Reconstruct/Stabilize The Historic Stone Wall and Towpath from McMahon's Mill to Lock 42 Environmental Assessment

An Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Reconstruct/Stabilize The Historic Stone Wall and Towpath from McMahon's Mill to Lock 42 project is now available for comment.

The National Park Service (NPS) proposes to stabilize a historic stone wall and raise parts of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (C&O Canal) towpath, move it farther from the Potomac River and resurface it. The affected area is between McMahon's Mill (milepost 88.1) and Lock 42 (milepost 89.0) in Washington County Maryland. High water makes sections of the towpath in this area impassable more than 12 times per year, leaving bikers and hikers to navigate a 3-mile detour on narrow, winding county roads. Without appropriate repairs, people will not be able to enjoy the towpath. In its current state, the path is impassable to vehicles, which prevents NPS and emergency vehicles from reaching injured visitors or employees.

The public is invited to share their thoughts on the project. You may download a copy of the environmental assessment, which describes the project, and submit electronic comments through the park's Planning, Environment and Public Comment (PEPC) website: We invite you to comment on this EA during the 30-day public review period. You may do so by any one of several methods. The preferred method of providing comments is through the NPS's Planning, Environment, and Public Comment (PEPC) website for the park at: http://parkplanning.nps.gov/CHOH.

You may also submit written comments by February 20, 2019 to the following address:

Kevin D. Brandt, Superintendent
C&O Canal NHP
c/o McMahon's Mill Towpath Improvement Project EA
1850 Dual Highway, Suite 100
Hagerstown, MD 21740-6620

NOTE: Before including an address, phone number, email address or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment including your personal identifying information may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Document Content:

Reconstruct and Stabilize Historic Stone Wall and Towpath McMahons Mill to Lock 42 EA.pdf   (5.2 MB, PDF file) Disclaimer: Links within the above document(s) were valid as of the date published. Note: Some of the files may be in PDF format and can be viewed using the Adobe Acrobat Reader software. You may download a free copy of from Adobe Systems.