Zuaro River Corridor Easement
Zuaro River Corridor Easement
Name of Project: Zuaro River Corridor Easement 
Location: Northfield, VT
River: Dog River
Type of Project: River Corridor Easement
Public Access: No
Date Completed: October 2014
Size: 8.7 acres
Water Frontage: 1,820 feet
Landowner: Joseph & Deborah Zuaro
Funding Partners: VT Agency of Natural Resources Ecosystem Restoration Grant Program
Property Description: Upstream of Northfield Village, the Zuaro property is mostly productive hay fields bordering the Dog River – a State renowned brown trout fishery. A small section of the protected property supports a White Pine and Hemlock forest, while the rest of the protected property is mowed up to the river’s edge. The River Corridor Easement will increase the woody vegetation buffering the river, thus improving the property’s floodplain value to the Village of Northfield. The banks of the river have sections of sand and gravel deposits, and the Dog River supports a good biodiversity of macro-invertebrate populations, welcoming anglers and trout alike.
Project Background: The reach surrounding the Zuaro property has been extensively channelized and armored, threating to cut the river off from its natural floodplain and increasing flood risks to downstream Northfield Village. The Agency of Natural Resources River Scientists identified the Zuaro property as important for protecting the Dog River’s natural floodplain and its ecological health – improving the vegetated buffer can help slow down flooding waters, shade and cool the river for macro-invertebrates and trout populations, while also providing their natural habitat in the form of course woody debris. A River Corridor Easement also protects the prime agricultural soils on this property from be converted to a house site in the future – planning ahead for the health of our rivers and Villages.
