The long-awaited project to dredge Cranbury’s Brainerd Lake will soon begin the first of several phases of construction work.
All seasonal dock structures and watercraft should be removed from the lake by Oct. 12, according to the township.
The lake near the center of downtown Cranbury feeds into Cranbury Brook, where there is a dam. Lowering of the lake will be the first phase. The water is to be drained through the dam.
Township officials do not have a specific start date for when the lowering of the lake will begin, but have announced that the lowering is expected to be completed by Nov. 1, according to Township Administrator Denise Marabello.
After the lake lowering takes place, the next part of the project is going to be sediment removal. Sediment, a combination of clay, silt and debris, has to be removed in order to get the lake back to its full water capacity.
Trucks and excavators are to remove the sediment to licensed disposal sites from staging areas off of the lake bed.
The final part of the project would be lake restoration. The lake would be filled to its original level before dredging by a natural stream flow.
Township officials stated that once the lake is lowered by Nov. 1, the rest of the construction work on the project will continue through early January.
Dredging is a routine that reduces the exposure of fish, wildlife and people to contaminants and prevents the spread of contaminants to other areas of the water body, according to the National Ocean Service.
