Starke County is the recipient of a grant for debris removal on the Yellow River in the amount of $190,000. The grant money came from the Disaster Recovery Fund.
Starke County Surveyor, Dennis Estok, said there has been no removal of trees or debris in the Yellow River.
“That’s our main concern,” said Estok. “From Highway 35 in Knox going to the Starke/Marshall County line hasn’t been touched. In talking with some of the land owners, I don’t think it’s ever been touched. What we will do with this money, since it was for debris removal, we’re going to take the fallen trees and logs out of the river which will help tremendously.”
Estok tells how this will help residents in that area.
“By removing these obstructions, what we can do is slow down the erosion of the river banks and prevent the loss of land for the landowners along the river. There’s an enormous amount of land being lost due to the erosion because of the fallen trees. We have five homes that are in danger. They lose more of their backyards every year and they’re in danger of losing their houses. This is one thing that’s going to help and it’s going to help prevent flooding because it will let the water run through a lot smoother to the Kankakee.”
