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Community Corner

Friends of Mianus River Park Work to Prevent Erosion

A local non-profit group seeks to prevent and undo unintentional environmental damage through hands-on maintenance and ingenuity.

Throughout the year, the thousands of locals that traverse the eight-plus miles of trails that wind along the also contribute to river erosion, a major environmental concern.

The park is primarily maintained by the Friends of the Mianus River Park, an organization that was recently certified as a 501c3 nonprofit organization. According to their website, the FMRP’s mission is “to sustain and protect the Mianus River Park for all users and future generations.”

According to FMRP secretary Pete Sofman, Mianus River Park receives approximately 5,000 to 6,000 users over the course of a year. Many visit the park frequently, such as Rosemary Mygatt, who has been walking her dog in the park about once a month for many years, and believes the volume of park users has definitely increased.

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“I used to come in from the Greenwich side, and it was pretty empty five years ago,” Mygatt said.

Due to erosion becoming an unfortunate, damaging side effect of the Mianus River Park's popularity, the FMRP have taken several intuitive measures to lessen the threat of erosion, such as installing multiple deer-exclusion fences throughout the park, hardening the marked trails, and educating the public.

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FMRP’s deer-exclusion enclosures protect sensitive areas from trampling, allowing time for natural species to grow back, and prevent erosion on the riverbanks.

“We’ve excluded park users from the area to stabilize the riverbank,” FMRP President Ryan Tucker said. “[The area] is springing new life.”

Park users are both impressed by and grateful for the organization’s work. “I think the [deer-exclusion] fences are great,” Grace Chen, a resident of West Harrison, New York, said.

Chen, who walks her dog in the park every week, said the enclosures “do not bother her at all.”

By packing down the earth and lining the paths with rocks, FMRP hardens the marked trails, making them less likely to decay or be washed away in a storm.

According to Tucker, erosion can be slowed "if the entire community understands how their interactions affect the park".

“We’re putting up more signage that explains the delicate nature of the park, [including] what erosion is and how it can be prevented,” Tucker said.   

“Mianus River Park is really a refuge from the hustle and bustle of the city. It’s a wonderful example of nature where we can access it quickly,” Sofman, who used to cross country ski in the park, said. 

Excluding August 6, FMRP meets at 8:45 a.m. on the first Saturday of every month to perform trail maintenance, and always welcome new volunteers. 

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