Shawneehaw Creek
Banner Elk, NC
Shawneehaw Creek is a stocked trout stream flowing through downtown Banner Elk. The area has high visitation where many come to wade and swim in the stream. Changes in flow regime due to development and constant and uncontrolled visitor access to the river had resulted in severe bank erosion, loss of vegetation and incision of the stream bed. The goals of the project were to provide a naturally stable stream channel with floodplain connection, provide natural step-pool and riffle-pool bedform diversity, provide natural bank vegetation, improve aquatic habitat, establish a stormwater treatment wetland, and provide an aesthetically pleasing educational stream demonstration for the Town of Banner Elk. The project included channel reconfiguration, in-stream boulder and log structures, streambank stabilization, stormwater wetland creation, and riparian buffer planting. The restored stream has a planted riparian buffer with an adjacent greenway path, playground, and picnic shelters to bring people close to the creek. Wetlands provide stormwater storage and detention improving water quality.
| Project Length: | 1500 ft. |
| Date of Construction Completion: | 2001 |
| Designer: | NC State University Biological and Agricultural Engineering |
| Contractor: | Shamrock Environmental, Inc. and North State Environmental, Inc. |
| Partners: | Town of Banner Elk, NC NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Division of Water Quality NC Cooperative Extension Service – Avery County NC State University Biological & Agricultural Engineering Department |
