MANAYUNK (KYW Newsradio) — Fresh water is permanently flowing into the Manayunk Canal for the first time in 75 years, after a three-year, $16 million project to reconnect the canal to the Schuylkill River.
Officials cut the ribbon Thursday then took turns twisting the giant wheels that lift the gate between the river and canal by a foot and five inches for just the right flow through Manayunk.
Work started on the new gate and refurbished lock house started in 2022 and was completed in April. Liz Lankenau of Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability called the project an “incredible milestone.”
“Reintroducing fresh water flow to the canal. Doing so enhances the ecosystems of the canal and river, improves water quality for wildlife and drinking water for Philadelphia, which relies on the Schuylkill for nearly half of the city’s water supply,” she said.
The canal is 200 years old, but closed in the 1940’s, filling with stagnant water.
Kris Soffa of the Roxborough Green Space Project lobbied for years to reconnect the canal and river.
“When we first started paddling down here in the 60’s, there were no birds. If you got a cut in your finger, it was bad. You could get really sick. But now there’s herons and fish and we’re putting mussels in the canal and it’s just so wonderful,” she said.
Engineers have been testing to get just the right flow into the canal and the Water Department’s Kelly Anderson said improvements are already visible.
“We’ve seen species of fish that we’ve never observed. We’ve seen gizzard fish, we’ve seen striped bass so we see this as a huge measure of success,” she said.
Ian McKane, the project’s chief engineer, said it also improves drinking water quality.
“This project will not only serve the residents and visitors here today but for many generations to come,” he said.