Download Cat Island Chain Restoration Project

Cat Island Chain Restoration Project
Brown County Port & Resource Recovery Department
February 2, 2015
Fox River and
Lower Green
Bay
Cat Island Chain - 1938
Cat Island
Brown County Aerial Photography, 1938
Cat Island Chain - 1960
Cat Island
Brown County Aerial Photography , 1960
Historic Western view of lower Green Bay
 Expansive emergent marshes (e.g. Duck Creek
delta, Peats Lake)
 Numerous small islands
 Beaches and mud flats
 Submerged aquatic plant beds
Photo Courtesy of Tom Erdman, 1966
Bass Islands
Willow Island
Lone Tree Island
Cat Island
Grassy Island
1966 during low water levels
Islands extend 2.5 miles into Green Bay
Photo Courtesy of Tom Erdman, 1966
Islands survived historical water level
fluctuations – Why not this time?
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Water levels rose rapidly to record highs and remained
elevated for two decades
Repeated severe spring storms
Shorelines hardened by rip rap deflect wave energy and
exacerbate erosion
Poor water clarity from runoff pollution reduced aquatic
vegetation and their wave dampening benefits
Rising Great Lakes water levels and severe storms
in 1970s caused wetland and island erosion
Long Tail Point
Bass Islands
Duck Creek Delta Marsh
I-43 Construction
Cat Island
Landfill
90% of Coastal Wetlands
Lost from Southern
Green Bay
Agriculture
Photo by WDNR, 1969
Little Tail Point
Long Tail Point
Peter’s Marsh
Cat Island Chain
Duck Creek Delta
Rock dikes hardened
the shoreline
Municipal incinerator
and landfill
Photo Courtesy of Tom Erdman , 1970
Willow Island
Cat Island
Lone Tree Island
Green Bay islands during
high water levels in 1976
Photo Courtesy of Tom Erdman, 1976
Cat Island
Willow Island
Lone Tree Island
Brown County Aerial Photography, 2008
Lost habitat affects
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Colonial
Nesting Water
Birds
Shorebirds
Waterfowl
Fish Spawning
Fish Nurseries
Turtles
Amphibians
Invertebrates
Annual Dredging
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In order to maintain
an active Port annual
maintenance
dredging is necessary
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Annual dredging of
100,000 to 250,000
cy of sediment that
has settled into the 14
mile long navigational
channel
Cat Island
Dredging Crisis
 No
Open Water
Placement
 Renard Island CDF
at Capacity
 Expansion Denied
 Upland Site Limited
 Port
Recognizes Cat Island Project as
Potential Win-Win Solution in late 1990s
Project Beginning
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The Cat Island Chain
project developed out of the
1988 Lower Green Bay
Remedial Action Plan (RAP)
and was the top priority
project for habitat
restoration.
Members of the Citizens Advisory Committee and DNR staff
worked together to develop the Lower Green Bay Remedial
Action Plan. (Photo by Dave Crehore)
Project Goals
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Disposal Capacity
Photo by WDNR 1969
Beneficial use of dredged material for maintenance
of the Port of Green Bay
Restore diversity of island and aquatic habitats
Recreate 1960s island “footprint”
Enhance spawning and nursery grounds for various
fish species (e.g. yellow perch, musky, pike,
walleye, sunfish)
Project Partners
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Project’s primary focus continues to be habitat restoration
Added benefit of beneficial reuse of dredge material
Partnership between:
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Brown County, WDNR, WDOT, US Fish & Wildlife Service
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US Army Corps of Engineers, USEPA, UW-Sea Grant, UW-Green Bay
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Port Operators and the Fox River Group of paper mills
Lake Bed Grant
Fisheries Benefits from Recreation
of Cat Island Chain
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Increased Vegetation
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Nursery habitat
Habitat for sunfish sp.
Spawning habitat
Increased Water
Clarity
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Predation by visual
predators
All Photos
Courtesy of
Tom Prestby,
UWGB, 2013
Construction Begins Phase I - June 2012
Wave Barrier Cross Section
June 30, 2012
August 15, 2012
June 2012
Cat Island
Brown County Aerial Photography , 2012
December 17, 2012
May 16, 2013
August 23, 2013
Shipping Channel
August 6, 2013
May 16, 2013
November 12, 2013
95% Complete
December 7, 2013
Disposal Capacity
Island
Area
(acres)
Storage Capacity
(yards3)
West Island
74
630,000
Central Island
92
720,000
East Island
106
1,000,000
• Only outer harbor “clean sediments” will be placed onto the islands
• Spine of islands will be initially constructed and provide immediate wave
protection and environmental benefits
September 9, 2014
September 9, 2014
November 26, 2014
400,000 yd3
Public Access
Project Outcomes
 20-30 years worth of disposal capacity
 Beneficial reuse of dredged material
 Sustain jobs, industries and economic outputs of the Port
of Green Bay for NE Wisconsin
 2.5 mile wave barrier and re-establishment of 272 acres
of islands
 Wave barrier will protect 1,225 acres and provide critical
habitat for birds, fish and mammals
 Improved water clarity increasing weed grown for fish
spawning and serve as a nursery and improved
migratory bird sanctuary/lay over
Cat Island Chain - 2010
Cat Island
Brown County Aerial Photography, 2010
Cat Island Chain - 2014
May 2014
Brown County Aerial Photography , 2014
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Shorebird migration
34 species migrate through the
Great Lakes
25 nest in arctic/boreal areas
Some species migrate
15,000km+ per year
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Such as Hudsonian Godwit
(pictured below)
Photo: University of Delaware
Shorebird Conservation Concern
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Up to 75% decline over
last 35 years
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North America and
possibly globally
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Trans-continental
migrants are most
vulnerable
 12 Great Lakes species
in high peril or high
continental concern
Piping Plover: Federally endangered
Red Knot: Federally threatened
Importance of the area
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Interior sites gaining
recognition for importance
 Lower Green Bay
identified as important
shorebird staging area
 35 species reported via
eBird in Wisconsin portion
of Green Bay
American Avocets
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Findings
30 Shorebird species detected
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29 in 2013
29 in 2014
All 12 conservation concern species
Endangered Piping Plover and Threatened Red Knot
seen 10 times
4 Tern Species detected
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Forster’s Tern successfully bred on floating
USFWS/DNR platform
• First local breeding in 20+ years
Shorebird Species per site
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Total
Spring
Fall
Public Access
Cat Island Advisory Committee
Primary Concerns
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Public Safety
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers construction site
• Dredge Material = Quicksand
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Sensitive Wildlife Habitat Area
• Threatened/endangered shorebird species
• Nesting Season (April – August)
• Achieve project goals
Public Access
Current status
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Closed to General Public
• 2 Gates – First OK, Second Prohibited
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Special request site visits reviewed by the
Cat Island Advisory Committee
• Case-by-case basis
Ongoing Activities
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Management
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Monitoring Research
• Shorebird and submerged vegetation surveys
Public Access
Public Access Plan
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Collecting information (safety, ecological,
etc.)
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Formal access policy and procedure
development
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Stakeholder input
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Publish plan
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Timeline: May 2015 (goal)
Julia Noordyk - UW Sea Grant
920-465-2785
[email protected]
Questions?
Cat Island Chain Restoration Project
Brown County Port & Resource Recovery Department
Port of Green Bay, WI