Hall’s Creek

Because of the size and presence of complex ecosystems within Hall’s Creek, the Petitcodiac Watershed Alliance conducts sampling at three locations within the creek: downstream of the McLaughlin Reservoir, near the Gorge Road entrance of Mapleton Park, and at the top of the spillway in the Irishtown Nature Park.

The north branch of Hall’s Creek was dammed to create the McLaughlin Reservoir, which now serves as Greater Moncton’s backup drinking water supply. Ogilvie Brook, a tributary of the Hall’s Creek’s north branch, is also dammed at the Irishtown Nature Park, creating the Irishtown Reservoir, a former drinking supply. This reservoir has experienced cyanobacteria algal blooms for many years due to high levels of nutrients combined with a lack of water velocity from damming. For this reason, when using the park for recreation, we encourage the public to check for notices about the health of the reservoir, as well as following directions posted regarding no swimming in this area. Also dogs should be encouraged not to drink the water, as algae is present in the water column even when not visible, and could potentially be toxic if ingested. Also some forms of algae can become airborne when water is stirred up, so we ask that recreation be kept to a minimum in areas which have full signs of algal blooms present. This reservoir, along with the Turtle Creek and McLaughlin Reservoirs are regularly monitored for algal blooms and water quality in the summer months by the City of Moncton.

West Branch Halls Creek is significantly impacted by human activities. Residential, commercial, and public development are scattered throughout the watershed, such as the Magnetic Hill complex, a golf course, campgrounds, quarries, farms, nature Parks, and residential dwellings. A series of small ponds located between Mapleton Park and the TransCanada Highway were formally used as sewage lagoons until 1980. It is unclear if these lagoons are still affecting the water quality of West Branch Halls Creek in a negative way. These lagoons should be targeted for further water quality studies (see Table 20 for water quality results). The creation of Mapleton Park has also added sediments into the creek. The construction of footpaths and the cutting of trees have contributed in part to the creek’s siltation problem. Other sources such as bank erosion, quarrying, and inadequate culvert installation all contribute to the input of fine sediment within West Branch Halls Creek.

The lower reaches of Hall’s Creek are tidally influenced by the Petitcodiac River resulting in high levels of sedimentation, and substrate consisting mostly of sand and silt. This area is also heavily urbanized with a high level of human activity. Point and non-point sources of pollution are found in all sections of this brook. The lower section of Halls Creek has also been modified from its original path several times: The most recent change is attributed to the construction of Wheeler Boulevard in 1983. Construction of two bridges in 1978 and 1983, one linking Leger Corner to Moncton; and Main Street to the Shediac four lane, have also modified Halls Creek’s stream bed.

The majority of wetlands that once surrounded Hall’s Creek have been severely impacted by urbanization, or paved over for development. One such example is the construction of the University of Moncton, which was built over a wetland. This particular wetland was also used as a dump by the City of Moncton in the 1960’s, and though it was properly capped, leachate still leaks from the creek’s bank in some sections.