Ok, so you knew the announcement that construction was starting on April 1 was a joke, right? No? Well, neither did we! Today, however, is a different story. Warmer weather has been steadily melting the abundance of snow and ice that was suffocating the river and our plans are changing accordingly.
Troy from ERC reports the work will officially begin on Monday, April 21. Construction begins with creation of the staging area, followed quickly by the delivery of boulders and riprap. I had to ask what “riprap” is, so now I can share that it is crushed rock. It is used in areas where we are trying to protect the stream bed from erosion.
Two trackhoes (backhoes on tracks) will be working in the water starting on Tuesday. Between the later-than-expected start and the need to finish the major work before runoff becomes an issue, it was decided to use an additional trackhoe. Sinjin and I are going to the ranch on Thursday to see the action in person!
In other news, the City of Aurora is now showing some interest in addressing the cattle grazing problem more proactively. Though initially resistant to removing the existing fencing, which is very deteriorated, they now seem open to the idea. In addition, they are considering not allowing any grazing on BPR for the remainder of 2008. This would be fantastic as it would give our revegetation efforts a healthy chance to take hold.
Rick Matsumoto
Communications Manager
