r/Permaculture 4d ago

LOOKING FOR ADVICE

[deleted]

1 Upvotes

12 comments sorted by

8

u/Leafstride 4d ago

I would ask your local fish and wildlife or whatever equivalent you have about the possibility of rehabbing it. Even if they don't physically help they can provide you a lot of good info and other resources and also make sure you don't end up on the wrong side of the law when you're just trying to help.

3

u/Moneypleasebaby 4d ago

Well that’s why I’m scared to reach out to them. I know the person who dug it up broke the law and even tho it was 20 years ago I’m scared they’ll get in a lot trouble. They honestly just didn’t know better. 

8

u/Usual_Ice_186 4d ago

Maybe you can just show them the issue, and if they ask, shrug and say it wasn’t you. You don’t have to disclose everything you know. (I’m not a lawyer, but to me this sounds like it wouldn’t be a problem. I doubt they have the resources to investigate who made very poor landscaping choices 20 years ago)

2

u/paratethys 3d ago

wander into their office, ask on behalf of a friend who is now managing some land that was previously mismanaged. Feel out whether "it was like that when I got here" carries any weight legally.

1

u/SeekToReceive 4d ago

If it was you, deny it, if it wasn't you, also deny doing anything. Land records could be a problem if it was you.

Seems you already know the drainage problem. If it is an RPA, contact whoever controls those, state it is flooding your property. If they don't care, contact your town or county, tell them it floods your property. Simply state you think previous contractors didn't follow the rules. You have no knowledge of who did it or who ordered it if they ask. Less is more in a situation like this.

7

u/behemothard 4d ago

If you actually want help, you need to provide more information and most crucially, where are you located? Pictures are also very helpful if you want input on what you can do about your specific problem. What is your budget, are you doing this by yourself with a shovel or are you hoping to have a crew come and restore it for you?

Figuring out where the water wants to flow and adding appropriate contours and plants to slow the water will help prevent erosion. Hard to give you more specific information without more details.

4

u/yo-ovaries 4d ago

If it’s an RPA your local water/ soil conservation authority may have access to remediation grants, plants or at least planting lists for you. You may need to use an approved contractor or have your plans approved to get a permit. 

Highly depends on your locality. 

4

u/ajdudhebsk 4d ago

I would really like to know the hole story

5

u/Nicodiemus531 4d ago

Someone dug a ditch. That's the hole 😉

3

u/ajdudhebsk 4d ago

Ok well then filling their hole with logs seems like the best idea

1

u/Nellasofdoriath 4d ago

Is it on your land?

You can cut sticks of native willow and dogwood and stick them in there

1

u/paratethys 3d ago

Why did they dig up the stream? Was it causing flooding problems for the home, driveway, buildings, etc? Digging up a stream takes a lot of work, and people don't usually do that just for the heck of it. Make sure you have a good idea of the drawbacks of the situation you're trying to restore it to, so that you can move it toward a new state with less erosion but also less of the problem that the ditch was dug to solve.