The City of Hendersonville, North Carolina, has completed a 27-acre floodplain restoration project along Mud Creek designed to reduce flood risk, improve water quality and restore wetland and stream habitats.

The Lower Mud Creek Floodplain Restoration project reconnects areas previously separated by berms, restoring more than 2,000 linear feet of streams, stabilizing 1,500 linear feet of streambank and enhancing approximately 20 acres of wetlands and riparian areas. The restored wetlands are designed to store and gradually release stormwater during smaller storms while providing additional space for floodwater during larger events.

The project is expected to provide approximately 20 acre-feet, or 6.5 million gallons, of additional flood storage. It could reduce flood risk for as many as 93 nearby properties with an assessed value of approximately $60 million.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) contributed more than $2.8 million through its Division of Water Infrastructure, Division of Water Resources and NC Flood Resiliency Blueprint. Additional funding came from the NC Land and Water Fund and the Golden LEAF Foundation.

Other improvements include water-control structures, native vegetation, pedestrian bridges and more than 4,000 linear feet of paved greenway and natural-surface trails.