A new $2.34 million grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will allow the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council, in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy, to remove 250 tons of old wood pilings — which are considered hazardous waste — from the Providence River.
The pilings were foundational supports used to turn and raise the old Point Street Bridge in the 1920s to allow for boat traffic. After the construction of the Fox Point Hurricane Barrier in 1966, large vessels were blocked from the river. The pilings became obsolete and have been slowly rotting since.
The wood is now polluting the river, Tim Mooney, director of marketing and communications for The Nature Conservancy of Rhode Island, told The Herald…