NYPA Press Release

 

New York Power Authority and New York State Canal Corporation Extend Construction Project to Mitigate Seepage Along the Erie Canal’s Earthen Embankment in Royalton, Niagara County

Funding For Project Extension Secured in FY 2025 Enacted Budget

Work Coordinated Through the Canal Corporation’s Earthen Embankment Integrity Program

Erie Canalway Trail Detoured Around Work Zone

Video of Construction Here

 

The New York Power Authority (NYPA) and New York State Canal Corporation today announced that a construction project to address persistent seepage along the Erie Canal’s earthen embankment in the Town of Royalton, Niagara County has been extended. During the Fall of 2023, the Canal Corporation and its contractors installed a soil-bentonite slurry wall along a one-half mile stretch of the earthen embankment underneath the centerline of the Erie Canalway Trail between Wruck Road and Peet Street. Funding to extend the project by 4,000 feet was included in the FY 2025 Enacted Budget. The budget allocated $50 million to the Canal Corporation for high-priority infrastructure needs including the rehabilitation of water-impounding structures that have been in service for more than a century.

“I applaud Governor Hochul and the State Legislature for prioritizing funding in this year’s budget for critical canal infrastructure,” said New York Power Authority President and CEO Justin E. Driscoll. “While NYPA continues to strategically invest in the 524-mile New York State Canal system, this funding from the State is an important step to ensure the canal’s longevity and to safeguard many of the communities located along the canal.”

New York State Canal Corporation Director Brian U. Stratton said, “The application of soil-bentonite to address seepage on this segment of earthen embankment is a great example of the ingenuity of our Canal Corporation engineers, construction, and maintenance staff. Our team is applying 21^st Century technology to historic infrastructure, ensuring the waterway’s resiliency for years to come. We appreciate Governor Hochul’s and the Legislature’s commitment to the integrity of the Canal system.”

Over the next several months, the additional soil-bentonite slurry wall will be installed into the full depth of the earthen embankment, in places 30-feet deep to bedrock, by Hohl Industrial Services, Inc. of Tonawanda and DeWind of Zeeland, Michigan using DeWind’s “One-Pass Trenching Technology.”

To learn more about seepage from the canal’s earthen embankment in this area and the original project, please visit here.

The Erie Canalway Trail and Empire State Trail are closed near the work zone. Long-distance cyclists should follow the posted detour route along local roads. The trail is expected to reopen in the fall after the trail surface is fully restored.

This work is being coordinated under the Canal Corporation’s Earthen Embankment Integrity Program (EEIP) that was implemented after completing an extensive State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) in December 2022.

For more information about the Earthen Embankment Integrity Program (EEIP) program, please visit here.

The Canal Corporation appreciates the public’s patience while this work is completed.

 

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About the New York State Canal Corporation

New York’s Canal system includes four historic canals: the Erie, Champlain, Oswego, and Cayuga – Seneca. Spanning 524 miles, the waterway links the Hudson River with the Great Lakes, the Finger Lakes and Lake Champlain. The canals connect hundreds of unique and historic communities across upstate New York.

The New York State Canal Corporation is a subsidiary of the New York Power Authority.

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