NEWPORT – A public forum is scheduled tonight with the Newport selectmen to discuss plans for the removal of the Main Street dam.

Selectmen meet at 6:30 p.m. in the meeting room at the town office.

The dam removal, slated for fall, will be funded by the Maine Department of Marine Resources as part of an effort to restore historic fish populations to the Kennebec River watershed. Sebasticook Lake and Sebasticook River are tributaries of the Kennebec.

The project is part of a plan made possible with the removal of the Edwards Dam at Augusta.

State representatives are expected tonight to attend to respond to questions from town officials and the public about the project. Property owners along the river were notified of the meeting. Town officials are especially interested in learning what will happen to the land exposed once the dam is removed.

The dam removal project is scheduled when water levels are lower in the fall and the costs associated with the project could be less, a DMR official said last month.

The lower water level also will assist with the installation of a fish passage at the North Street dam. The fish passage at the outlet to Sebasticook Lake will include a series of pools and chutes that will enable the public to watch the fish pass through the system and also will reduce the volume of water needed from the lake.

Other agenda items scheduled for discussion include regular updates on the industrial park development and plans for replacing Durham Bridge.