Environmental Progress - Summer/Fall 2002

Environmental Progress : Summer/Fall 2002

Project Showcases Shoreline Stabilization

U.S. EPA Administrator, IEPA Director join for opening of Great Basin Gardens

More than 100,000 individual plants were placed along one mile of restored shoreline in a key part of the project. They were chosen for their ability to withstand the unique environmental stresses of urban waterways.

Illinois EPA Director Renee Cipriano and U.S. EPA Administrator Christie Whitman in September joined officials of the Chicago Botanic Garden in opening the new Great Basin gardens that include showcase demonstrations of shoreline restoration and stabilization.

Nearly $2 million in federal Clean Water Act Section 319 nonpoint source pollution prevention funds was provided for the project through Illinois EPA. In addition, Gov. George Ryan's Illinois FIRST program has provided about $7 million for a variety of other enhancements to the Botanic Garden, located in Glencoe and owned by Cook County.

The project is "a shining example of a partnership between the federal, state and county governments, as well as the many citizen volunteers who support this urban oasis," said Director Cipriano.

She noted Illinois EPA worked with the Botanic Garden on the more than two-year project to design a "Watershed Restoration Action Strategy Plan that is a complete holistic approach to watershed restoration."

Administrator Whitman praised the Chicago Botanic Garden project as "a model for shoreline restorations others can follow."

Both "hard" shoreline control practices such as sheetpiling, stone walls and cobbles, and "soft" practices such as fiber rolls, native grasses, branchpacking and vegetated geogrids were used in the project.

More than 100,000 plants were placed along a one mile stretch

Each practice was carefully implemented based on soil type, wave action and severity of erosion. More than 100,000 individual plants chosen for their ability to withstand the environmental stresses on urban waterways were placed along one mile of restored shoreline in a key part of the project.

The Chicago Botanic Garden worked with Illinois EPA to develop an education strategy for the site. It will include outreach activities to make community leaders, government officials and the public aware of the types of nonpoint source pollution, the importance of water quality protection and watershed principles, as well as the innovative approaches demonstrated in the Great Basin project.

"The Chicago Botanic Garden is grateful to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency for their support of these important projects," remarked Barbara Whitney Carr, president and chief executive officer. "We are especially pleased that the Garden can help the general public learn first hand about ways to improve lake water quality, enhance aquatic habitat, and stabilize eroding shorelines."

Director Cipriano assured Administrator Whitman that Illinois EPA has put the 319 program grants to good use. Similar best management techniques, such as streambank stabilization projects, have been implemented across the state, using more than $34 million in 319 grants since 1990.