Creek bed running over

[Morning Glory]

I have a small creek at the back of my property. It seems to have diverted itself, leading to standing water in the field, heaving concrete in the barn, and the sump pump in the basement running constantly. Thinking of dredging it to get it back in place.

Has anyone dealt with this before?

Will the state or county help with this?

Will just dredging the part on my property solve the problem?

Are any permits required? The other side of the old creek bed is railroad property, so that might complicate things.

How much does it cost to hire it done vs renting a backhoe and doing it yourself? How about buying a backhoe on Craigslist and reselling it after the job?

[ncornilsen]

Can't speak to the permits, but I'd call the county, department of fish and wildlife, or other water controlling agency from a phone number that is not yours. They'll tell you. If it's a small stream you may not have much issue.

As for buying/selling a backhoe... well, a good one is probably 60K. They hold their value well though.

A company will charge you $175 to 200 an hour to supply and operate a excavator or backhoe.

[Morning Glory]

Thanks, the county actually wants to come and look. It is not a state waterway but we are in a wetland area. Also I don't know if just dredging the part on my property will help since it is clogged downstream. Thinking of just rebuilding the bank in the problem area. On a brighter note we saw a backhoe on Craigslist for $4k.