River Advocacy
The Chicago River has improved dramatically since Friends was founded in 1979, yet old and new threats such as bacterial sewage in the water and invasive species must be addressed, often requiring the help of our members and friends.
As a result, a key component of Friends’ public policy and planning efforts is mobilizing river supporters and, standing together with them, providing a “voice” for the river and the people, plants and animals whose lives will improve with the river. Action is what it is all about.
Asian Carp Watch
In early December, the Illinois Dept. of Natural Resources (IDNR) and a team of experts from Great Lakes states and Canada used rotenone to poison six miles of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) from above the Romeoville fish barrier to the Lockport Lock and Dam because DNA evidence indicated the presence of invasive Asian bighead and silver carp.
Photo courtesy IDNR.
Since then carp e-DNA has been found in the North Shore Channel, Calumet River and the southern end of Lake Michigan.
Great Lakes states and members of Congress have demanded emergency action including closing the locks that connect the Chicago area waterways to the Great Lakes. This solution would prevent barge traffic from passing through which puts new demands on companies who use the river commercially and haul 16.9 million tons of sand, coal, gravel, cement and salt annually.*
The $10 million fish barrier project was designed by the US Army Corps of Engineers in part to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes. Voracious eaters, these carp have devastated the Illinois River system and if they invade the Chicago and Calumet rivers and the lake, they will have a terrible impact on the ecosystem and fishing.
Closing the locks won’t stop the carp according to scientists because there other ways to swim into the lake. Now new energy is behind the move to a complete hydrologic or ecologic separation of the watersheds which could include re-reversing the Chicago River.
For more information go to http://asiancarp.org/RegionalCoordination/
*New York Times, 12/14/09
What is the WMO?
The WMO is an ordinance that will govern how we manage stormwater in development and redevelopment projects throughout Cook County. The WMO is intended to protect Cook County citizens from increases in flooding, protect the county’s natural resources, and to preserve and enhance water quality by requiring responsible stormwater management.
Why is the WMO Needed?
The WMO is needed to better protect wetlands and streams, which provide vital habitat for fish, wading birds, ducks, beavers and other wildlife and places where residents can fish, boat, canoe, kayak, picnic and enjoy the outdoors. In addition, the ordinance calls for buffers for these important natural areas, which will provide additional habitat.
The WMO requires stormwater management controls that will help reduce flood damage to homes, businesses and natural areas. In addition to destroying peoples’ property, flooding destroys wildlife habitat and pollutes water.
Every other county in the region has the equivalent of a watershed management ordinance. It is time that the citizens of Cook County enjoy the same protections.
How You Can Help
1) Voicing your support of the WMO is important to ensure it is adopted. Its adoption by the MWRD Board of Commissioners will:
• Protect remaining Cook County wetlands
• Promote green space that will protect and improve water quality and provide wildlife habitat
• Promote practices designed to help rainfall soak into the ground
• Minimize negative impacts of development in flood-prone areas
2) Tell them the WMO needs to be strengthened to ensure that developments use commonly applied practices, like rain gardens, porous pavement, and green roofs, to capture rainwater where it falls and hold it in place so it can soak into the ground. These practices can reduce flooding while improving water quality and habitat.
Written comments are being accepted by the MWRD until 5 p.m. December 31, 2009. A sample letter is available here. Comments should be directed to:
Mr. Joseph Sobanski, Director of Engineering
Attention: Stormwater Management Section
100 East Erie Street
Chicago, Illinois 60611
Clean Water and Healthy Fish
Right now, Friends is working to change the water quality standards for the Chicago River to protect the people who use it and the fish and other creatures that call it home. For more information on this critical effort, link to Clean Water and Healthy Fish to the right.
Action Plan for the Chicago River: Getting Specific
Strategies for a Cleaner, Healthier, More Vibrant Chicago River
In 2006, Friends held six all-day meetings (one for each of the six topics: public access, water quality, aquatic habitat, riverbank habitat, riverbank naturalization and land protection that brought together over 50 subject-area experts. This group represented a variety of non-profit groups, public institutions, private sector consulting groups and state agencies. The resulting recommendations, which include supporting a variety of recreation opportunities and developing restoration projects within the context of the river system, are now available. (3MB PDF)
In addition, Friends’ Friends’ Chicago River Matrix, (88k PDF) which outlines public access, water quality, aquatic habitat, riverbank habitat, riverbank naturalization and land protection for each stretch of the river, is also available.
Open Space Plan
Another example of our advocacy work is the Open Space Plan. The Open Space Plan was developed by Friends, the Lake County Stormwater Management Commission and a host of other stakeholders as a tool for protecting open space in the northern suburbs. The protection of open space is important with regards to the Chicago River because it helps protect wildlife habitat, and also helps reduce stormwater runoff pollution, flooding and erosion.
Every parcel of open space in the northern suburbs is outlined and classifies by importance of goals such as habitat protection and stormwater management.
The ground-breaking Open Space Plan was composed in 2004 as a tool for municipalities and planning agencies in the rapidly urbanizing northern suburbs of the Chicago River watershed. It outlines every parcel of open space in the northern suburbs and classifies them by importance in terms of specific goals such as habitat protection and stormwater management. The plan was created so that it is adaptable to many different focuses. For example, one organization can apply it to habitat protection while another can focus on flood reduction . It has already been used by municipalities to guarantee that as development occurs, it occurs responsibly.
Friends’ manager of watershed program, John Quail leads this effort. His contact information can be found at the contact page.
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