District commander. “When we look at the Great Lakes, we are talking about approximately 4,530 miles of shoreline, so to accomplish coastal resiliency, it is going to take unified state, local, and federal efforts.” Buffalo District has been working on many projects that will result in long-term withstanding of high- and low-water-level conditions. The Braddock Bay Ecosystem Restoration Project along Lake Ontario and the Port Clinton Ecosystem Restoration Project on Lake Erie are among these projects. The Braddock Bay project, funded by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) and substantially complete as of September 2018, addresses the gradual loss of a historic barrier beach and erosion of more than 100 acres of coastal wetlands along the Lake Ontario shoreline, through construction of a barrier beach, a 3-acre headland beach, and two 150-foot-long headland rubblemound breakwaters. The project benefits Lake Ontario and its residents by restoring 185 acres of coastal wetland, re-creating wildlife and plant diversity, and creating shoreline sustainability by protecting 0.6 miles of Lake Ontario shoreline. This project has already proven resilient, having withstood the record-high 2017 and 2019 water levels. “Building coastal resiliency requires rethinking our approach to balancing coastal hazards, environmental benefits, and natural functions,” said Joshua Unghire, Buffalo District ecologist. “This must be done with an understanding of the factors that affect our coastlines, how they are changing, and what our long-term goals are for our coastal communities and environment.” The Port Clinton Ecosystem Restoration Project, under the Great Lakes Fisheries and Ecosystem Restoration (GLFER) Authority, and using GLFER funds, started this year, working to restore 12 acres and add another 1.4 acres of coastal wetlands along Lake Erie. Project benefits include improved habitat for wildlife and plants and a restored vital stop-off point for migratory bird habitat, with secondary benefits of enhanced recreation, safety, and shoreline stability.
PHOTO BY SHAINA SOUDER
GRE AT L AKES AND OHIO RIVER DIVISION
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District’s Braddock Bay Ecosytem Restoration Project, funded by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, along with Lake Ontario in Greece, New York, withstood the higher lake levels this year, demonstrating a great example of coastal resiliency, June 25, 2019.
“Coastal systems are increasingly vulnerable to flooding due to the combined influence of coastal storms, development and population growth, geomorphic change, and sea-level rise,” as reported by the U.S. Army Research and Development Center report titled, Use of Natural and Nature-based Features for Coastal Resilience, published in January 2015. Restoring natural features to the Great Lakes, such as coastal wetlands, will assist with functions such as reducing flood damage and erosion while improving water quality. “Coastal resiliency is a critically important theme that will guide much of our district’s work moving forward for the next generation,” said David Schulenberg, Buffalo District Planning Branch chief. n
A FRESH LOOK AT THE CHICAGO RIVER BY PATRICK BR AY WITH MIKE PADILL A , Chicago District
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ince September 2010, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Chicago District has completed projects to restore more than 1,000 acres of habitat in metropolitan Chicago, most of it along the Chicago River. In 2018, partnering with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago and the Chicago Park District, the USACE Chicago District restored the riparian zones and embankments in River Park and Horner Park, to include the removal of a dam on the north branch of the river. The next project could be Bubbly Creek, a former dumping ground for Chicago’s meatpacking industry, which still bubbles to this day. In partnership with the city of Chicago, USACE has studied restoration of the creek. This restoration would not be possible without
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the improvement to the river system due to Chicago’s Tunnel and Reservoir Plan (TARP). Throughout its natural history, the waters of the Chicago River fed Lake Michigan until a monumental project in 1900 altered the river to reverse the flow away from the lake. The new course would flush the water south, bringing along with it the waste of Chicago – stormwater runoff, garbage, industrial waste, and sometimes raw sewage. How to manage storm waters in an impervious urban environment would continue to be the dominant engineering challenge in Chicago for several more decades, due in part to Chicago’s stormwater conveyance pipes being combined with wastewater and sewage pipes. The
