FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts: David Wilcox • Eaton County Drain Commissioner’s Office • 517-483-3829
Jennifer Wolfin • Pace & Partners • 517-267-9800

Delta Township Volunteer Efforts Showing Positive Results in the Health of Carrier Creek

November 20, 2002—Delta Township, MI— Six months following a volunteer cleanup effort of Carrier Creek, stagnant sections of Carrier Creek are now showing improved flow and again supporting several species of aquatic life, Eaton County Drain Commissioner Brady Harrington announced at a recent public meeting.

The cleanups—including one held in October—are part of Eaton County’s Carrier Creek Restoration and Stormwater Management Project, an innovative, multi-million dollar endeavor designed to improve drainage for the watershed, improve water quality, and promote wildlife habitat in Carrier Creek. Logjams and debris removed from the stream in April between St. Joseph and Saginaw highways have allowed the creek to return to a deeper, more narrow channel which can support fish and other aquatic life.

"Several homeowners and community groups, such as the Boy Scouts, have really made a long-term commitment to cleaning up Carrier Creek, and it shows" said Harrington. "Long-term improvements like this take time, and their participation really has an impact."

Current restoration efforts have been funded in part by Clean Michigan Initiative (CMI) funding, Harrington said Wednesday, and added that a second CMI grant application has been submitted to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to continue restoration efforts from Saginaw Highway north to the Grand River.
Currently, the main challenges facing the creek are sedimentation and erosion, and fluctuating water levels. Proposed larger-scale plans to improve stormwater filtration and natural resources along the creek include constructing a wetland detention basin on the west side of I-96 south of Mt Hope Highway, and other detention areas near Carrier Creek south of I-496; plus bridge improvements over Carrier Creek on Willow Highway.

The Carrier Creek Restoration and Stormwater Management Project is a working partnership between the Eaton County Drain Commissioner, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, the Michigan Department of Transportation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Friends of Carrier Creek, Eaton County, Delta and Windsor Townships, and the businesses and residents of the Carrier Creek Watershed.

The project includes a watershed management plan, physical improvements and educational activities, which are funded through a combination of a $1 million Clean Michigan Initiative (CMI) Grant through the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality’s Surface Water Quality Division, a Section 319 (Federal Clean Water Act) Grant, and special assessments to the drainage district.
Friends of Carrier Creek is a citizen action group made up of Delta Township residents whose interests are to protect the creek and communicate on a regular basis with the drain commissioner and the Carrier Creek watershed project team.