Activities of the DuPage River Salt Creek Work Group in 2018

By By Deanna Doohaluk and Dennis Streicher

In 2004 a diverse collection of interested groups came together and formed the DuPage River/Salt Creek Workgroup. Membership in the DRSCW includes 55 municipal entities, 24 Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs) and 36 associate members. The River Prairie Group of the Sierra Club was one of the original members and has had a representative on the Executive board of the DRSCW since the beginning. The mission of the DRSCW is to work together to preserve and enhance water quality and stream resource quality in the East Branch DuPage River, West Branch DuPage River, Salt Creek, and their tributaries. The DRSCW seeks to implement targeted watershed activities that resolve priority waterway problems efficiently and cost effectively.

Highlights of work completed by the DRSCW in 2018 include:

• The DRSCW completed post-project sampling on Salt Creek at The Preserve Golf Club at Oak Meadows located in Addison. The DRSCW partnered with the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, FPDDC (the owner of the golf club), to remove two low head dams and restore approximately 1500 feet of streambed and riparian shoreline. In the two years since the completion of the project, the mIBI (index of biotic integrity for macroinvertebrates and fish) has increased to 34.9 compared to a pre-project mean score of 23.6 (mIBI of 41 is considered good).  Additionally, eight new “high value” macroinvertebrate species have appeared on the site. Physical habitat at the site has also improved with mean QHEI scores increasing to 70 (QHEI of >60 is considered good). The DRSCW provided engineering expertise for the design and funded $2,225,000 of the cost for the restoration.

• The next high-profile project planned by the DRSCW is the modification/removal of the Graue Mill Dam at Fullersburg Woods in the Village of Oak Brook in DuPage County. The Graue Mill Dam is also owned by the FPDDC. The DRSCW finished a Public Opinion Research effort to solicit opinions on the modification of this Dam. The public opinion research effort included a telephone survey, electronic survey, one-on-one interviews, and a focus group.  Findings from the research indicated public support for modifying the Graue Mill dam as a means of improving water quality, wildlife habitat, and recreational opportunities. The next step will be to explore design options for the modification of the Graue Mill dam. The DRSCW is offering to develop a master plan for the entire river course through the Fullersburg Preserve.

• Since its inception in 2004, the DRSCW has been doing extensive monitoring of all three rivers in DuPage County. That effort has continued to this day. In 2018, the DRSCW conducted continuous dissolved-oxygen monitoring during the summer months at 12 sites in the DRSCW study area and continuous conductivity monitoring during the winter months at five sites.  Additionally, fecal coliform samples were collected in Salt Creek for compliance with the MS4 permit requirements. 

• The 2004 Total Maximum Daily Load study in the DRSCW study area identified chlorides as exceeding state water quality standards and likely contributing to the river’s not meeting the goals of the Clean Water Act. In response, the DRSCW has undertaken extensive sampling of chlorides in the rivers and developed a detailed study of chloride concentration trends. In addition to the monitoring, the Workgroup has implemented a program of reducing the amount of road salt used in the winter months in the study area by developing a series of training seminars to help educate salt applicators on the best practices for deicing operations. All of the municipalities and a number of private salting operations in DuPage County have attended these seminars to learn the latest techniques on salt application and the newest high-tech equipment available for road-salting operations. The DRSCW hosted, in conjunction with DuPage County, a Parking Lots and Deicing Workshop on October 15, 2018, and provided training to 82 individuals responsible for snow and ice removal at hospitals, park districts, schools, and commercial properties. The DRSCW also hosted, in conjunction with DuPage County, a Public Roads Deicing Workshop on October 25, 2018, and provided training to 147 public road snowplow operators and Public Works staff.

• The DRSCW holds meetings every other month, and in 2018 hosted nine technical presentations at Membership Meetings and gave 15 presentations at Regional Conferences on innovative and timely topics in water quality, stream restoration, and nutrient management.