At a local meeting last month, Middlebury Select Board members heard a report summary presented by the Middlebury River Management Steering Committee. This report dealt with repairs to the Tropical Storm Irene-damaged floodwall along the Middlebury River.
If you’re curious, you can view this concrete floodwall from a small bridge which crosses the river, off Route 125, near the vicinity of the Waybury Inn.
We’re sorry to say that the fury of the Aug. 28 tropical storm did the job that a dozen other storms couldn’t accomplish—create a serious vision of future flood damage. Imagine the next tropical storm or hurricane to reach Vermont? Perish the thought. And Middlebury is but a small pixel in a bigger picture.
But the good news is that a petition by local residents did the job that their town officials couldn’t do—namely, raise the level of concern about the path of future floodwaters.
The Select Board did the right thing and will support the will of the people; the will expressed by a petition it received—signed by over 190 Middlebury-area residents—to protect residents along the course of the fickle and often violent Middlebury River.
Of course, petitioners want the repair job done right. Too often, we’ve seen, flood-damage repairs—even damming efforts—make the situation far worse and only hastens future flooding.
The only thing missing in the recent petition is a call to have the town restrict future residents from building and living along the river. In short, too many Vermonters choose to live along potentially perilous waterways.
Of course, we can’t have Vermonters living along rivers and lakes move away—that’s unrealistic and we’re not calling for such draconian moves—but future building bans along the Middlebury River, and other flood zones around the state, should be considered. Sounds like a task too big for a state like Vermont? Perhaps, but let’s at least discuss it.
Prev Next
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID