Explore Lake St. Clair restoration through SEMCOG’s latest story map

Many Southeast Michigan residents have enjoyed the abundant water resources throughout Lake St. Clair and its surrounding basin. From bird watching along the trails of Lake St. Clair Metropark, to fishing for walleye, pike, and perch at Huron Point, to boating throughout Harsens Island, Lake St. Clair is filled with diverse natural areas with access to an abundance of recreational activities.

Picture: Huron-Clinton Metroparks

While residents and visitors enjoy the recreation opportunities in and around our lakes, rivers, and streams, our local agencies and partners are working collaboratively to improve local water quality and enhance wildlife habitat in these areas. That’s why habitat restoration throughout Lake St. Clair and its surrounding watersheds is a priority in Southeast Michigan.

SEMCOG’s latest restoration tool uses ArcGIS StoryMaps to help tell the story of Lake St. Clair, while providing a detailed map of 27 completed habitat restoration projects within the Lake St. Clair basin. This tool serves as a companion to the Lake St. Clair Watershed Implementation Priorities Plan, which addresses the problems in the watershed and outlines plans for future projects. The map shows project locations, restoration metrics, funding sources, and who to contact for additional project information. Together, these projects provide a slew of ecological benefits to Lake St. Clair, from enhancing greenways, restoring aquatic and wetland habitat, improving public access to water resources, and softening and naturalizing shorelines. Restoration projects like these help to build on the resilience of Lake St. Clair and help to improve water quality in connecting Great Lakes water bodies along the Huron to Erie corridor. Beyond that, they help implement restoration priorities outlined in plans such as SEMCOG’s Water Resource Plan for Southeast Michigan.

The projects presented throughout the Lake St. Clair Restoration story map total more than $54 million in habitat restoration investments, showing the region’s commitment to protecting and enhancing natural resources in Southeast Michigan. Around $50 million comes from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which is designed to accelerate and ensure restoration of the Great Lakes and surrounding water bodies. Continued investment in Lake St. Clair is critical as we look to the future, and community partnerships and support help guide future restoration along the shores of the lake.

The diversity and resilience of Lake St. Clair is likely due to the Lake St. Clair partnership, a group dedicated to restoring and protecting Lake St. Clair. Since the 1990s, the partnership has been working to reduce the impacts of nonpoint source pollution, habitat loss, and urbanization on Lake St. Clair. The list of partners below have all made commitments to developing and implementing these projects. Without this kind of partnership and collaboration, the Lake St. Clair watershed wouldn’t be where it is today. Moving into the future, SEMCOG will continue to work with the Lake St. Clair partnership to ensure additional projects are implemented throughout the watershed, so that others may enjoy the beauty of Lake St. Clair for years to come.

A big thanks to all of the Lake St. Clair Group Partners:

• St. Clair County and local communities
• Macomb County and local communities
• Oakland County and local communities
• Oakland University
• Clinton River Watershed Council
• Community Foundation of St. Clair County
• Lake St. Clair CISMA
• Oakland County Water Resource Commissioners Office
• Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE)
• Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR)
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• Eastern Michigan University
• Michigan Nature Association
• Huron Clinton Metroparks
• Michigan Sea Grant College Program
• Natural Resources Conservation Service
• Friends of the St. Clair River
• St. Clair River Binational Public Advisory Council
• Six Rivers Land Conservancy