Sometimes it takes an intervention to put Mother Nature back on her feet again.  

This month, after nearly a year of work, Neabsco Creek at Andrew Leitch Park is back to its natural healthy state.  It looks like a creek should look – gently sloped sides and clear water.

This is far different from how the creek looked last year. Every time it rained in Dale City, stormwater would stream off the surrounding parking lots, rooftops and roadways and into roadside ditches. This run-off water poured into Neabsco Creek. Over time, the water ate away at the sides of the creek, transforming it into a channel for the rushing run-off. The banks were eroded to nearly vertical cliff-like overhangs and the water ate away the soil underneath the trees, causing them to collapse into the stream. The sediment from the banks washed into water, hurting the fish and frogs in the creek.

To return the creek to the way nature designed it, the Park Authority worked with Prince William County Public Works' Watershed Management department. Workers dug out the creek banks to create a gentle sloping incline. They added the features found in a healthy stream, such as ripples and pools.  

 To insure the next flash flood wouldn't cause the creek to erode back to its previous deplorable state, the workers used natural materials, such as tree stumps and rocks, to reinforce vulnerable sections.

The stream reconstruction finished earlier this month. The Public Works team are currently working on restoring the nearby trail and will soon reintroduce native species of fish and frogs back into our Neabsco Creek.