Stony Brook Flow Restoration Project

The Stony Brook Flow Restoration project was launched to reduce the impacts of impoundments, development, and groundwater withdrawals, which affect the natural streamflow of Stony Brook. Frequently observed periods of low streamflow within the Stony Brook watershed prompted this project. This project included installing real-time monitoring stations at four locations along Stony Brook and additional infrastructure needed to perform coordinated releases at a series of dams during periods of low flow (see about page for more details).

When streamflow is low, these releases will replenish the streams with the goal of mimicking natural hydrology. Some benefits of performing these releases include:

• Dilution of in-stream effluent loadings (pollution). The increased flow can reduce the higher in-stream concentration of pollutants that typically occurs during low flows.
• Regulation of stream water temperature. The increased flow can mitigate the warming effects on otherwise slow and/or stagnant water during low flow conditions.
• Reduction of low flow periods. Many native fish and other aquatic life experience stress or cannot survive periods of low flow due to a reduction in available habitat, higher temperatures, and lower dissolved oxygen.

While maintaining healthy aquatic life is an important goal of the project, the installed monitoring stations are also continually tracking upstream pond water levels to minimize impacts to existing recreational uses. The real-time monitoring stations report data to an online dashboard visible by the project team, which enables real-time decision making to optimize the in-stream aquatic life benefits with the upstream lake recreational benefits.

Example of low flow drought conditions at Spectacle Pond in 2016