Huron Pines works on East Branch Black River

MONTMORENCY COUNTY, Mich. — Due to COVID-19, the conservation organization Huron Pines has lost out on roughly $900,000 in grant funding from the Michigan DNR. However, they’re still working on several projects in Northern Michigan.

Last week, they began work at the East Branch Black River in Montmorency County. This waterway holds one of the healthiest populations of brook trout in the state. Right now Huron Pines is working on restoring a section of the river by replacing an undersized culvert where it intersects County Road 622. It’s small size causes the area to be prone to spring time flooding. “If there’s a flooding issue, that would carry road, gravel, and sand into the stream and cause erosion issues,” said Senior Project Manager Josh Leisen. “Obviously it causes an issue from a transportation and maintenance standpoint.”

The small culvert also presents problems for fish in the river. “Because it was undersized, the water is forced to shoot through there at high velocity and that presents a partial barrier to fish passage,” said Leisen.

The road is currently closed and the project is expected to be completed by the middle of June.