Holistic Stream Assessment/Restoration: Dutemple Brook, Rhode Island...

The Rhode Island chapter of NFC has decided to adopt Dutemple Brook for a top-to-bottom Holistic Stream Assessment/Restoration project.

Dutemple Brook is a 1.8 mile Class A coldwater stream with a 0.94 square mile drainage. It is part of the Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed. Dutemple Brook tributaries into Fisherville Brook which empties into Queen River. The Queen River terminates at Pawcatuck River.

Dutemple Brook was last surveyed in 2019. At that time, it was the coldest stream in the Queen River watershed. Wild native brook trout numbers were solid as well. But a lot has happened in the last 7 years including several warm summers and chronic droughts.

The first step was to perform a top-to-bottom visual survey to identify potential impediments to fish passage such as dams and waterfalls, thermal stressors such as impoundments and beaver ponds, and other issues that can impact fish.

Clearly the stream faces some challenges including undersized and perched culverts that may block or impede fish passage, and impounding - both man and beavers - that could warm the water.

water temperature monitoring…

NFC deployed 10 data loggers in Dutemple Brook in late April 2026. The intention is to monitor water temperature at various locations throughout the stream to identify thermal stressors, thermal refuges, spikes, averages, and the impact of stormwater.