Our Water’s History: Part 1

It is now Great Lakes and Fresh Water Week as well as time for the annual One Water campaign in Southeast Michigan. This means, of course, that SEMCOG is celebrating our state and region’s invaluable water resources and partnerships. Water shapes our communities, gives us life, creates unique recreational opportunities, and defines our region.

As water has shaped much of our lives, we, the inhabitants of Southeast Michigan have shaped the way that water flows through our landscape and the types of ecosystems we see across the region today. As part of the One Water Campaign this year, we are looking back at the history of our water resources and reflecting on the different kinds of relationships people have had with our waters over the years.

The intersection of land, water, and people

The people of the Anishinaabe nations were among the indigenous peoples (known as first nations in Canada) whose lives were shaped by waterways we still rely upon today. They relied the waterways of these region for nourishment, transportation, and – like all of us – a good amount of fun. The landscape and watersheds of this region looked very different back then.

In the 1900s, industrialization took off in Southeast Michigan, and like the people who flocked here for jobs in the automotive industry, our rivers were put to work. The Rouge River was dredged and dammed by Henry Ford, to make way for navigation and the development of the automotive industry. Mills along the Clinton River produced timber and flour. Population changes – driven largely by immigration from abroad, along with the influx of Black Americans during The Great Migration – necessitated sewer pipes, which were built to carry sewage and stormwater away from people. The rapid industrialization and urbanization of this region created wealth and prosperity, but – as in so many places – also brought with it water quality issues.

Decades of pollution eventually brought dramatic consequences. The 1960s were a hard time for water quality. While the burning of the Cuyahoga River in Ohio drew national attention, Lake Erie was declared dead by many as a result of factory and sewage runoff causing intense lake eutrophication (excessive loads of nutrients in the water, leading to harmful phenomena like algal blooms). In 1969, the Rouge River caught fire. Each of these challenges helped set the stage for the founding of the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970. In 1987, the St. Clair River, the Detroit River, the Clinton River, and the Rouge River were all listed as Areas of Concern.

Tackling legacy pollution and starting “fresh”

While challenges remain, the story of water in our region has taken another turn in recent years, this time for the better. One way to understand the power of the change is through Southeast Michigan’s wildlife. The presence or absence of certain species provide us with indications of how human activities are shaping the condition of water and habitat. Millions of beavers inhabited our region in the 1800s, but fur trapping, urbanization, and increasing water pollution eventually resulted in their disappearance. That is, until a few years ago, when sightings of beaver were reported along the Rouge and the Detroit rivers. While a surprise at first, their return signifies that the real progress made so far in cleaning up these rivers. Known as a keystone species and sometimes as ecosystem engineers, beavers shape the landscape around them. As such, the mere presence of beavers tells a significant story about the ecological health of an area and the diversity of species that can survive there. While there may be some need to learn how to coexist with a fascinating species like the beaver again, its mere presence demonstrates that quality habitat is returning to this region and we have the power to continue to shape our water resources for the better.

The beaver is unique in its impact on an entire ecosystem, but its story is familiar for so many critters in our water bodies. Stoneflies are often identified in macroinvertebrate sampling (or “bug hunts”), as they too are an indicator species, meaning that the presence is a sign of healthy water quality. Their return to the Rouge River watershed represents the success of clean-up efforts and shows that water quality conditions are continuing to improve. Fishing regulations and continued investment in fish passage and habitat restoration projects are helping to ensure that Lake Sturgeon populations continue to grow in the St. Clair River. As critical species continue to grow and expand in population throughout our waterways, we can continue to see how our actions have an impact on regional water quality.

In part two of this blog, Katie will share more of our water history and the powerful impact of some of Southeast Michigan’s water leaders.