Success Stories

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/tree-equity-grants-restore-urban-tree-canopies-in-illinois-indiana-and-wisconsin

The Wild Mile: Floating Wetlands Restore Diverse Wildlife to the Chicago River

On: August 2, 2024

Deep in the heart of urban Chicago, a network of floating wetlands is restoring native wildlife habitats, increasing biodiversity, and encouraging recreation along the north branch of the Chicago River.

Known as The Wild Mile, the interconnected islands were installed by grassroots environmental restoration organization Urban Rivers in 2017 and have since been dubbed the world’s first floating eco-park.

“We were really just looking at this underutilized space and seeing the potential for people to come and connect with their river system in a way they didn't get to throughout Chicago,” says Research Director Phil Nicodemus. “We wanted to create community around these new spaces so people would come here and understand more about the river system than they did before. Hopefully, they come away realizing this is a natural resource that’s ready to be retaken by people and wildlife.”

Interspersed with publicly accessible boardwalks that provide access to the river for recreation like kayaking, the floating gardens are comprised of environmentally neutral materials like HDPE plastic pontoons, coconut husk, porous clay aggregate, stainless steel, and a sustainable treated wood called Kebony.

Home to approximately 30 species of native plants—including blue vervain, swamp milkweed, buttonbush, greater angelica, and various types of river rushes—the wetlands help filter the water via their root systems and provide important habitat for wildlife and pollinators. Muskrats, beavers, ducks, herons, fish, mussels, snapping turtles, monarch butterflies, great black wasps, and bees are just a few of the creatures that have benefited from these habitats.

Together, The Wild Mile and its inhabitants help combat what Nicodemus calls “urban river syndrome,” a phenomenon caused by more than a century of urban development and industry in Chicago.

“A lot of these waterways have been channelized, dredged, and really confined to a certain box,” he explains. “They want this to be the box in which ships move up and down. They're not going to let it flood. They're not going to let it move its banks. They're not going to let little side pools of water sit around for a while. They're taking away absorbent ground and replacing it with impermeable surface. Those things are very hard on ecosystems.”

Abundant concrete, high seawalls, artificial lighting, and pollution are all factors that have historically made the Chicago River inhospitable for plants and wildlife. Nicodemus says the health of the river has improved markedly in recent years, with fish populations improving from just 10 in 1974 to more than 75 today. However, chemicals from road runoff, refuse from riverside industry, and human fecal waste from combined sewer overflows continue to create concern for the health of the river system.

“In an urban environment, all the stuff your car spits out, all this fossil fuel generation, it’s all going to stick to walls, surfaces, pavement, tree leaves, and all these other things, and when it rains, it's all getting washed into the sewer system,” Nicodemus says.

Once native to the river, wetland habitats serve important environmental functions like removing pollution from the water, preventing erosion by storing water, stabilizing shorelines, and providing habitat for wildlife. These benefits not only influence urban Chicago, but also help protect water quality throughout the vast network of waterways connected to the Chicago River, including the Des Plaines, Illinois, Calumet, and Mississippi rivers. Activity on the Chicago River can also help—or harm—the Lake Michigan watershed, which provides drinking water to more than 10 million people.

“Whether we realize it or not, the health of all these other organisms is also the health of us,” says Nicodemus, who adds that the root systems of the floating wetlands have helped reduce excess phosphorus and nitrates in Chicago River by up to 7% during the growing season. “There is no environment that’s not intricately connected to the rest of its region and by making a city this big, impassable, immovable object and not letting nature breathe through it, you're creating [these issues.]”

Like many urban river systems, the Chicago River is regularly cleared of natural materials like fallen trees, leaves, and other debris that make up wetland ecosystems. To help create a fully cohesive habitat, Urban Rivers has harvested nearby invasive trees and anchored them in the water near the wetlands to provide an environment for algae and microbes to grow. These organisms are important food sources for fish, the addition of these woody habitats helps support the greater food chain.

“[Microbes and algae] are what little fish are eating, then bigger fish are eating the smaller fish, birds are eating those fish, and so on through the whole ecosystem,” says Nicodemus. “That’s just a simple piece where we were using materials that were already on site that were going to get wasted anyway and turning them into pieces of habitat.”

Part of ensuring The Wild Mile fulfills its mission means encouraging residents of riverside communities and beyond to engage with the wetlands through community activities and outdoor recreation. To that end, Urban Rivers hosts regular yoga nights, acoustic jam sessions, workshops, and educational seminars.

Visitors are also invited to help caretake The Wild Mile through volunteerism, which includes tasks related to wetland maintenance like removing invasive species and collecting data on the birds, fish, bugs, and trash present in the river.

With the help of its many partners, including Shedd Aquarium, National Geographic, and the City of Chicago, Urban Rivers has expanded to three additional project sites throughout the Chicago River system. These sites are located at Bubbly Creek, a notoriously polluted section of the south branch; the popular River Park, where the floating islands help stabilize vulnerable shorelines; and on the Prologis industrial property along the south branch, made possible by a public-private partnership.

The Wild Mile has been funded primarily through approximately $3.2 million from the City of Chicago’s Open Space Impact Fee fund, a tax placed on new residential units that goes toward the construction of new local parks and greenspaces. Funding for Urban Rivers’ other locations was awarded primarily from the Chi-Cal Rivers Fund via the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Total costs for the projects are expected to reach approximately $50 million.

In recent years, Urban Rivers has collaborated with organizations all over the world to help them plan for their own networks of floating wetlands. So far, the organization has shared research and information with organizations in Baltimore, Maryland; Boston, Massachusetts; and Seattle, Washington, and helped provide general guidance to organizations in Tampa, Florida; Seattle, Washington; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Michigan City and Fort Wayne, Indiana; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and Paris, France.

“We're finding slowly but surely that all these other urbanized waterways throughout the world are really interested in this kind of stuff,” says Nicodemus. “All these places have very similar issues, so it makes sense that people are always looking for a guiding light and for a way out of their industrial legacy that a lot of these waterways face.”

Visit urbanriv.org.

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/the-wild-mile-floating-wetlands-restore-diverse-wildlife-to-the-chicago-river

Protecting Pollinators: Native Plant Prairies Preserve Vital Indiana Ecosystems

On: July 17, 2024

Originally founded to preserve the famous Northwest Indiana sand dunes around Lake Michigan, nonprofit conservation organization Save the Dunes has evolved over 72 years of environmental stewardship to address a myriad of additional challenges facing the region, including threats to biodiversity and native habitats.

In 2019, Save the Dunes joined forces with the Indiana Dunes National Park and other regional partners to increase habitat connectivity and migration pathways for pollinators—some of the most important creatures in the global ecosystem.

“One out of every three bites [of food] you take is made possible by a pollinator,” explains Katie Hobgood, program director at Save the Dunes. “Humans as a species depend on pollinators, and they are in decline.”

Worldwide, approximately 35% of produce and more than 75% of flowering plants rely on pollinators like bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, beetles, bats, and wasps to reproduce. Indiana alone is home to more than 430 species of bees, 2,000 species of moths, and 144 species of butterflies, among many others. These essential creatures not only pollinate food sources for humans, but also help produce the fruit and seeds that make up the diet of an estimated 25% of birds and many mammals.

“The [pollinators] of the world really are the linchpin in our global ecosystem, so seeing them decline is very scary,” says Hobgood. “They're what keep the plants going because they're pollinating them, and then they're also keeping the food chain above them going as well. It’s a very key role they play.”

Today, more than 40% of invertebrate pollinators like bees, butterflies and moths and 16.5% of vertebrate pollinators like birds and bats are considered highly threatened. Factors like climate change, widespread habitat loss and fragmentation, and the increased use of herbicides and pesticides have contributed to population decline for all types of pollinators.

To help address these concerns, Save the Dunes works with the national park to distribute grant dollars from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to Northwest Indiana partners like Shirley Heinze Land Trust and the Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO). These funds have made it possible for Save the Dunes and its partners to improve up to 367 acres per year and protect pollinators by planting native plant prairies and removing invasive species.

*The “before” of an area in Northwest Indiana improved through GLRI funding. Credit: Steve Barker, NIPSCO*

*The “after” of an area in Northwest Indiana improved through GLRI funding. Credit: Steve Barker, NIPSCO*

“The purpose of this project is to connect high quality natural areas by improving marginal lands so they can serve as corridors for pollinators,” explains Hobgood. “Because of how much development there is in our region, it makes it even more important that we take any opportunity we have to restore habitats and put in high quality ecosystems.”

So far, the project has improved habitats on national park property, Shirley Heinze nature preserves, and NIPSCO-owned utility rights-of-way. These rights-of-way “run through everything,” says Hobgood, and present unique opportunities to establish habitat connectivity along roadsides, beneath powerlines, and in other traditionally overlooked places.

Restoring habitat connectivity allows migrating pollinators like butterflies, hummingbirds, and bats to overwinter in other locations, a process that protects them from extreme temperatures and provides safe passage to necessary food sources and breeding grounds.

“[NIPSCO] owns or manages miles and miles of rights-of-way,” Hobgood says. “[This project] is literally connecting the entire region.”

As an additional environmental boon, investing in native plants requires less human intervention than traditional lawn grasses, helping conserve resources that would otherwise be used for maintenance like mowing, fertilizer, and watering.

“That's one of the perks of planting natives. They've evolved to live here without your help,” Hobgood explains. “In other areas, there’s all this mowed grass everywhere. It serves no ecological purpose.”

Native plants not only feed and house wildlife, but also play other vital roles for the environment, like cleaning and storing soil and water via their root systems and filtering the air by absorbing carbon dioxide.

*A pollinator watering station. Credit: Save the Dunes*

“Native plants are great sponges for storm runoff and improve soil health, which in turn improves water,” says Hobgood. “It's all connected. Habitat restoration has a really positive impact on our rivers and streams—and eventually Lake Michigan.”

Each year, Save the Dunes supplements this work by hosting events such as pollinator presentations and garden clean ups that educate the community on the importance of these habitats and the creatures that rely on them. In 2024, Hobgood and her team are installing a pollinator garden at their headquarters in Michigan City, Indiana, and have invited the community to participate in activities like killing grass, installing new native plants, and creating pollinator watering stations. The finished garden will include informational plaques to give visitors insight into the native plants and pollinators on site.

Hobgood says she hopes projects like these encourage people to think about small changes they can make to protect pollinators on their own properties.

“We’re trying to lead by example and show people how it works so that it’s a little bit easier for them to replicate at home,” she says. “Your backyard is a waystation. … It's on all of us to do our part.

In addition to planting native species, Hobgood recommends eliminating pesticides, providing water sources, and creating homes for insects in the form of fallen leaves and wood piles.

*The cover of Save the Dunes’ free pollinator guide. Credit: Save the Dunes*

To demystify that process, Save the Dunes has published a free pollinator guide, which includes photos and detailed information about a variety of native pollinators—such as sweat bees, hummingbird moths, and monarch butterflies—and native plants like wild geranium, witch hazel, and great blue lobelia. The visual guide also features proposed garden layouts and provides readers with a list of ten of the region’s most invasive plants, making them easier to avoid.

“We create a ton of free resources to try and get information in the hands of the people who need it,” Hobgood says. “We're trying to connect with communities to educate them when that's appropriate and help them become stewards of the land themselves.”

Save the Dunes, which currently operates in Indiana’s Lake, Porter, and LaPorte counties, also addresses water and industrial pollution in and around Lake Michigan. Hobgood says the organization’s projects in conservation, advocacy, and community engagement aim to “highlight for the general public the incredible [natural landscapes] that we have here in Northwest Indiana.”

Visit SaveTheDunes.org

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/protecting-pollinators-native-plant-prairies-preserve-vital-indiana-ecosystems

Tackling Michigan’s Water Crisis

On: June 24, 2024

*People in Detroit advocating against water shutoffs in 2014. Credit: We the People of Detroit*

On the heels of Detroit, Michigan’s famous Chapter 9 bankruptcy in 2013, the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department shut off water to more than 120,000 residents over the course of three years, marking what is now considered the largest residential water shut off in United States history.

The utility cited $89 million in unpaid bills as their reason for the shut offs, but Kristy Meyer, campaign director at Water Equals Life (WEL) Coalition, says this decision put residents who were already struggling at risk for illness, psychological and social harm, and further economic suffering.

“People don't fully understand how a lack of access to water in your tap can impact individual lives and everybody else's lives, too,” says Meyer. “Nationally, as a result of water insecurity, there are 219,000 cases of waterborne illnesses and 71,000 cases of mental illness that cost our economy 68.7 million work hours and an estimated 610 lives [each year].”

To help address the impacts of water insecurity, the WEL Coalition was created by three founding organizations—We the People of Detroit, Freshwater Future, and the National Wildlife Federation—to advocate for water justice and affordability in Michigan and beyond.

Today, the WEL Coalition is comprised of 26 local, state, regional, and national partner organizations working together to advocate for policies that address water affordability for all Michigan residents. WEL members also address public health concerns, infrastructure needs, climate change, and other compounding issues that contribute to the water crisis. These people-centric elements of Great Lakes restoration work are often underprioritized but make up a vital aspect of well-being for communities throughout the region.

“This is not just an individual crisis, this is all of our crisis,” says Meyer. “We need to be able to solve this problem collectively together. Everyone should have clean, safe water. No exceptions.”

*A room full of bottled water that was handed out to Detroit residents at the beginning of the COVID crisis. Credit: We the People of Detroit*

Since 1977, federal investment in water has declined from 63% of capital spending to just 9% in 2017. With less federal support, the burden of water infrastructure upgrades has increasingly been placed on local ratepayers in the form of skyrocketing utility bills.

Tiana Starks, chair of the communications committee for the WEL Coalition and director of communications at We the People of Detroit, explains that water costs in Michigan have risen to consume as much as 25% of residents’ disposable household income in some areas, including Detroit.

“Water insecurity is not just something that impacts people in Detroit and in urban areas. People all across the state of Michigan are being impacted by the increase in water costs,” she says. “The cost of water has gone up over 188% over the last 10 years in Michigan, and in some places that can be as much as 320%.”

During the first wave of mass water shut offs in Detroit in 2014, several founding members of the WEL Coalition were active in grassroots efforts to distribute bottled water to residents. There, they witnessed the effect of these rising costs firsthand.

“When they were distributing water, they would go through the neighborhoods and see water hoses connecting from one family's home to another to try and help,” says Starks. “It was like a system.”

When bottled water was accessible, families often rationed the supplies. First, Starks explains, a family might use some of the water to brush their teeth in the morning. Remaining water would then be used to cook a meal before that same water was recycled to wash dishes. Finally, the dirty dishwater would be used to flush the toilet, ridding the home of waste that had accumulated throughout the day.

The inability to maintain personal or household hygiene practices has a tangible impact on long-term public health. Studies conducted by We the People of Detroit’s Community Research Collective found that the probability of contracting communicable diseases increases dramatically in communities impacted by water shut offs.

“We learned that if you live on a block where one house is shut off from water, you are 1.5 times more likely to get a waterborne illness,” says Starks.

Lack of access to water also increases the likelihood that children will not attend school and that adults will be unable to maintain work, further exacerbating their inability to afford the rising cost of water. According to Michigan law, families may face losing their children if the home is without water for three days. If bills are unpaid long enough, collection agencies may even place liens on resident’s homes.

“It’s really quite devastating what people have to go through,” says Starks. “There is a direct impact on mothers and families when people don't have water in the state of Michigan.”

To combat these impacts, the WEL Coalition hopes to create a statewide water affordability program through the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services. The plan will have four primary goals: to implement a tiered water rate based on household income and the federal poverty line, to lower the cost of water bills, to limit water shut offs, and to provide a path to debt forgiveness.

To pave the road, Meyer says the coalition is working to educate public health officials, legislators, activists, and other interested parties on the difference between water affordability and water assistance. She defines assistance as short-term funding that helps people get back on their feet, whereas affordability is “about permanently lowering water rates.”

Over the course of the last decade, several city-based programs have been introduced across the Great Lakes states to combat rising water rates. The City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, launched its Tiered Assistance Program (TAP) in 2017. In response to local water shut offs, the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department followed suit with its income-based Lifeline Plan in 2022. By evaluating the success of these existing programs, the WEL Coalition can learn more about what works well and what can be improved upon for a statewide affordability plan.

With climate change, increased pollutants like PFAS, and Michigan’s approximately $19 billion need for water infrastructure upgrades, Meyer acknowledges that utility companies are facing greater challenges than ever to provide residents with affordable clean water.

“If there is a true water affordability program, utilities win, as well,” she says. “That's because there is a large amount of people that can't pay their water bill right now, so water utilities aren't getting that money, no matter what.”

She looks to TAP as an example of how water affordability programs can benefit all parties.

“In Philadelphia, people in the TAP program are able to pay their bills,” she says. “The Philadelphia Water Department netted nearly $5 million from people they hadn't in the past because they had a water affordability program in place.”

In the meantime, the WEL Coalition plans to continue its outreach efforts and promote its Water Affordability Pledge, which contains nine tenets in support of clean, affordable water. Meyer says both individuals and entities are welcome to sign.

“If you get to the very core of it, we're made up of 60% water,” she adds. “Water is the very foundation of all of our lives.”

Visit welcoalition.org.

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/tackling-michigans-water-crisis

Good for the Water and Good for the Land: Growing Organic Produce Helped This Fifth-Generation Farm Thrive

On: June 20, 2024

*The interior of the Coveyou Scenic Farm Market. Courtesy of David Coveyou.*

Located in Petoskey, Michigan, just three miles in from Lake Michigan, Coveyou Scenic Farm Market grows a full line of organic vegetables, says fifth-generation farmer David Coveyou.

Once harvested, the vegetables are sold at the on-site market alongside fruits, jams, sauces, baked goods, eggs, meat, and cheeses from more than 120 Michigan vendors. The farm also distributes produce to local schools, restaurants, retail stores, and other community institutions.

“It's wonderful food,” says Coveyou, who explains that the vegetables for sale in the market are often harvested that same day. “When people start realizing that we can eat and enjoy so many things that are made in northern Michigan, they kind of become passionate about eating local. It's hard to go back to off-the-shelf national brands when you've tasted something that's more like this mom-and-pop artisan food.”

The 330-acre farm and market, which overlooks inland Walloon Lake, focuses on environmentally sustainable farming practices using solar power, geothermal cooling, collected rainwater, underground drip irrigation, and natural fertilizers, says Coveyou.

“I'm growing a lot closer to the way my great grandfather grew before the conventional trends of the last generation, where everything is synthetic,” he says. “It allows us to grow better quality produce—healthier produce—but also to preserve and conserve our land. Everything we're using is found in nature.”

*David Coveyou and his wife, Kathy. Courtesy of David Coveyou.*

Together, Coveyou and his wife and four children, along with a team of 12 employees, grow their produce using Michigan-made Dairy Doo sustainable fertilizers. Compared to synthetic fertilizers, which are created using an industrial process that relies heavily on natural gases, these organic fertilizers are far healthier for the planet.

Comprised of naturally occurring ingredients like manure, compost, rocks, shells, and bones, organic fertilizers help safeguard the soil and nearby watersheds by reducing excess nutrient runoff—a common problem with synthetic fertilizers. Upon application, organic fertilizers are mixed with the dirt, helping to improve soil quality over time. Synthetic fertilizers, on the other hand, are mixed with water and sprayed onto crops, providing a short-term burst of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus.

“All these synthetic, water-soluble fertilizers are actually leeching into our water systems,” says Coveyou. “When they dissolve in water, whether it's from rain or your sprinklers, they're getting into our sandy soils, into the lakes, and going further down into the well systems.”

In the United States, the agriculture industry applies an estimated four million tons of phosphorus and 12 million tons of nitrogen to crops each year, making agriculture the largest nationwide contributor to harmful nutrient runoff into our waterways. Once these elements are introduced to the watershed, they pollute drinking water—particularly for the more than 13 million U.S. households that rely on well water—and contribute to harmful algal blooms that produce toxins and threaten the health of humans and wildlife.

These elements are also harmful when used as lawn fertilizers for residential properties, says Coveyou, further contributing to poor soil and water quality in areas that are already oversaturated. Soil testing, which is often provided for free by universities and nonprofit organizations, can offer insight into the existing nutrient content of the soil to determine if lawn treatments are necessary prior to application.

“Once [a synthetic fertilizer] dissolves in the water and gets into the water table, it does your lawn no good,” says Coveyou. “If your lawn guy has to come back more than three times a year, you’re basically washing a ton of it into the water stream.”

Although investing in a native plant lawn is the most environmentally friendly alternative to traditional grass lawns, homeowners that aren’t ready to take that plunge should explore organic fertilizers as a more responsible method of fertilizing their lawns.

“There are very good lawn services that use organic fertilizers,” Coveyou suggests. “It doesn’t matter where you are, but especially if you have a lakefront home. It’s the low hanging fruit of what we can do in our community to make it better.”

In addition to using sustainable fertilizers, Coveyou Scenic Farm Market strives for energy efficiency and water conservation. Twice recognized by the Michigan Governor’s Energy Excellence Award Committee, the farm is powered via a solar array and uses geothermal heating and cooling.

Coveyou also collects rainwater from the roof of a 5,000-square-foot greenhouse, which is stored in a 13,000-gallon tank and used for watering crops. Each year, Coveyou and his team install more than 40 miles of ground-level drip irrigation tubing that pull from both the rainwater and a spring-fed pond on the property. Coveyou says this water is warmer and higher in mineral content than water sourced from deeper in the watershed, both qualities that help crops thrive.

Furthermore, this method helps conserve water, a resource that is often overburdened by the agricultural industry, which accounts for an estimated 80% of annual U.S. water consumption.

“Water gets to our produce in the most efficient way,” Coveyou says. “Everything is in the ground to conserve water.”

*David Coveyou harvesting plants. Courtesy of David Coveyou.*

As Coveyou Scenic Farm Market celebrates its 150th year in 2024, Coveyou is reflecting on the fact that, just 30 years ago, the future of his family’s 330-acre property was uncertain.

“When I was growing up, our farm was all cereal grains—oats, wheat, barley, buckwheat—that we’d sell to all these other farmers in the area,” he recalls. “All those other farmers, their farms are basically grassy fields we drive by now in northern Michigan. It’s hard to believe in just over 30 years how many of these farms have gone out of business.”

When Coveyou and his parents made the decision to convert to organic vegetable farming 25 years ago, it was before what he calls “the local food craze,” and the family wasn’t sure how it would be received.

“This was the quintessential problem,” says Coveyou. “How do you make a farm in northern Michigan economically viable? We’ve got a really special farm here in a special location, and I didn’t want it going out on my watch.”

Since leaning into its niche, Coveyou Scenic Farm Market has seen annual growth and become a regional leader in organic farming and sustainability. As the farm continues to grow, Coveyou hopes to spread the word to other farmers on how to create a similar model.

“It’s continuous change, continuous evolution, continuous growth,” he says. “Without it, we really would be just like our neighbors, just a bunch of grassy fields … I feel so blessed and fortunate that we’re able to play a key role in our community and to have such great community support.”

Visit coveyouscenicfarm.com.

Coveyou Scenic Farm Market is also part of the Great Lakes Business Network, bringing together business owners who are committed to the protection of the Great Lakes. Learn more at glbusinessnetwork.com

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/good-for-the-water-and-good-for-the-land-growing-organic-produce-helped-this-fifth-generation-farm-thrive

Making the Apostle Islands More Accessible for Visitors with Disabilities

On: March 14, 2024

BAYFIELD, WISCONSIN

Adding accessible ramps, boat launches, trails, and signage is helping visitors with disabilities access a culturally and environmentally significant Great Lakes destination.

The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, known for its natural beauty and views of Lake Superior, is becoming more accessible for visitors with disabilities.

Officially designated a national lakeshore in 1970, the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is located near Bayfield, Wisconsin, where it overlaps with a portion of the Red Cliff Reservation. The 21 publicly available Apostle Islands have deep historical and cultural significance for the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and attract more than 200,000 visitors per year.

Tourists travel to the site to visit the famous sea caves, kayak in Lake Superior, explore historic lighthouses, walk along the 12-mile mainland lakeshore, and much more. However, thanks to uneven terrain and inaccessible infrastructure, not all guests have been able to fully experience the area’s natural splendor.

Federal investments to restore and protect the Great Lakes are helping ensure that everyone, including those with mobility needs, non-English speakers, and people with disabilities, can access and enjoy the myriad benefits—such as hiking, wildlife viewing, fishing, and water sports—across the region.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 12% of Americans live with mobility needs that make it difficult to do activities like climb stairs or walk on rocky beaches. At the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, these difficulties have been exemplified at places like the popular Meyer’s Beach, where a 45-step staircase between the parking lot and the shore has prevented visitors with mobility concerns from accessing outdoor recreation opportunities at the nearby boat launch.

Accessible viewing platform up to binoculars on a dock at Little Sand Bay.
Credit: National Park Service

Since 2022, the Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore—a nonprofit organization comprised of local water recreation enthusiasts, conservationists, businesspeople, and other advisors—have been raising funds to improve accessibility to the area. At the forefront of these efforts are plans for a 500-foot Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible ramp, bilingual informational displays, audio and tactile accommodations for blind and deaf visitors, and a wheelchair-accessible overlook on the dock at Little Sand Bay.

Updates also include a network of accessible trails along the mainland lakeshore, which was previously without formal hiking and walking paths. By introducing these trails, conservationists hope to prevent habitat destruction and damage to lakeside flora from “social trails,” which are created when visitors forge their own paths through the environment.

These improvements are made possible in part by a $165,577 grant from the U.S. National Park Service via funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Additional funding includes an in-progress $325,000 fundraiser by the Friends of the Apostle Islands. As early as this year, Park Service officials will collaborate with the Friends of the Apostle Islands and other key partners to begin work on these projects.

Continued investment in the Apostle Islands not only inspires tourism in Wisconsin, but also helps the National Park Service study, preserve, and protect a myriad of local wildlife, including deer, bears, foxes, coyotes, beavers, otters, hares, waterfowl, and more than 80 species of fish.

Resource Challenges Addressed

ADA accessibility
Environmental justice
Habitat conservation

Key Partners

U.S. National Park Service, Friends of the Apostle Islands, Wilderness Inquiry, U.S. Access Board, Wisconsin Coastal Management, and various corporate and private advisors

Cost

$490,577

Results and Accomplishments

Upcoming infrastructure improvements to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore will increase accessibility for visitors with disabilities and help preserve local wildlife.

*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/making-the-apostle-islands-more-accessible-for-visitors-with-disabilities

Reducing Water Pollution Caused by Acid Mine Drainage

On: March 14, 2024

LUZERNE COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

Restoring the natural flow of Nanticoke Creek and removing old dams and culverts will help prevent further acid mine drainage, erosion, flooding, and waterway pollution.

After generations of a thriving coal economy, Pennsylvania is now home to approximately 5,000 abandoned underground mines, making up one third of the abandoned mine lands in the country. These mines—which often produce a form of water pollution known as acid mine drainage—release toxic metals, contaminants, and methane gas into the environment and pose serious health risks for humans and wildlife.

While acid mine drainage is not as common in the Great Lakes Basin as other forms of pollution and environmental harm, it is important to recognize the different threats to local waters and how they impact drinking water, public health, and quality of life. One of the principles of Great Lakes restoration and protection is the need to tackle—in a comprehensive way—all of the issues impacting the waters that people and wildlife rely on.

Acid mine drainage is the leading source of water pollution in Pennsylvania and occurs when water makes its way through underground mine systems, where it meets with heavy metals and becomes acidic. When this polluted water flows into connected waterways, it introduces toxic metals like lead and mercury into drinking water, damages the soil, harms the growth of plants, and erodes infrastructure like roads and bridges.

An acid mine drainage treatment system on Nanticoke Creek.
Credit: Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection

For Pennsylvania’s Susquehanna River Basin, which spans almost half the land area of the state, acid mine drainage is a primary concern. Today, only 30% of streams in the basin demonstrate the natural hydrological and ecological qualities of a stream, and some have been declared “biologically dead,” meaning they are unable to support aquatic life. Restoration of these streams is a major step toward improving public and environmental health outcomes across the state.

Thanks to federal funding, nonprofit organization Earth Conservancy is undertaking a major restoration process for Nanticoke Creek, a 4.5-mile tributary of the Susquehanna River in Luzerne County. The project will help prevent further acid mine drainage to the Susquehanna River Basin by restoring the creek’s historic alignment and preventing water from flowing into nearby abandoned mines.

To accomplish this, conservationists plan to reconnect the Nanticoke Creek headwaters in the upper part of the stream, allowing water to resume its natural flow. The project will also remove or replace outdated infrastructure like culverts, dams, and bridges to increase the water capacity of the tributary and reduce the risk of erosion and flooding.

In October 2023, Earth Conservancy was awarded $17.5 million in federal grant monies for the restoration of Nanticoke Creek. The funding was awarded by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Abandoned Mine Lands and Acid Mine Drainage Grant Program and was made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which allocated $240 million to the state of Pennsylvania for clean water projects. Along with a $1,956,427 Brownfields Cleanup grant awarded last June by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Earth Conservancy will use this funding to complete 15,000 linear feet of improvements in the Nanticoke Creek restoration plan.

Resource Challenges Addressed

Water pollution
Acid mine drainage
Public health
Flooding
Habitat restoration

Key Partners

Earth Conservancy, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Cost

$19,456,427

Results and Accomplishments

The restoration of Nanticoke Creek will restore 15,000 linear feet of Nanticoke Creek, reducing acid mine drainage, flooding, and erosion.

*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/reducing-water-pollution-caused-by-acid-mine-drainage

Removing Lead Water Pipes in Communities to Protect Public Health

On: March 14, 2024

CLEVELAND, OHIO

Replacing lead water service pipes in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, will reduce the risk of toxic lead exposure for children and adults.

Seventy years after Cleveland, Ohio, stopped installing leadbased water service lines in homes, its Division of Water is still hard at work replacing the county’s approximately 178,000 remaining lead lines with copper. Although the Division of Water has routinely replaced between 2,000 and 3,000 lead pipes per year, its number of lead pipes still rank among the highest in the country. At the current rate of replacement, it will take decades to ensure all 1.4 million people in the Cuyahoga County service area have safe, lead-free service lines.

Replacing lead service lines is an important public health issue. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the presence of lead in drinking water can cause severe negative health effects for adults, children, and fetuses. Adults who consume lead in drinking water may experience symptoms like high blood pressure, a decline in cardiovascular health, increased risk of hypertension, decreased kidney function, and reproductive issues. In pregnant people, lead exposure can result in premature birth and small, undernourished babies. Children may experience anemia, hearing problems, behavioral and learning delays, and, in severe cases, seizures, coma, and death.

Lead pipes that have been removed from a water system

Cleveland Water has been consistently treating the city’s drinking water for lead since 1997, and no new lead-based lines have been installed since 1954, but the utility still says that replacing existing lead lines with non-toxic copper is the safest course of action for Cleveland residents.

To that end, the City has been ramping up its lead pipe replacement efforts since 2021, when it launched a $2.5 million pilot program funded by state and federal dollars to replace lead service lines to more than 450 daycare centers in Cleveland.

From there, the city received $19 million in federal funding from the Ohio EPA, which allowed Cleveland Water to replace more than 4,000 pipes in 2023. The city plans to apply for additional funding, made available as part of $355 million awarded to the Ohio EPA via the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, in similar amounts each year for the next four years.

This support will allow Cleveland to replace 4,000– 6,000 lines annually, with total replacement of all lead service lines expected to be completed in 25 years. Initial work is centered on 13 communities that have been identified as “disadvantaged,” according to guidelines set by the federal government that assess communities based on rates of poverty, unemployment, water affordability, and other factors. Out of the 78 total communities in the Cleveland Water service area, these 13 communities are home to 80% of the lead service lines.

Resource Challenges Addressed

Lead poisoning
Water quality
Water pollution
Water infrastructure
Environmental justice

Key Partners

Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, City of Cleveland Division of Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Labor

Cost

$19,000,000

Results and Accomplishments

Cleveland Water was able to replace more than 4,000 lead pipes in 2023. Future funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will enable the city to continue this progress, removing lead water pipes from 13 disadvantaged Cleveland communities and eliminating 80% of the remaining lead service lines in the city, resulting in better health outcomes for residents of Cuyahoga County

*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/removing-lead-water-pipes-in-communities-to-protect-public-health

Cleaning Up the Scajaquada Creek Watershed

On: March 14, 2024

ERIE COUNTY, NEW YORK

Planning grant sets the stage for revitalizing one of most polluted bodies of water in New York by restoring wetlands, protecting native species, and reducing pollutants into Lakes Erie and Ontario.

Thanks to federal funding, conservationists near Buffalo, New York, are making strides toward major revitalization efforts for Scajaquada Creek, a 13-mile, spring-fed stream that has a significant impact on the health of both humans and wildlife in Erie County and beyond.

Scajaquada Creek, which is considered one of the most polluted bodies of water in the state by the Environmental Protection Agency, flows through a portion of the Erie Canal before emptying into the Niagara River, which in turn connects Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. The stream has been a source of concern for water conservation organization Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper for more than 30 years.

Currently, the stream is heavily polluted by sewage overflow and industrial waste from nearby brownfields (land that is abandoned or underutilized due to pollution from industrial use). Stormwater and sediment runoff contribute to this pollution, which in some areas has resulted in contaminated mud and soil up to five feet deep. As of 2023, Scajaquada Creek contained 20 times more fecal bacteria than is considered safe for human contact and was identified as a breeding ground for avian botulism, a disease that is estimated to have killed thousands of birds in the area.

Initial steps toward revitalization will involve restoring the stream’s natural pathways by addressing issues caused by poor infrastructure, such as straightened channels, hardened shorelines, and buried sections of the stream. Through returning the natural flow of water, conservationists hope to restore at least some of the area’s historic wetlands, 98% of which have been destroyed. Wetlands are important habitats that help filter water and provide homes to countless fish and wildlife species.

Part of a flood risk management feasibility study within the Scajaquada Creek watershed.
Credit: Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper

These restoration efforts will also protect and increase native plant species, address the sewage and industrial pollution problems, and clean up contaminated soil. These improvements will lead to better public health outcomes, not only for the approximately 100,000 people in Buffalo, Cheektowaga, Depew, and Lancaster who rely on the 29-square-mile Scajaquada Creek watershed, but also residents of other interconnected watersheds around Lakes Erie and Ontario.

To fund these projects, Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper was awarded $900,000 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate-Ready Coasts initiative. A portion of the funding, which was made available by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, will go toward a $600,000 feasibility study that will outline next steps for the restoration process.

The feasibility study was initiated in July 2023 by Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District and is being funded by these federal dollars and $250,000 in partner matching from the Margaret L. Wendt Foundation and the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation in western New York.

The study will focus on the portion of the stream that flows through Cheektowaga and is expected to take two years to complete. Upon its completion, the Scajaquada Creek project will become eligible for up to $10 million in federal funds for continuing restoration efforts.

Resource Challenges Addressed

Water pollution
Habitat loss
Wetland degradation
Sewage and industrial waste overflow
Native species conservation
Sediment and stormwater runoff

Key Partners

Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District, Margaret L. Wendt Foundation, Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

Cost

$900,000

Results and Accomplishments

Between now and 2025, a two-year feasibility study will pave the way for major restoration efforts to western New York waterways and wetlands.

*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/cleaning-up-the-scajaquada-creek-watershed

Combating Heat Islands in Disadvantaged Neighborhoods

On: March 14, 2024

SKOKIE, ILLINOIS

The Village of Skokie, Illinois, is planting at least 450 trees by 2028, reducing heat islands and improving health outcomes for its 68,000 residents.

Located 16 miles north of downtown Chicago, the Village of Skokie, Illinois, has committed to increasing its tree coverage from 25.5% to 31% by 2040.

The Village will start by planting 450 free trees over the next five years. Eligible locations for plantings include schools, apartment buildings, condominiums, businesses, and places of worship. For each tree planted, Skokie officials will match the investment with an additional tree on a Village-owned parkway or right-of-way, with the goal of 1,065 new trees.

Increasing tree canopies in urban areas provides numerous health benefits for people and the environment. Studies have shown that the presence of trees leads to better physical and mental health outcomes for people by reducing the risk of respiratory and heart disease, easing stress, and increasing overall life expectancy. A greater concentration of trees has also been linked to reducing childhood obesity by as much as 12%.

By creating shade, trees help remove “heat islands,” exposed areas that experience more extreme temperatures due to a lack of tree cover and prevalence of materials like concrete, asphalt, and glass. This shade provides opportunities for people and wildlife to stay cool and reduces the energy it takes to air condition buildings. Trees also absorb airborne pollutants and carbon dioxide, soak up stormwater, and help prevent flooding. Investing in nature-based solutions—trees, wetlands, forests and rain gardens—is an important strategy for communities to improve the health of their local waters and ultimately the Great Lakes.

Workers planting trees in a Skokie neighborhood.
Credit: Village of Skokie

These strategies are increasingly important to help communities prepare for the impacts of climate change. Skokie’s tree-planting project stems from the city’s environmental sustainability plan, which looked at climate impacts through 2050 and found that many low-income neighborhoods and neighborhoods with higher proportions of People of Color lacked tree canopy coverage compared with more affluent neighborhoods.

Village officials chose to prioritize planting trees in disadvantaged areas and consulted the federal government’s Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool (CEJST) to determine which neighborhoods were the best candidates. The online CEJST database uses U.S. Census data to identify areas across the country that face greater economic, environmental, and sociopolitical burdens.

In 2024, a partnership between the Village of Skokie Beautification & Improvement Commission and the Skokie Chamber of Commerce will begin surveying potential planting locations in these neighborhoods and beyond.

This project is made possible by a $327,000 grant from the Urban and Community Forestry Program, an initiative of the United States Forest Service that awarded nearly $68 million to projects in the Great Lakes region last year. In 2023, the Forest Service received more than $1.1 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act to award to urban communities for forestry projects nationwide.

Resource Challenges Addressed

Tracking of fish contamination
Air pollution
Heat islands
Stormwater runoff
Environmental justice
Mental and physical health

Key Partners

United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Program, Village of Skokie Beautification & Improvement Commission, and Skokie Chamber of Commerce

Cost

$327,000

Results and Accomplishments

By planting trees in disadvantaged neighborhoods, the Village of Skokie will combat heat islands, mitigate pollution, and improve the mental and physical health of residents.

*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/combating-heat-islands-in-disadvantaged-neighborhoods

Protecting the Lake Superior Coastline from Severe Storm Events

On: March 14, 2024

DULUTH, MINNESOTA

Improvements to the downtown Lakewalk in Duluth, Minnesota, are increasing climate resiliency, public safety, and accessibility, along the Lake Superior coastline.

In 2017 and 2018, three major storms along the banks of Lake Superior caused more than $30 million in damage to the waterfront Lakewalk in Duluth, Minnesota.

The Lakewalk—which offers access to downtown tourist districts, beaches, historic sites, and views of the lake—was built in 1986 and expanded over the course of the last 38 years to encompass nearly eight miles of paved, multi-modal pathways for bikers, skateboarders, pedestrians, and anyone else interested in exploring the natural beauty of the coast.

The trail has become a popular destination for activities like birdwatching, hiking, picnicking, concertgoing, and shopping for both locals and the city’s more than 6 million annual tourists. However, as climate change has resulted in more frequent severe storm events, the Lakewalk’s proximity to Lake Superior has paved the way for continued infrastructure challenges.

Duluth Lakewalk.
Credit: Friends of the Lakewalk

The 2017 and 2018 storms, which were considered state and federal disasters, eroded parts of the shoreline and displaced large boulders that had protected the lakefront from Lake Superior for more than 30 years. After months of costly repairs and concerns about future storm events, city officials consulted with local, state, and federal partners to develop the Lakewalk Transportation and Resiliency Improvement project, which seeks to rehabilitate damaged portions of the trail and fortify the Lakewalk against climate change. Preparing communities for the impacts of climate change, like flooding, not only protects local infrastructure, homes, businesses, and outdoor trails, but in the long run, it also protects Great Lakes water quality and fish and wildlife habitat.

One aspect of the project is enhancing existing revetments that separate the Lakewalk from the water. Revetments are built with impact-resistant material, such as concrete or boulders next to shoreline banks or walls to absorb the impact of incoming water to prevent erosion. Boulders that were displaced during previous storms will be replaced by heavier rocks weighing up to nine tons, with the hope that increasing the size and efficacy of these barriers will help prevent storm damage to nearby homes and businesses.

These improvements will also protect other important infrastructure, like parts of Interstate 35, service lines for the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District, and portions of commercial railroad tracks.

Additional renovations to improve the trail’s accessibility in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act are also underway, such as paving areas with rough terrain to make the Lakewalk fully wheelchair accessible for the first time. Other goals include adding more trail connections to nearby districts and neighborhoods, creating a designated bike lane, and implementing eight new rest areas.

To fund this project, the City of Duluth was awarded an $8,196,234 Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant by the U.S. Department of Transportation in 2023. The RAISE grant, one of 162 awarded last year, was made possible by federal funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). An additional $2 million in BIL funding from the Minnesota Department of Transportation and $2 million from the City of Duluth will also be invested in the project.

Resource Challenges Addressed

Coastal resiliency
Erosion
Public transportation
Economic growth
Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility measures
Storm event management
Shoreline restoration

Key Partners

U.S. Department of Transportation, City of Duluth Parks & Recreation, Minnesota Department of Transportation, and local organizations and businesses

Cost

$12,250,000

Results and Accomplishments

Renovations to the Duluth Lakewalk will help protect against increased storm events due to climate change, safeguard local homes and businesses, and provide more ADA accessible opportunities for outdoor recreation.

*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/protecting-the-lake-superior-coastline-from-severe-storm-events

Preventing Combined Sewer Overflow to Lake Michigan

On: March 14, 2024

LANSING, MICHIGAN

Upgrading wastewater infrastructure in Lansing, Michigan, is preventing millions of gallons of sewage from overflowing into local waterways, protecting water quality, and improving public health.

Between 2020 and 2035, Lansing, Michigan, will invest an estimated $250 million into separating its outdated and leaky combined sewer overflow system to meet federal requirements and prevent millions of gallons of untreated sewage from entering the watershed each year.

Combined sewer overflow systems are designed to prevent flooding during rain and snow events by collecting overflow from sewage systems and storm drains and delivering it via a single overflow pipe to a nearby water treatment plant. In 2019, the Environmental Protection Agency reported that combined sewer overflows are a “priority water pollution concern” for 860 U.S. municipalities, many of which are located in the Great Lakes region.

Lansing’s combined sewer overflow system is notoriously leaky. Intense rain can overwhelm the system, spewing sewage into the nearby Grand River—the longest river in Michigan— and one of its tributaries, the Red Cedar River. From there, the contaminated water drains into Lake Michigan.

In 2020, Lansing’s combined sewer overflow system delivered more than 333 million gallons of sewage-contaminated water to the Grand River. The system is easily overburdened by even relatively small rain or snow events, and in some recent years has produced more sewer overflow than any other city in the state. In 2019, for example, a rain event that produced approximately half an inch of precipitation resulted in more than 4 million gallons of polluted overflow.

Pipe part of a combined sewer overflow system in Lansing.

Because of overflow events like these, the Grand and Red Cedar rivers have been designated “impaired” by the Michigan Department of the Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) and are at times considered unsafe for human contact due to the presence of bacteria like E. coli.

Overflow incidents like these also put fish and wildlife populations at risk by overburdening the waterways with nutrients like carbon, phosphorous, and nitrogen, which use up too much of the oxygen in the water and can result in fish kills.

In 2022, the city received $6,500,000 through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law via Michigan’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund, an investment that will help Lansing meet federal clean water regulations. The grant also has the potential to help ease the financial burden placed on the city’s 78,500 residents, who are expected to pay 4% more per year on their sewage utility bills for the duration of the project; this increase would be higher without these additional funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Once completed, the elimination of the combined sewer overflow system will revitalize hundreds of miles of Michigan sewers, help safeguard more than 154 species of fish, and make the Grand and Red Cedar rivers safer for water recreation.

Resource Challenges Addressed

Public health and safety
Water quality
Water pollution
Water infrastructure

Key Partners

City of Lansing, Michigan; EPA; Lansing Board of Water and Light; Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy

Cost

$250,000,000

Results and Accomplishments

Renovating Lansing, Michigan’s combined sewer overflow system is preventing millions of gallons of untreated sewage from contaminating local waters and Lake Michigan, thereby protecting public health, safeguarding fish wildlife populations, and increasing recreation opportunities.

*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/preventing-combined-sewer-overflow-to-lake-michigan

Restoring Fish Migration Pathways in Indiana’s Mississinewa River

On: March 14, 2024

MARION, INDIANA

Removing an unsafe low-head dam in Indiana’s Mississinewa river leads to increased fish habitat, safer recreation, improved water quality, and increased flood prevention.

By removing the Charles Mill Dam on the Mississinewa River in November 2023, the City of Marion, Indiana, reconnected nearly 1,000 miles of waterways, improved public safety, and restored vital migration routes for local fish and wildlife species.

Built in 1936, the Charles Mill Dam was a low-head dam adjacent to the historic Charles Mill grist mill, along the banks of the Mississinewa River in Marion. Low-head dams, which serve no purpose in reducing flood risk, are known to create underwater, recirculating currents that can trap and kill unsuspecting swimmers, making them deceptively dangerous for public safety.

In 2016, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources conducted an inspection of the dam and found it to be “extremely dangerous and in poor condition,” according to a feasibility report released by the City of Marion prior to the demolition process. In the late 2010s, the Charles Mill Dam was the site of several deaths and near drownings, primarily involving children and young adults.

Low-head dams also pose significant risks for the long-term populations of fish, which rely on connected networks of streams and rivers to migrate. When fish are prevented from migrating by fish passage barriers like dams and culverts, they may be unable to access their spawning habitats, which can result in population decline.

Heavy equipment breaking down the Charles Mill Dam.
Credit: EcoSystems Connections Institute, LLC

The Mississinewa River, which spans 100 miles across Indiana and Ohio, is home to more than 70 species of fish, with an estimated 85% of those species migrating upstream. Prior to demolition, the position of the Charles Mill Dam created a barrier that prevented access to 965 miles of connected waterways for species like large- and smallmouth bass, catfish, bluegill, and carp.

The dam removal project was completed in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via its National Fish Passage Program, which removes barriers like these across the country to increase fish migration and spawning opportunities. Removal of the Charles Mill Dam resulted in the largest network of waterways opened by a fish passage project in the state of Indiana.

The National Fish Passage Program is funded in part by the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which granted $455 million to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Of those funds, $200 million were allocated for distribution to the National Fish Passage Program over a five-year period. The Charles Mill Dam project was awarded $325,000, with an additional $235,000 in partner matching.

Financial contributions from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law have allowed the National Fish Passage Program to triple its resources for fish passage projects nationally, including 10 projects in the state of Indiana. Currently, similar projects in the Hoosier state are underway in Fort Wayne, Anderson, Richmond, Edinburgh, and Terre Haute.

Resource Challenges Addressed

Removing barriers to fish migration
Safeguarding fish populations
Reconnecting and revitalizing local waterways
Protecting public safety
Improving outdoor recreation

Key Partners

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, Ecosystems Connections Institute, Christopher B. Burke Engineering, and the City of Marion, Indiana

Cost

$560,000

Results and Accomplishments

The removal of the Charles Mill Dam will allow more than 70 species of fish to access valuable spawning grounds across 965 miles of reconnected waterways.

*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet

https://www.healthylakes.org/latest-updates/restoring-fish-migration-pathways-in-indianas-mississinewa-river

Ashtabula River in Ohio Removed from Areas of Concern List

On: August 26, 2021

In: Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, Success Stories

After years of clean-up efforts, the Ashtabula River in Ohio is no longer considered one of the “most environmentally degraded” areas in the Great Lakes Region thanks, in part, to Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) funding. The cleanup was a large integrated effort between the EPA, U.S. Corps of Engineers, Ohio EPA, the Ashtabula City Port Authority, and others, and included the removal of massive amounts of contaminated sediment from the bottom of the river, the installation of 2,500 feet of fish habitat, and remediation of the Fields Brook Superfund site.

“This is a clear example of how federal funding is producing results in local communities toward safe, clean drinking water, increasing recreational opportunities, and accelerating clean-up efforts in some of the most polluted communities in the region,” said Laura Rubin, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition. “We are thrilled with the delisting and realize that there are other toxic sites around the region that continue to pollute the water, poison drinking water, and make the fish unsafe to eat. The additional $1 billion for the GLRI in the recently passed bipartisan infrastructure bill will continue and expand this important work for the health and safety of the region.”

The post Ashtabula River in Ohio Removed from Areas of Concern List appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.

Healing Our Waters Coalition

https://healthylakes.org/ashtabula-river-in-ohio-removed-from-areas-of-concern-list/

Jordan Lubetkin

Waste Into Fuel: A Water Infrastructure Success in Green Bay

On: October 1, 2020

In: Policy, Success Stories

Communities across the Great Lakes are struggling with aging drinking and waste water infrastructure that is vital to providing safe drinking water, and nonstop wastewater treatment services that protect public health.

Thanks to federally funded programs such as the Clean Water State Revolving Fund and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SRF), communities that struggle with aging water infrastructure can get low-interest or no-interest loans to upgrade these systems and protect communities and habitats over the long term.

These federal programs use an innovative financing structure that ensures a long-term supply of low-interest or no-interest loans for towns, cities and municipalities that need infrastructure improvements. Green Bay, Wisconsin is one success story of the SRF put into action. NEW Water, the brand of the Green Bay Metropolitan Sewerage District, is perched at the edge of the Great Lakes, and serves about 236,000 residents, and cleans about 38 million gallons of water each day.

More than ten years ago, NEW Water realized that its solids handling facility was nearing the end of its useful life. Leaving things be was not an option; a compromised system would have jeopardized the nonstop service Green Bay residents and businesses had come to expect.

Leveraging SRF funding, NEW Water addressed this community need by building a new solids handling facility, called Resource Recovery and Electrical Energy, or R2E2. Now that the project is complete, NEW Water is producing electricity, recovering and reusing heat, and is also recovering phosphorus in the form of struvite to be reused as a slow-release agricultural fertilizer. This project has shifted the utility from that of a consumer of resources, to that of a producer. In 2019, NEW Water’s biogas engine generators produced enough electricity to power about 1,560 average homes for an entire year.

“NEW Water-82” – To the right is the new solids building, part of the R2E2 facility, which features a state-of-the-art air pollution control system.

R2E2 enables NEW Water to continue providing clean water services for its community. NEW Water has recently received a Platinum Award from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies for 17 years of consecutive, 100% permit compliance for wastewater discharge at its Green Bay Facility. Additionally, R2E2’s state-of-the-art air pollution control system allows NEW Water to meet and exceed stringent standards for air, which means cleaner air for the community.

“Thanks to the State Revolving Fund, we were able to save money for our ratepayers,” said Tom Sigmund, NEW Water Executive Director. “This added help is critical for communities like ours to protect valuable water resources and keep rates cost effective for the families, industries, and businesses who rely on us.”

The contributions of the SRF are many. The SRF staff at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources were critical in helping guide the NEW Water team through the funding application process. In large-scale projects such as R2E2, which cost approximately $180 million, approximately $144 million of which was funded through SRF, technical assistance can serve as a roadmap through the complexities of funding, which can involve multiple sources.

Green Bay’s success is one example of the sorts of benefits that communities can get from the State Revolving Fund Program. But more work needs to be done. The Great Lakes communities face an infrastructure backlog of over $188 billion, and the State Revolving Funds provide communities with the means to chip away at that. That’s why The Healing Our Waters—Great Lakes Coalition is advocating for additional water infrastructure funding (link to water infrastructure factsheet). With additional funding for the State Revolving Fund more communities facing problems like Green Bay did can get the help they need.

The post Waste Into Fuel: A Water Infrastructure Success in Green Bay appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.