In the summer of 2025, Trout Unlimited oversaw a river restoration project on a bend of the Konkapot River located within 40 feet of Hartsville Mill River Road in New Marlborough, Massachusetts. Designed to protect the road by slowing water speeds and reducing erosion, the project will also enhance habitat for native fish and aquatic organisms.
The Housatonic Valley Association is proud to be a partner in this Konkapot River restoration project led by Trout Unlimited in collaboration with the Berkshire Clean, Cold & Connected (BCCC) Restoration Partnership. The BCCC Restoration Partnership is coordinated by the Housatonic Valley Association through the Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration’s Regional Restoration Partnership program.
Visit the TU Project Homepage Here
The Story
As the Konkapot River in New Marlborough, MA, transitions from riffle to pool, the fast-flowing water slams into the riverbend during high water events. The force of the water scours the streambank which, combined with unfavorable soil conditions, caused it to erode over 100 feet in just a decade. This put intense pressure on infrastructure along Hartsville Mill River Road, as top of the riverbank sat only 40 feet from the road. In this precarious situation, just one major storm could undercut and collapse the road, placing an extreme financial burden on the Town of New Marlborough.
After years of planning, permitting, and contracting, construction began on the riverbend in August of 2025 with the goal of creating a healthier stream corridor by slowing water flow, preventing bank erosion, and enhancing habitat quality. In addition to mitigating potential damages to infrastructure, the project will also provide more ecologically stable conditions for brook trout, wood turtles, and myriad other native species. Riparian plantings of native trees, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers, and other plants will revive the restored stream to natural habitat conditions and help stabilize the bank by integrating the project’s engineered structures into the additional nature-based solutions and the natural landscape.
The Process
The restoration design for this project focused on using nature-based solutions—engineering natural materials to successfully distribute the strength of the river’s velocity more naturally within the meander, or curve, of the Konkapot River. The northern bank was regraded and naturally safeguarded with trees and boulders, creating a gentler, terracing slope that will allow floodwater to spread out, reducing its speed and eroding force. The design also incorporated three engineered log jams built into the southern bank (outside meander), crafted with layers of interlacing logs with root wads and secured with boulders at the base. Parts of the structures jut into the stream channel, deflecting energy away from the bank and reducing the strength of water flow. The northern bank (inside meander) will reconnect the river with its natural floodplain, providing relief in flood conditions and dispersing water into the adjacent wetlands.
Overall, the reshaped river meander with log jams and a stepped slope will slow the velocity of the river and redistribute stronger water flows away from the bank closest to the road, mitigating the impact of failing banks during high-water events while reconnecting wetland areas and enhancing habitat for native aquatic and terrestrial species.
Replanting efforts began in the fall of 2025. In October, HVA staff joined the Trout Unlimited team and volunteers for a planting day, working to revegetate the entire area with native riparian species such as willows, dogwoods, sycamores, goldenrods, and asters. Plant roots will help secure and stabilize the streambank, and Trout Unlimited is working with local nurseries to obtain potted plants and a native seed mix. Another planting will take place in the spring of 2026 with additional native species.
What Comes Next?
Trout Unlimited will continue to monitor the success of the project and work to revegetate the area. One of the first major projects of this kind in western Massachusetts, this initiative will be used as a model for future restoration efforts in the Berkshires and beyond.
Stay tuned for additional updates and upcoming volunteer opportunities!
See More Images and Additional Details on the TU Project Homepage Here
About BCCC
HVA leads and organizes the Berkshire Clean, Cold & Connected (BCCC) Restoration Partnership, which is funded by the Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration. The partnership works across three watersheds in Berkshire County (the Housatonic, Hoosic, and Farmington Rivers) to collaboratively restore degraded aquatic ecosystems and increase climate resilience. BCCC has more than 25 active projects across the three watersheds, and the 2025 Konkapot River Restoration Project marked the partnership’s first major construction project.
