Project Description

C.T. Purcell, Inc. was contracted by the Virginia Port Authority and the Army Corps of Engineers to plant 11 acres of wetlands along Paradise Creek in Portsmouth, VA. Paradise Creek, once a heavily-industrialized superfund site on the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River, has been undergoing a massive cleanup and restoration project since 2003. A portion of this project is the creation of Paradise Creek Nature Park, including the planned wetlands. The site currently consists of forests and open fields, which both contain former creek bottom that was filled with dredged material in the mid-1900s.

C.T. Purcell will first excavate and remove 315,000 cubic yards of this dredged material, then plant 11 acres of new, healthy wetlands. C.T. Purcell will beneficially reuse the excavated material for a nearby industrial commercial development project, which will significantly reduce the impacts of construction on nearby roads.

Schedule

Aerial of the site on January 16, 2012

Current Status

Erosion Control: Ongoing maintenance continues on the construction/haul road, silt fences and tree protection, sediment basin, spillway, turbidity curtain and dewatering structure.

Planting and Common Reed (Phragmities) Control: Treatment of Phragmities continues by Purcells sub-Contractor Emerald Forest. Planting of Dormant Shrubs (ex. Wax Myrtle) on the slopes has begun.

Earthwork: Truck hauling material to beneficial a reuse site substantial is complete. Final grading of Topsoil continues.

Future Plans

The Craney Island Eastward Expansion mitigation of Paradise Creek is part of a larger effort by The Elizabethe River Project to make the site into Paradise Creek Nature Park. The nature park will be Portsmouths third largest park and the only Portsmouth park designed primarily for nature appreciation by outdoor enthusiasts. The plan is shown to the right. For more information, go to the Paradise Creek Nature Park website.

Erosion control of the rip-rap lined channel

Bulk excavation; hauling to disposal site

Excavation of sediment basin

Grading of topsoil along wetlands channel