SEYMOUR, Conn. — Thanks to a multi-million dollar grant, leaders in the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments (NVCOG) said the Kinneytown Dam in Seymour will soon be coming down.
The council has been working for years with the Naugatuck River Revival team and Save the Sound to make this happen, citing environmental issues with the infrastructure of the dam.
The hydroelectric dam has not been in use for years. Local leaders said it kills wildlife and causes flooding and pollution. So, after sending multiple letters to The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, they've agreed to send over the money to take it down.
"Fish were hard to find in the Naugatuck, upper parts of the Naugatuck River. And it's a river. Isn't that, odd," said Kevin Zak, President of Naugatuck River Revival.
Two decades ago, it was Zak who started to document the issues with the dam. He was seeing thousands of dead fish near the dam over that time frame. Eventually, he put a camera under the water and found a sea of fish. They were stuck, unable to flow up the river because of the dam.
"It was a secret. It was hidden from view, and all of the evidence would be washed away," Zak said.
Soon, his evidence would catch the eyes of local, state and federal leaders, becoming a golden ticket to taking the dam down.
"I literally would drive by Kinneytown on Route 8 and say, your days are numbered. And there was no doubt that I could see the future," Zak said.
So could the leaders in the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments (NVCOG), made up of 19 towns and cities in the valley. They joined in on Zak's initiative, along with Save the Sound.
They all claim removing the dam will stop the flooding issues it creates, open the river for the fish to migrate freely, and become the main gem of the valley again.
"It means everything for our people that live along the river because it's clean, it's going to be cleaner, they'll be fish, there will be recreation," said Waterbury Mayor Neil O'Leary, Chairman of Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments.
They hope opening the river will bring people in from the surrounding towns and even states.
"We're going to see land along the river, really increasing in value and we're going to see restaurants with patios overlooking this and fishermen out there, catching migratory fish coming up from the long island sound," said Laura Wildman, Regional Director of Economic Restoration for Save the Sound.
A company called Kinneytown Hydro Company, Inc., owned by Hydroland Omega, LLC, owns the Kinneytown Dam. FOX61 reached out to the company for comment via email and by phone, and never heard back.
However, those involved in the initiative to take the dam down said they don't see anyone getting in the way of that with support from the federal government. It will take several years to get to the point where the dam is officially removed.
To learn more about the initiative to restore fish to the Naugatuck River, click here.
Julia LeBlanc is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at jleblanc@fox61.com Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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