A resolution being considered by a Vermilion County Board committee this week asks the Army Corp of Engineers to hold a public meeting regarding plans to stabilize the bank along the National Scenic Middle Fork River.
Vistra Energy Corporation submitted a permit application to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in July to install over 22-thousand cubic yards of fill below the ordinary high-water line of the Middle Fork of the Vermilion River. It is being proposed as an effort to stem the continuing erosion of the riverbank next to Vistra’s coal ash storage.
The resolution to be considered by a County Board committee this week notes the project site is just upstream from Kickapoo State Park, where numerous kayakers, canoeists, tubers and waders participate in the use of the river. The resolution says placing this much stone would potentially damage the esthetic and scenic value of the river as well as impeding the recreational use in construction areas during low water periods.
The resolution asks the Army Corp of Engineers to allow for a public hearing so there can be testimony on the scope and nature of the riverbank stabilization project.
If approved by the committee, the resolution will be considered by the full county board at its November meeting.
