VILLAS — A project to let saltwater flow in and out of Cox Hall Creek has been completed.
On Sun., April 15, over 100 volunteers planted dune grass in the area of a former pump house at Shore Drive and Mallow Road, according to Township Manager Michael Voll.
He said the old pump house, which is covered in graffiti, would be removed.
Mayor Michael Beck said the planting was spearheaded by the county Planning Department and Watershed Ambassador Erin Walsh who coordinated the dune planting. Beck said he hoped Walsh would visit a future Township Council meeting
Some dune grass had been removed as work had progressed on the project, said the mayor.
The project is bringing saltwater into Cox Hall Creek through a pipe into Delaware Bay and with two floodgates. A 400-foot pipe extends into the bay.
Brian O’Connor, a GIS specialist with the county Planning Department, told the Herald earlier this year, a doubled-gated tide gate is located inside the pipe accessed from a large manhole. The gate will be able to stop tidal water from entering the creek or stop fresh water from leaving the meadow.
“The idea is to kill the phragmites with saltwater,” he said.
Cox Hall Creek will not change right away. O’Connor said changes will be visible year to year.
Photos by Mary Ellen Spruell
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