Pearl River County plans weir rehabilitation to restore East Pearl River
Pearl River County officials are pursuing a rehabilitation of the Walkiah Bluff Weir to restore water flow into the East Pearl River and improve recreation, wildlife habitat and local economies, County Economic Development Director Lindsay Ward said.
The project remains in the planning and permitting stage and requires coordination with state and federal partners before construction can begin, Ward said. She added that no construction timeline has been finalized.
Ward said Sen. Angela Burks Hill, R-Picayune, and Rep. Stacey Hobgood-Wilkes, R-Picayune, have worked with county officials to advance the project. A conceptual rendering of the proposed rehabilitation, credited to Peyton Neely, shows how the work might restore flow into the East Pearl River, Ward said.
Ward said an environmental impact study completed in the early 1990s recommended maintaining a 50-50 split in water flow between the Pearl River in Mississippi and the East Pearl River, and that the Walkiah Bluff Weir was built to regulate that flow. “You have a lot of homes that are built along the Pearl River that have the potential to lose a significant amount of economic value,” she said.
Ward said heavy spring flooding in 2022 caused the structure to fail and reduced flow left parts of the river too shallow for boating and other recreation. She said restoring water levels would improve access to Walkiah Bluff Park and the public boat launch and provide benefits for residents and visitors. “They can get out in their kayaks, they can launch their boats, and they have enough water to launch them, too,” Ward said.
Ward said responsibility for maintaining the structure previously rested with the Pearl River Basin Development District, which she said was created by the Mississippi Legislature in 1964 and later ceased operations. County officials continue to work with state and federal partners to complete planning, permitting and funding requirements before the project can move into construction, she said.
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