STREAMBANKS

RESTORE OUR STREAMS

We propose that the Town of Cary begin a program to repair all the stream banks within its borders that have become eroded.

The conversion of much of Cary's land from permeable to impermeable surfaces through development has taken a terrible toll on our streams.

The rushing stormwater runoff undercuts the streambanks. When enough of the bank has been undercut, the unsupported top of the bank caves in. Then the process begins anew. The images below show a representative sample of Cary's streams. [Click an image to expand it.]

The Town does not regulate the volume of water that flows off properties after development. Water that would otherwise be absorbed by the earth now flows freely and faster into stormwater ditches and creeks. The two video clips below show flooding that occurred on June 2, 2021, when 1.08 inches of rain fell in a two-hour span.

A homeowner whose property abuts the creek bed relates that flooding like this occurs about four times a year.

The Town's current policy is that it will not repair a stream that is on private property, but will act as the supervisory authority and impose expensive requirements if the landowner wishes to repair the stream herself. We think this policy should be reconsidered. A stream bank that is eroding harms all of us, whether it is on public or private property. And while this question is debated, we can, to avoid paralysis by indecision, get to work repairing the eroding streams that are on Town of Cary property.

The current policy is for the Town to purchase a property when it becomes apparent that stream erosion will cause the home to flood or that its foundation will be destabilized. The most recent homes purchased because of erosion were on Jodhpur Drive, just off Cary Parkway, and were bought in 2020.

The erosion will worsen unless a repair program is begun. At some point, the Town will have to do this. [Note the exposed sanitary sewer line in an image above.] Why not now, instead of leaving the problem to be handled by future residents?