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#Post#: 1817--------------------------------------------------
Erie Canal expert's words need to be read again & again!
DIR By: Michael Caswell
Date: October 21, 2021, 6:53 am
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Thomas Grasso, President Emeritus, Canal Society of New York
State, writes this:
HTML https://ecna.us/canal-facts/an-expert-opinion-clear-cutting-canal-embankments/
And another version here:
HTML https://eriecanalfacts.wordpress.com/2018/03/17/an-expert-opinion/
Mr Grasso also recently wrote to us, expressing support for our
comments regarding Mr Adam Bello's recent email to the NYS Canal
Corporation and New York Power.
HTML https://ecna.createaforum.com/the-stop-the-clearcut-argument/county-executive-writes-to-the-nypa/msg1815/?topicseen#msg1815
And he also supplied these photos of our canal embankments from
many years ago, and some more modern canals in Europe.
There is a distinct lack of trees, and any other invasive
vegetation, on these canal embankments.
Lets hope some of our politicians can see that there are only a
very few people who think trees are a good idea on an embankment
dam.
The first 2 pictures: from pre-Barge Canal Construction – I
think you will notice lack of trees in these c. 1850’s or
earlier embankments
–Kings Bend is where old canal swung N toward French Rd and on
to downtown Rochester
Third photo is the Main Danube Canal north of Nuremberg, Bavaria
–canal was completed c1993
–Mr. Grasso took the image in c. 2008
Fourth picture is the Great Embankment from c2000
Final picture – looking south to Furth—Main-Danube Canal
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
[attachimg=6]
#Post#: 1818--------------------------------------------------
Re: Erie Canal EXPERT expresses his opinion!
DIR By: Doug K
Date: October 25, 2021, 11:54 am
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And the sixth image, do you know what earthen dam that is?
It is the Brockport East Dam, running about 1.2 miles east, from
the Park Avenue Lift Bridge. It ranges in height between 7' to
27', and has been fully cleared, re-sloped replanted with grass,
and has barrier vegetation planted, all part of the promised
EERP Restoration process.
The stone section is standard protection for a dive culvert
located there, that runs under the Erie Canal. Culvert number 57
I believe.
It looks much better than the ragged mess it used to be, most
people agree, though some minor issues with dam refurbishment
that are still being worked through of course.
#Post#: 2232--------------------------------------------------
Erie Canal expert's words need to be read again & again!
DIR By: Michael Caswell
Date: June 8, 2022, 3:41 am
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HTML https://eriecanalfacts.wordpress.com/2018/03/17/an-expert-opinion/
#Post#: 2240--------------------------------------------------
Erie Canal EXPERT passes away, NYS Canal Corporation remembers
his words
DIR By: Doug K
Date: June 10, 2022, 10:22 am
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Sadly Tom Grasso has passed away, his expertise on all things
Erie Canal will be missed by many, including the NYS Canal
Corporation and Erie Canal Society
[attachimg=1]
NYS Canal Corp (6/7/2022) - @NYSCanalCorp Twitter Feed
Our hearts are heavy today as we remember our beloved friend
Professor Tom Grasso. Tom became President of the NYS Canal
Society in 1979, retiring in 2016 & was named President
Emeritus. We all learned so much from Tom over the years and are
forever grateful to him for sharing his enthusiasm and knowledge
of our state’s Canal system—as well as his infectious passion
for the iconic Erie Canal.
HTML https://www.democratandchronicle.com/obituaries/rdc173338
#Post#: 2242--------------------------------------------------
Re: Erie Canal expert's words need to be read again & again!
DIR By: Doug K
Date: June 13, 2022, 6:52 am
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Perhaps these thoughts about the Erie Canal, shared by Mr.
Grasso here, are the most important statements being made, about
how safety is the key with Embankment Integrity clearing.
Therefore the canal today, as it was in the past, is a huge,
vital, economic component of our daily lives and our quality of
life. Keeping those sections of the canal, well above the
general “lay of the land” safe, is crucial to the future
viability of our canal system.
The fact is that treeless embankments are safer than treed ones.
The issue is safety! This is a common “best practice” for any
properly-managed and well-maintained canal system. I have, over
the years, examined in the field and researched numerous canals
both here in North America and Europe – those in Canada, France,
Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Belgium, Netherlands, Czech
Republic, and Serbia among the most notable.
They all have virtually treeless embankments signifying that the
overwhelming majority of well-schooled canal engineers, here and
abroad, adhere to this practice. These engineers are the experts
whose first responsibility is to protect the public’s welfare,
and I have found these men and women to be of the highest
integrity and thoroughly knowledgeable.
And in this statement Mr. Grasso restates the case that Erie
Canal Earthen Embankments are actually properly termed as "Dams"
Although the principle of “trees on canal embankments is
dangerous” may seem counter-intuitive to many people, thousands
of civil engineers worldwide can’t possibly be wrong. As Senator
Daniel Patrick Moynihan so eloquently stated – one is entitled
to their own opinion, but not their own facts.
In Germany, officials use the term Damm when referring to a
canal embankment. They are not being duplicitous or attempting
to “pull the wool” over the public’s eyes, they are precisely
calling it what it is – an earth dam retaining water.
Therefore when the Canal Corporation uses the term earth dam for
a canal embankment it is completely accurate.
And maybe the most powerful statement is about how the New York
Power Authority has taken responsibility to repair the Erie
Canal safety issues that have been ignored for some 80 years,
asking the key question, and making a powerful statement.
[size=10pt]Let’s give some credit to the New York Power
Authority for trying to catch-up on a huge backlog of
maintenance issues – a significant cost to them. Do we really
think that any government agency will spend hordes of money on a
project just to anger, if not enrage, the public?
One of the Power Authority’s priorities is public safety and
risk management.
Finally, Tom Grasso makes the valid point that Erie Canal safety
& scenery will be improved, as a direct result of embankment
clearing work, and that is the way the canal was meant to be
viewed.
Lastly canal embankments are both strikingly beautiful and
splendidly stunning engineering achievements. So one of the side
benefits of proposed cutting is that the embankments will be
brought into clear focus, amplifying their existing splendor now
masked and muted by the vegetative cover. Today people can glide
across one of these embankments on a boat or bike or walk across
on the trail alongside and have no perception of being on a high
embankment perhaps tens or scores of feet above a valley floor
or adjacent landscape below.
Consequently, once cleared of trees, the public’s experience
will be enriched because from the tops of embankments, there
will now be vistas of the land, roads and creeks below, unknown
since perhaps the 1940’s. Looking down on the tops of trees will
definitely increase your awareness of and appreciation for the
impressive achievements of the engineers who designed and the
laborers who constructed them.
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