lots. They collect stormwater and discharge it directly into nearby lakes and streams without treatment. Storm drain markers installed by PRWC provide a gentle reminder to watershed residents that only plain rain should go down the drain to protect the health of local waterways and Long Island Sound.
Each year existing markers are assessed (and replaced if needed), and new roads are selected to be marked as resources allow. Interested in marking your road? Let us know!
Aquatic Invasive Species Management
PRWC is working to restore the health and recreational functioning of Lake Stibbs in Southbury by eradicating an infestation of European water chestnut, an invasive aquatic plant that is spreading throughout New England’s watershed (including the Pomperaug Watershed) outcompeting native aquatic plants, diminishing water quality, and inhibiting recreation.
In 2022, PRWC supported a project to treat the infestation with an approved aquatic herbicide to reduce the plant population enough that it that would be able to be managed solely by hand-pulling in subsequent years. In 2024 & 2025, PRWC volunteers and staff were successful in manually removing over 520 bushels (approx. 13,000 lbs) of European water chestnut plants and seeds from Lake Stibbs and the downstream systems of Transylvania Brook, Pomperaug River, and Lake Zoar through water chestnut pulling days, paddling programs, and stream walks.
PRWC will continue to document and remove European water chestnut in Lake Stibbs and downstream, working toward the complete eradication of this invasive species in the Pomperaug Watershed. Learn more about our work tracking invasive water chestnut.
Riparian Buffer Installation at Lake Stibbs
With generous grant funding from the Southbury Community Trust Fund, PRWC and community volunteers installed a vegetative riparian buffer and educational signage at Lake Stibbs in Southbury in 2022.
This project aimed to curb elevated levels of bacteria in the lake (as a result of waterfowl droppings) by deterring geese from the shoreline and absorbing and filtering polluted stormwater runoff. Over two days in early July 2022, PRWC staff and volunteers helped plant 400 native plants and shrubs along approximately 350 ft. of shoreline at Lake Stibbs.
PRWC continues to maintain this buffer each season to improve the water quality of Lake Stibbs and downstream waterways.
Demonstration Rain Garden to Reduce Runoff
Over the course of four extremely hot and humid days, our 2018 Youth Conservation Corps dug and shaped the 1000 square foot bed of the garden and planted it with 350 native plants. Placed in a highly visible location along a busy state road, the Community House Park garden and interpretive signage serve as a demonstration site for all to visit and to learn about the functions and benefits of rain gardens.
This particular rain garden has the ability to capture approximately 7500 gallons of stormwater in a 1-inch rainstorm (390,000 gallons/year). By giving this water a place to infiltrate into the soil, the rain garden also reduces the load of nitrogen and phosphorus entering the stream respectively by 2.2 lbs/year and 0.4 lbs/year.
This project was made possible through a Watershed Assistance Small Grants Program grant administered by Rivers Alliance of Connecticut. Generous in-kind support was provided by the Town of Southbury and Earth Tones Native Plant Nursery and Landscaping.
Cedarland Park Riparian Buffer Restoration
In 2013, Pomperaug River Watershed Coalition’s Stream Committee identified Cedarland Park as an ideal location for creating a model riparian buffer. Riparian buffers help absorb and slow the flow of rising water during flood conditions, reduce stream bank erosion, provide shade for the river, and provide food and habitat for wildlife. After much hard work and dedication on the parts of PRWC, community partners, and volunteers, the main project, which included invasive plant removal and replanting the river and stream banks with native vegetation, was completed in Summer 2016. PRWC supports ongoing maintenance of this buffer area each season.
In-Stream Habitat Restoration at BOTR
A half mile stretch of the Pomperaug River that flows through the Audubon Center at the Bent of the River (BOTR) in Southbury was the site of a highly successful project to restore in-stream habitat. Decades ago, this stretch of the river was channelized, or straightened. This caused significant changes to the natural flow of the river which greatly reduced habitat diversity. PRWC and BOTR Audubon Center worked together to restore this stretch of the river by introducing pieces of large woody debris into the stream environment to provide habitat for aquatic life and recreate the dynamic system of pools, riffles, and runs that once characterized the area.