73 years later, Cape Cod removes barrier blocking native trout’s return

T out
ep ese tative
image

Fo
mo e
tha
seve
decades,
a
quiet
st eam
i
Wellfleet,
Massachusetts,
has
bee
held
back
by
a
co c ete
ba ie .
F esh
B ook,
o ce
k ow
as
“T out
B ook,”
was
a
th ivi g
habitat
fo
ative
sea- u
b ook
t out,
locally
called
“salte s”,
u til
the
ea ly
1950s.
A gle s
f om
ac oss
the
cou t y
t avelled
to
Cape
Cod
to
fish
i
its
o e-a d-a-half-mile
st etch
of
cold,
sp i g-fed
wate .
But
a
se ies
of
co st uctio
p ojects,
culmi ati g
i
the
i stallatio
of
a
co c ete
wei
i
1953,
cut
off
the
t out
f om
thei
a cest al
spaw i g
g ou ds
a d
tu ed
a
lively
ecosystem
i to
a
stag a t
pool.Now,
afte
yea s
of
pla i g
a d
pa t e ship,
that
wei
is
set
to
be
emoved.
The
F esh
B ook
Resto atio
P oject,
led
by
Cape
Cod
Natio al
Seasho e
a d
a
coalitio
of
pa t e s,
aims
to
esto e
the
st eam’s
atu al
flow,
b i g
back
tidal
i flue ce
a d
ei t oduce
a
self-sustai i g
populatio
of
sea- u
b ook
t out
fo
the
fi st
time
i
mo e
tha
70
yea s,
acco di g
to
Natio al
Pa k
Se vice.A
st eam
with
a
ich
histo yF esh
B ook’s
sto y
st etches
back
ce tu ies.
Alo g
its
ba ks
o ce
stood
F esh
B ook
Village,
a
bustli g
commu ity
of
fa me s,
macke el
fishe me
a d
thei
families
that
th ived
f om
about
1700
to
1910.
I
the
1850s
th ough
the
1880s,
the
village
was
at
its
peak,
with
homes,
a
sto e
a d
a
lively
co ectio
to
Wellfleet
Ha bo .But
the
co st uctio
of
the
Old
Colo y
Rail oad
i
1870
cha ged
eve ythi g.

A
ea the
emba kme t
with
a
wide
culve t
allowed
some
fish
passage,
but
it
cut
off
small
boat
access
f om
the
village
to
the
ha bo ,
isolati g
the
commu ity.
Ove
time,
the
village
decli ed.
By
1910,
o ly
th ee
houses
emai ed
whe e
the e
had
o ce
bee
twelve.I
about
1900,
Richa d
F eema
amassed
84
ac es
a ou d
F esh
B ook
a d
fo med
a
fishi g
club
with
f ie ds
f om
Bosto .
Fo
decades,
the
club
fished
fo
t out
i
the
st eam,
co ti ui g
a
t aditio
that
had
d aw
a gle s
to
Wellfleet
fo
ge e atio s,
acco di g
to
the
epo t.How
the
t out
disappea edThe
decli e
of
F esh
B ook’s
t out
populatio
was
ot
sudde .
It
was
the
esult
of
decades
of
i f ast uctu e
p ojects
that
slowly
choked
the
st eam’s
atu al
flow.The
co st uctio
of
Route
6
i
1948
c eated
a
culve t
u de
the
highway
that
est icted
pa t
of
the
ive
to
just
o e
foot
wide.
The ,
i
1953,
the
Cape
Cod
Rail
T ail
was
built,
eplaci g
the
o igi al
wide
culve t
u de
the
ail oad
with
a
two-foot-wide
pipe.
Though
this
la gely
est icted
the
flow
of
the
st eam,
it
was
the
co st uctio
of
a
co c ete
wei
o
the
upst eam
side
of
the
ail
t ail
that
ultimately
led
to
the
loss
of
“salte s”
i
“T out
B ook.”The
wei
is
a
ve tical
co c ete
ba ie
that
exte ds
up
f om
the
base
of
the
culve t.
Wate
ca
flow
f eely
ove
the
wei
dow
i to
the
culve t,
but
wate
f om
Wellfleet
Bay
does
ot
each
high
e ough
fo
fish
to
get
ove
the
ba ie .
As
a
esult,
the
obst uctio
makes
it
impossible
fo
the
t out
to
mig ate
upst eam
to
thei
spaw i g
g ou ds
at
the
cold-wate
sou ce.
The
p ese ce
of
the
wei
has
c eated
a
la ge
a ea
of
impou ded
wate
above
the
ail
t ail,
which
d ai s
i to
the
culve t
but
o
lo ge
suppo ts
the
tidal
excha ge
that
t out
eed
to
su vive.Resto i g
the
flowThe
goal
of
the
F esh
B ook
Resto atio
P oject
is
simple
but
t a sfo mative:
emove
the
wei ,
d op
the
wate
level,
imp ove
flow
a d
esto e
tidal
i flue ce.
With
the
ba ie
go e,
the
st eam
will
o ce
agai
be
able
to
suppo t
a
self-sustai i g
populatio
of
sea- u
b ook
t out.Befo e
co st uctio
begi s,
the
pa k
will
complete
both
e vi o me tal
(NEPA)
a d
cultu al
esou ce
(NHPA
Sectio
106)
complia ce.
This
i cludes
ecological
assessme ts
a d
a chaeological
su veys
of
the
p oject
st eam
a d
the
su ou di g
a ea.
Some
of
this
wo k
will
co ti ue
afte
the
emoval
of
the
wei
to
mo ito
how
co ditio s
i
the
st eam
a e
cha gi g,
as
well
as
whethe
the
cha ge
i
wate
level
upst eam
of
the
Rail
T ail
exposed
a y
ew
histo ical
o
a chaeological
esou ces.Pe mitti g
a d
the
fi al
desig
pla s
a e
estimated
to
be
completed
by
summe
2026.
Co st uctio
a d
emoval
a e
estimated
fo
fall/wi te
2026.A
collabo ative
effo tCompleti g
this
p oject
would
ot
be
possible
without
the
suppo t
of
pa t e s.
T out
U limited
has
played
a
la ge
ole
i
helpi g
to
aise
awa e ess
about
the
impo ta ce
of
esto i g
this
st eam.
They
have
also
played
a
key
ole
i
helpi g
to
aise
fu ds
to
suppo t
this
p oject
as
well
as
helpi g
to
p ovide
expe tise
th ough
thei
etwo k
of
membe s.I
additio
to
wo ki g
with
T out
U limited,
the
pa k
hopes
to
e gage
with
othe
pa t e s
du i g
the
esto atio
p ocess.
O e
compo e t
of
the
p oject
will
be
to
evegetate
a eas
of
the
site
that
a e
exposed
o ce
the
wate
levels
i
the
st eam
d op.
The
pa k
is
hopi g
to
wo k
with
the
Mashpee
Wampa oag
t ibe
to
pla t
a
“I dige ous
Ga de ”
i
the
p oject
a ea.
The
t ibe
a d
the
atio al
seasho e
will
collabo ate
o
the
desig
pla s
to
i clude
cultu ally
impo ta t
pla ts
that
t ibal
membe s
may
access
f eely.I
additio ,
the
pa k
pla s
to
pa t e
with
othe
g oups
to
help
facilitate
the
ei t oductio
of
ative
b ook
t out
to
F esh
B ook.
The
goal
is
to
use
b ook
t out
f om
othe
st eams
o
Cape
Cod
such
as
the
Quash et
Rive
o
Red
B ook,
which
a e
esto atio
success
sto ies
themselves.Ecology
a d
biodive sityF esh
B ook
is
histo ically
the
o ly
st eam
o
oute
Cape
Cod
to
suppo t
sea- u
b ook
t out.
The
t out
live
i
both
f esh
a d
saltwate
habitats
du i g
thei
lives
a d
equi e
cold
wate
st eams
to
b eed.F esh
B ook
is
a
mea de i g
st eam,
sp i g-fed
with
cool
g ou dwate .
The
be ds
of
the
st eam,
especially
below
the
culve ts,
p ovide
t out
with
shade
a d
p otectio
f om
p edato s.F esh
B ook
also
used
to
be
habitat
fo
Ame ica
eel,
ive
he i g,
a d
st iped
bass.
O ce
tidal
co ectio
is
esto ed,
the e
is
the
possibility
of
the
etu
of
these
species.
I c eased
biodive sity
is
i dicative
of
healthy,
esilie t
ecosystems.A
legacy
of
esto atio The
F esh
B ook
Resto atio
P oject
is
mo e
tha
just
a
st eam
clea up.
It
is
a
cha ce
to
eco ect
a
la dscape
with
its
histo y,
to
b i g
back
a
species
that
o ce
defi ed
the
a ea
a d
to
c eate
a
model
fo
futu e
esto atio
effo ts
o
Cape
Cod
a d
beyo d.Whe
the
wei
is
emoved,
the
wate
level
will
d op,
the
flow
will
imp ove
a d
the
tidal
i flue ce
will
etu .
Fo
the
fi st
time
i
mo e
tha
70
yea s,
sea- u
b ook
t out
will
be
able
to
mig ate
upst eam
to
thei
spaw i g
g ou ds.
A d
fo
the
fi st
time
i
mo e
tha
a
ce tu y,
the
st eam
will
o ce
agai
be
a
livi g,
b eathi g
ecosystem:
a
place
whe e
wate
flows
f eely,
whe e
fish
th ive
a d
whe e
the
legacy
of
F esh
B ook
Village
ca
be
ho ou ed
a d
emembe ed.

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