Posted on August 5, 2024
ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) – Islands are mostly famous for being above the water, and some lost beneath the waves of the Mississippi River may have a chance at life again.
It’s all part of a plan from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In simple terms, the USACE is pulling up sand and sediment from the bottom of the river and placing it in carefully designed rock outlines. The goal is to turn the sediment into small sandbars or islands for birds to nest and creatures below the water to call home, Army Corps biologists tell First Alert 4.
But why? Why build an island in the Mighty Mississippi?
To recover something that was lost, according to USACE documents. When Lock and Dam 26 and other alterations caused inundation on Piasa and Eagle’s Nest islands, the surrounding land disappeared. “Today, silt fills the Piasa Island side channel and greatly restricts flow from the main channel.”
THE PLAN
Only one of 26 active improvement projects along the river, the Piasa and Eagles Nest Habitat Rehabilitation and Enhancement Project is roughly eight miles from Alton. It’s goal is to deepen channels and creating three new islands to benefit fish, wildlife and enhance boating access in the area.
Reviving the islands is being done by an 18-inch cutter suction dredge excavating over a million cubic yards of material along a channel two miles long. USACE says the soil creates roughly 75 acres of island habitat — which they’ve already seen birds flock to.
The islands are designed to last for at least 50 years, and when they’re above water, to provide bird nesting areas. When they sink below the waves, experts say, they’ll help fish. The construction is expected to last until next year, and biologists say it’s a constant battle with the Mississippi to build the islands.
The plan is a puzzle piece in the larger Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) Program, designed to “promote a healthier and more resilient” ecosystem on the river. The USACE says the projects under the program provide habitats for different species — and uniquely consists of partnerships across community, state and federal levels.
The USACE St. Louis District has to maintain a 9-foot navigable channel along the Upper Mississippi by a number of methods, including dredging.
However, because of the power of the Mighty Mississippi, the Army Corps warn these islands could disappear under the waves at certain times – or even be unstable. Engineers are warning every boater to stay away from the temporary islands.
While it has a specific commercial benefit, keeping the rivers open to trade – it also has intentions of protecting the environment. NOAA says dredging can help reduce contaminants in the water from hurting fish, birds and even people. NOAA says environmental dredging is necessary because sediments near industrial/urban areas often contain pollution. They can start in a variety of places – sewers, spills, surface runoff or other areas of contact.
Other operations
In other parts of the Mississippi, the Dredge Potter — the USACE’s own dredge — is working to clean out sediment and support other projects. The boat was built in the 1930s.
The Army Corps and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources have been doing something similar just down the river closer to Alton.
In that area, the agency is creating four permanent islands — Moonlight, Canvasback, Steamboat and Powrie — that were named by elementary students from Alton and Jerseyville in a contest.
As part of a $7.2 million restoration program, the corps and the state department are using sediment dredged from the bottom of the river. The newly created islands range from 3.9 to 48 acres in size.
Dredging has other benefits as well, outside of those for birds.
“Reusing that instead of putting it on the shoreline, where it actually may be problematic to fish, turtles species and mussel beds, for instance, I believe it’s a good practice,” said Christine Favilla, the Three Rivers Project coordinator for the Illinois chapter of the Sierra Club.
It will also be good for the Piping Plover, an endangered species, said Mike Morrow, the mayor of Grafton and former district engineer for the Army Corps.
“We’re getting more and more environmentally friendly with the work that we’re doing on the river,” Morrow said.
Beyond the potential environmental benefits, the temporary sandbars and islands near Grafton are already providing another recreational location for boaters, Morrow said.
“I’m not a boater per se,” Morrow said. “But the people that have recreational boats, they seem to like to go out and nose into the sandbars. They get out and sit on lawn chairs and enjoy a cold drink. It’s kind of like their own little private beach.”
Avery Martinez covers water, agriculture & the environment for First Alert 4. He is also a Report for America corps member. RFA places talented, emerging journalists in newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Report for America is an initiative of The GroundTruth Project, an award-winning nonprofit journalism organization dedicated to rebuilding journalism from the ground up.
