RESOLUTION FOR BOARD MEETING OF JUNE 5, 2025
Title
RESOLUTION sponsored by the Board of Commissioners to Advance Chicago Area Waterway System Ecological Health
Body
WHEREAS, the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS) comprises approximately 76.1 miles of canals and modified natural rivers, traversing the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago’s (MWRD) 882.1-square-mile service area, which encompasses a diverse landscape of prairies, woodlands, savannas, and wetlands as well as industrial, residential, and commercial developments; and
WHEREAS, the CAWS is home to a wide variety of wildlife, including larger animals such as coyotes and deer, as well as small aquatic plants like duckweed, which is considered one of the smallest flowering plants in the world; and
WHEREAS, the MWRD conducts monthly ambient water quality sampling at 30 locations across its 882-square-mile service area, generating extensive data that has made the CAWS one of the most closely monitored urban river systems in the United States; and
WHEREAS, since 1974, the MWRD has monitored fish populations in the CAWS, observing a substantial increase in species diversity, from 10 species in 1974 to 77 species today, reflecting significant improvements in water quality and aquatic habitat; and
WHEREAS, the MWRD has also engaged in separate collaborative research efforts with partner organizations in the CAWS, which have further documented increases in native fish abundance and species diversity, along with a decline in invasive species; and
WHEREAS, despite these significant ecological improvements, historic contamination from Chicago’s industrialization has affected sediment in certain areas of the CAWS, in locations such as the south fork of the South Branch of the Chicago River, commonly known as Bubbly Creek; and
WHEREAS, sediment provides essential habitat and nutrients for benthic organisms, which serve as a foundational food source for fish; these fish, in turn, support wildlife and human populations, including subsistence anglers from overburdened communities; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the Board of Commissioners of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, affirm our support for federal, state, and municipal initiatives aimed at addressing legacy pollution, including the remediation of contaminated sediments, within the CAWS; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this Resolution be spread upon the permanent Record of Proceedings of the Board of Commissioners of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.
Dated: June 5, 2025