Healing Our Waters Coalition » Success Stories

$50 million pollution cleanup aims to make Indiana’s Grand Calumet River grand again

Jeff Alexander — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:36:16 +0000

A few miles southeast of Chicago, in the shadow of an elevated toll road that links the Windy City to Indiana, crews are transforming one of America’s most polluted rivers into an oasis for wildlife.

The Grand Calumet River was abused for more than a century by cities and industries that used it as a sewer. Decades of toxic discharges blanketed the river bottom with a thick layer of poisonous mud that fouled the water, drove away every species of fish except carp and goldfish, and coated birds in oil.

A $50 million cleanup of the Grand Calumet’s west branch project aims to reverse the damage and restore life to a river and associated wetlands that once attracted scores of migratory birds.

“We’re returning this to a real river,” said Scott Ireland, a scientist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. “We’re already seeing some bird species returning.”

Before the cleanup, the Roxana Marsh was choked with cattails and Phragmites. (EPA photo)

Daniel Sparks, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist who has worked on the Grand Calumet River project since 1989, said aquatic life could return to the river’s west branch soon after the cleanup is finished.

“We’re making real progress; I’m excited,” Sparks said. “Fish could spawn again in this river someday.”

River is one of many Great Lakes toxic hotspots
The Grand Calumet River is one of 42 Great Lakes Areas of Concern. The river flows 13 miles through the heavily industrialized cities of Gary, East Chicago and Hammond, Ind., before flowing into Lake Michigan via the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal.

Roxana Marsh after contaminated sediments and invasive plants were removed. (EPA photo)

The river and harbor — which drain an area that is home to 57 severe pollution sites and wastewater treatment plants that still discharge untreated sewage into the river — contain between 5 million and 10 million cubic yards of contaminated sediment. About 150,000 cubic yards of that polluted sediment washes out of the river and into Lake Michigan annually, according to government studies.

The river’s toxic underbelly was fouled by a witch’s brew of toxic wastes, including oil and grease, heavy metals, PCBs, according to government records.

Cleaning up all of the Grand Calumet River and the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal will cost more than $100 million, according to federal officials.

Since last year, crews working for the U.S. EPA and Indiana Department of Environmental Management have dredged 232,000 cubic yards of toxic sediment from the west branch of the Grand Calumet and one of its largest wetlands, the 19-acre Roxana Marsh. Workers also removed several acres of invasive Phragmites and, in February, will begin depositing a layer of clean sand, clay and rugged fabric on the river bottom that will serve as a cap atop 345,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediments that will be left behind.

Ireland said the sand and clay cap would isolate the remaining pollutants from the river and allow the waterway to heal. He said there wasn’t enough money to remove all of the toxic mud.

“In some areas toxins are found 15 feet below the bottom of the river,” Ireland said.

Federal program is cleansing the lakes
Funding for the cleanup came from the EPA’s Great Lakes Legacy Act program and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. State and federal agencies collected $72 million from companies that polluted the river, Ireland said.

The Great Lakes Legacy Act, which is now implemented through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, has proven to be one of the region’s most effective cleanup programs since it was established in 2002. Money from the program has cleaned up 1.5 million cubic yards of contaminated sediment at sites in Indiana, Michigan, New York, Ohio and Wisconsin. Go here to learn more about the program.

This map shows the location of all 42 Great Lakes Areas of Concern.

U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky, a Democrat who represents northern Indiana, championed the Great Lakes Legacy Act in Congress and helped secure funding to clean up the Grand Calumet River.

Visclosky in 2008 told the Post Tribune of Gary, Ind., that the benefits of cleaning up the Grand Calumet extend far beyond the boundaries of the river’s basin.

“It will help improve water quality in all areas downstream, including the Indiana Harbor Ship Canal and Lake Michigan,” Visclosky said. “It is one in a series of historic efforts to clean up over a century of contamination in those waters and return them to their natural purity.”

Ireland, who has worked on the Grand Calumet project for 20 years, said he wasn’t sure the cleanup would ever get off the ground.

“If you had asked me 15 years ago if I thought this river would ever be cleaned up, I would have been hard pressed to say yes,” Ireland said recently. “People thought this river would be polluted forever.”

Cornell Davidson, a lifelong resident of East Chicago, Ind., called the Grand Calumet River cleanup “a very good thing.”

“I’m hoping they can get rid of all of the pollution,” Davidson said. “Maybe it will improve our quality of life and we can live longer.”

Dam removal resurrects a trout stream

Jeff Alexander — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 00:52:15 +0000

A northern Michigan trout stream that was used for years to support a commercial fish farm is flowing freely again after a dozen small dams were removed.

The Flowing Well Trout Farm, built near Kalkaska, Michigan the mid-1900s, erected 12 small dams to create fish rearing ponds. The dams diverted the north branch of the Manistee River and the Flowing Well Creek, which caused unnaturally high water temperatures, blocked fish passage and disrupted the natural movement of sediment and woody debris in the coldwater trout streams.

Removing the dams restored natural conditions in 37 miles of the streams, which increased the native brook trout population.

Go here for more details on the project.

Cleveland project restores natural features in creek

Jeff Alexander — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:06:29 +0000

A $923,758 makeover has restored some of the natural beauty to a long-abused creek that flows into Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River.

Decades of urban development in Cleveland had turned Big Creek into a polluted mess that was prone to flooding. A restoration project tackled by a group of government agencies and private engineering firms brought Big Creek back to life, reduced flooding and created new wetlands that will provide habitat for fish and wildlife.

Ultimately, the project will help reduce the volume of sediment and non-point source pollution flowing into Lake Erie.

The transformation of the creek was remarkable. Go here to read more and see photos of the project.

Trout stream benefits from changes to road-stream crossings

Jeff Alexander — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 19:13:12 +0000

Dams aren’t the only structures that block fish passage and disrupt the natural movement of aquatic life and nutrients in rivers and streams — road crossings can also wreak havoc on waterways.

In northeast Michigan, the conservation group Huron Pines assembled a coalition of public and private organizations to upgrade 10 road-stream crossings over Silver Creek, a trout stream that flows into the Ocqueoc River. The Ocqueoc River is a tributary of Lake Huron.

New culverts like this one allow fish and other aquatic life to move freely throughout Silver Creek. (Photo courtesy of Huron Pines)

The coalition improved 10 road-stream crossings that either blocked fish passage or were major sources of sand and silt washing into the river and burying prime fish spawning areas. New culverts were installed at six sites and all of the roads over the creek were paved. The culverts and paving reduced sediment runoff into the creek and allowed fish and other aquatic life to move freely throughout the waterway and the Ocqueoc River.

The Silver Creek Super Project, as it is known, is a great example of how upgrading road-stream crossings can dramatically improve the health of a stream and the aquatic life that lives in it. Go here to learn more about the project.

Modifying dam helps Lake Huron pike fishery recover

Jeff Alexander — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 20:12:10 +0000

There are thousands of dams in the Great Lakes basin, many of which alter river flows, disrupt the movement of sediment and nutrients and isolate fish and other aquatic life from valuable habitat.

Many states are working to remove or modify obsolete dams to permit fish passage and restore a more natural flow of water.

Installing rock steps in the Potagannissing River allowed northern pike to reach prime spawning areas.

One such project was completed recently on Drummond Island, in Michigan’s portion of northern Lake Huron. Learn more here.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources worked with federal officials and a local conservation group to modify the Potagannissing Dam. Built in 1947, the dam blocked fish passage in the Potagannissing River and contributed to a decline of the northern pike population in northern Lake Huron.

The Michigan DNR installed a fish ladder in 1999, but northern pike were unable to navigate the structure. So the state removed three feet from the top of the dam and built a series of four rock-ramp structures, which allowed all species of fish to swim over the dam and reach 800 acres of prime spawning habitat areas upstream.

The Potagannissing Dam modification was one of a growing number of projects that are reconnecting the Great Lakes to more of their tributaries. Projects like these are systematically restitching the biological fabric of the sprawling Great Lakes ecosystem.

Great Lakes restoration attracting cruise ships to Detroit

Jeff Alexander — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:21:03 +0000

More Great Lakes cruise ships will visit Michigan in 2012, according to a Detroit Free Press article, and one of the most significant destinations is Detroit.

The MV Yorktown

The fact that cruise ships are visiting Detroit is proof that Great Lakes restoration isn’t just good for the lakes — it also stimulates the economy.

Forty years ago, cruise ship operators wouldn’t have dreamed of visiting Detroit. The Detroit River was a toxic mess and the city’s waterfront was dominated by factories, cement silos and other unsightly industrial facilities.

The Detroit River and riverfront have been transformed in recent years from industrial wasteland to recreational haven.

The river supports a thriving fishery, is home to a diverse wildlife population and is popular among boaters.

Detroit’s waterfront has been transformed by the Detroit Riverwalk, a spectacular 5-mile long pathway that has reintroduced residents of the Motor City to the city’s namesake river and is serving as a catalyst for the redevelopment of downtown Detroit.

The Free Press reported that the 138-passenger MV Yorktown, along with its 100-passenger sister ships Grande Mariner and Niagara Prince, will visit Michigan 23 times in 2012. Thirteen of those cruises will begin or end at Detroit’s new dock.

The ships will also visit Wyandotte, Holland, Beaver Island, the Soo, Manistee, Saugatuck, Mackinac Island, Whitefish Point, Houghton, Munising and Charlevoix, according to Free Press travel writer Ellen Creager. Go here for itineraries.

“It is fantastic news for Michigan tourism — and could mean an influx of more than 2,500 tourists to visit our shores,” Creager said.

Michigan’s growing reputation as a destination for Great Lakes cruises demonstrates the economic value of restoring the lakes. Studies have found that every dollar invested in Great Lakes restoration generates two dollars of economic activity.

President Obama and Congress have invested $775 million in the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative during the first two years of the program. Funding for the GLRI could be slashed, however, as Congress looks to trim the federal budget deficit.

Great Lakes programs aren’t immune to budget cuts. But in an era of government programs having to justify their existence, it’s important for Congress to remember that Great Lakes restoration heals the lakes and boosts the region’s economy.

Detroit is proof of that.