A pilot program on the Mohawk River is hoping to help prevent ice jams.

The tugboat Margot sails between Lock 7 in Niskayuna and Lock 8 in Rotterdam, reinforced with ¾” steel to break up the ice, sending it down river before it can cause ice jams and flooding.

This is the fifth year of this ice breaking program.

It’s a partnership between the New York Power Authority, the New York State Marine Highway, and the New York State Canal Corporation.

“We proactively bring these tugboats to above Lock 7 at the of October before the canals close for the season,” Shane Mahar said. He’s the director of public engagement for the Canal Corporation.

This pilot program is also gathering data, through Clarkson University and Union College. The goal is to learn more about how to make the Mohawk River more resilient against ice jams.

“We had a technical model done with Clarkson University, and the ice thickness should be 14 inches right now,” Jeff Gritsavege, Eastern Region Water Management Engineer for the Canal Corporation, said. “But we’ve been able to keep it down to about 8.5 – 8.75 on average.”

Gritsavege says he feels they are staying ahead of the ice jam problem. Mahar wants to emphasize, this is just one tool in the toolbox and the Margot cannot act alone.

“Our hope is that this open channel of water here will allow those larger chunks [of ice] to continue to flow downstream and not back up and create flooding,” Mahar said.

Watch Rachel Tiede’s story above to hear how this winter has been more brutal than last winter for the Margot and her crew.