Parish Flats is out of control because a project completed decades ago to control Parish Creek no longer works.
The issue: What happens at the mouth of Conklin Gully, where it empties into Parish Creek and plumes into hundreds of acres of unruly wetland.
A man-made channel put in decades ago did its job for years.
Schumacher and partners in his dairy operation, other farmers, local officials, a number of concerned citizens and project partners focused for two hours at a presentation and discussion last Wednesday to try and come up with a fix for the flats.
“We have been on this project for only two or three months — but many of you have been looking at this for two or three decades,” said Greer.
The town of Naples is partnering on the project with the Canandaigua Lake Watershed Council, The Nature Conservancy and state Department of Environmental Conservation.
Specifically, five groundwater wells were installed to look at floodplain retention times, flood elevations and infiltration.
Wetlands and floodplain restoration is a big deal, not just in Naples but throughout the Canandaigua Lake watershed and beyond, where water quality is at stake because wetlands have been disappearing over time.
Canandaigua Lake Watershed Program Manager Kevin Olvany, who was at the Naples workshop, said wetland restoration is especially critical at the south end of Canandaigua Lake and Parish Flats area where many of the nutrients are entering the lake.
LOCAL IMPACT A plan is underway to fix Parish Flats in Naples.