spring 2003 voice of the mill creek newsletter, mill creek watershed council

8/9/2019 Spring 2003 Voice of the Mill Creek Newsletter, Mill Creek Watershed Council

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Spring 2003 EIGHTH YEAR

Published by:Mill Creek

Watershed Council

Supporting jurisdictionsinclude:

Amberley Village

Butler County

Cincinnati

Colerain Township

Elmwood Place

Evendale

Fairfield

Fairfield Township

Forest Park

Glendale

Greenhills

Hamilton County

Liberty Township

Lincoln Heights

Lockland

Montgomery

Millcreek ValleyConservancy District

Norwood

Reading

St. Bernard

Sharonville

Springdale

Springfield Township

West Chester Township

Wyoming

GOLD MEMBERS

Butler County

Metropolitan Sewer

District of GreaterCincinnati

City of Springdale

Fuller, Mossbarger,Scott and May

XCG Consultants, Inc.

SILVER MEMBERS

Environmental RateConsultants

Village of Evendale

Voice of the Mill Creek

Ohio EPA receives Mill Creek loading report

The Mill Creek Watershed Councilleaped the final hurdle in meeting itsobligations to the Ohio EnvironmentalProtection Agency (OEPA) by submit-ting the draft Mill Creek TMDL Non-point Source Load Reduction Report tothe agency on June 13th.

The report provides estimated nutri-

ent load reductions for existing andproposed projects that should reducethe overall nutrient load from non-point sources within the watershed.

Projects are further described in acomprehensive table that identifiesproject locations, their sponsors, andthe estimated dissolved nitrogen andtotal phosphorous load reductions

where quantifiable.

The report also lists projects whereload reductions are not currentlyquantifiable (either due to the natureof the project or the limitations of thecurrent mechanisms for calculatingload reductions) but should intuitivelyhave a strong impact on reducing nu-trient loads within the watershed. Pro-

jects that fall into this category ofteninclude public education as a key ele-ment.

OEPA is reviewing the submitted docu-ment and it is expected that the mate-rial presented will be incorporated inthe their revised Mill Creek TMDL Re-port due out later this summer.

Capture the CreekArt Exhibition & Sale

October 4th, 7:00-11:00 pmCincinnati Museum Center

Local Artists

Dinner & Live Music!

Visit our website at:www.capturethecreek.com

or call 513.563.8800 for ticketsand information.

In an effort to rejuvenate member andvolunteer participation in Councilmeetings and events, the followingbylaw revisions are being proposed:

Switch committee structure fromstanding to an ad hoc project-basedformat,

Revise election process to includeelection of Water Quality, FloodDamage Reduction, WatershedAwareness, Economic Developmentand Recreation Chairs annually.(Chairs will coordinate related adhoc committee activities), and

Switch to a quarterly, rather thanbi-monthly, Full Council meetingschedule.

Voting will take place at 10:00 am onJuly 25th Council Meeting in the Cityof Wyoming Council Chambers.

Council changes proposed


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PAGE 2MILL CREEK WATERSHED COUNCILSPRING 2003


Erosion control work protects wetland

A five-acre wetland next to theMill Creek in Butler County looks

better now that trees, shrubs anderosion control materials havebeen installed.

OKI Regional Council of Govern-ments sponsored the project uponthe advice of Dr. Craig Straub, arestoration ecologist with the JFNew company, and Dr. Michael C.Miller, an aquatic ecologist at theUniversity of Cincinnati. They hadnoticed that the Mill Creek wasundermining the streambank and

washing away soil where thestream enters the wetland, justdownstream of the SR 747 bridge.

With the help of five volunteers,OKI and Dr. Straub did the resto-ration work along 180 feet ofstreambank on June 5 and 6.More work will follow, based onneeds identified by Dr. Straubsadaptive management approachto ecological restoration. For thisproject, Dr. Straub advised OKI to

purchase: 6 trees (6 to 12 feet tall) 25 redosier dogwood cuttings 25 cuttings of buttonbush

50 pounds of live oats seed 5 pounds of red top grass seed

165 feet of coir matting 60 feet of one-foot diameter

coir rolls 90 wooden stakes, a roll of

twine, 5 tying tools, and 500 8-inch metal staples

OKI found a local supplier for thetrees. Shemin Nurseries, which isnext to the Mill Creek in Sharon-ville, delivered two sycamores,two green ashes and two riverbirches. The balled and burlapped

plants weighed up to 400 poundseach, forcing the volunteers toimprovise ways to move a ton oftrees without a Bobcat or aweightlifter.

As often seems to be the case atthe floodplain wetland, the resto-ration work was soon put to thetest by heavy rains and a rapidlyflowing Mill Creek. The strongcurrent pushed over two trees butdid not dislodge the submerged

coir rolls at the toe of the stream-bank nor the matting on the up-per bank. It probably helpedwhen project workers went be-

yond the manufacturers specifica-tions by driving iron rods through

the coir rolls and dozens of extrastakes into the matting.

Located in the Port Union area ofWest Chester Township, the wet-land occupies land that was once aflat, featureless cornfield behind afarm dike. The site is now gentlycontoured with ponds and islands,high spots and low spots, all ofwhich provide better habitat fornative plants and animals alongthe Mill Creek.

Schumacher Dugan Construction,Inc., removed the farm dike, madethe site available through conser-vation easement, and donated$98,000 worth of earthwork. TheOhio Environmental ProtectionAgency provided OKI and projectpartners with federal funds underSection 319 of the Clean WaterAct. The Mill Creek WatershedCouncil has been a key partnersince it helped OKI prepare a win-

ning grant application in 1999 andprovided $3,000 for project costs.

Submitted by Bruce Koehler, OKI RegionalCouncil of Governments

The Mill Creek floodplain wetland in West Chester Township changed noticeably between late May (left) and early

June (right). Trees, live stakes, matting and coconut fiber rolls have been placed alongside the stream to control

erosion and stabilize the streambank. (OKI photos)


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High waters and high spirits on the Mill Creek

All but two of the Mill Creeks 28miles have now been canoed by

people who like to explore ourfascinating urban stream and thenumber of people who havebraved the health warnings tofloat down the Mill Creek duringthe past decade is nearing 300.

The story behind these statisticscan simply be stated as follows:Despite two centuries of abuse,the Mill Creek is a resurgent wa-terway with historic, recreationaland scenic value.

Recent outings of the Mill CreekYacht Club, a loose-knit group ofpeople who have experienced thestream from the seat of a canoeor kayak, show that public de-mand for Mill Creek recreation ismore than just a fad.

In late December and earlyMarch, generous precipitationmade it possible to add another

seven miles to the total milestraveled by canoe on the MillCreek. With some shoving anddragging, the canoeists have nowcovered the 26 stream miles fromHamilton-Mason Road in FairfieldTownship to the Ohio River in Cin-cinnati.

A well-timed outing after a pass-ing rainstorm should allow canoe-ists to launch a mile farther up-stream in Liberty Township,which is home to the Mill Creeksheadwaters and its source. Thefinal mile can be covered bycreek walk, an activity that issponsored by the Mill Creek Wa-tershed Council.

On Saturday, April 19th, the NinthAnnual Mill Creek Cleanup by Ca-noe drew 22 volunteers in the wa-

ter and several more on land.They used shovels, spud bars, pickaxes, ropes, ratchets, hatchets,bolt cutters, saws, knives and a lotof muscle to liberate a dump truckload of junk and garbage from amile-long section of the Mill Creekdividing Reading and Lockland.Among the treasures turned overto the landfill were bicycles, shop-ping carts, a washing machine, thehood of a car, a tractor-trailerfuel tank, yards of muddy wet car-pet and way too much plastic.

On June 7, the Yacht Club joinedup with the Cincinnati RecreationCommission, Metropolitan SewerDistrict and OKI Regional Councilof Governments to give the stu-

dents of Field Studies in EcologicalRestoration an educational tour ofthe lower Mill Creek and its mas-sive sewage treatment plant.

The 19 participants were treatedto many sightings of black-crowned night herons Ohios onlyinland colony of the less thancommon bird. For their amuse-

ment, the canoeists fished sevenbasketballs out of the water andconcocted genus-species namesfor unmentionable types of MillCreek flotsam. Thirteen newcom-ers joined the Yacht Club thatday. Each one got the highly cov-eted Yacht Club T-shirt and ahandshake.

On June 14, three Yacht Club vet-erans covered nearly nine miles ofthe upper Mill Creek. Under theleadership of Dr. Michael C.Miller, a professor of aquaticecology at the University of Cin-cinnati, they inspected and pho-tographed stream conditions,both good and not so good, fromSR 747 in West Chester Township

to Columbia Avenue in Reading.Rain-swollen flows allowed thethreesome to float into a stream-side stormwater detention pondin Sharonville and paddle up asegment of the Beaver Run tribu-tary from Forest Park and Spring-dale.

Submitted by Bruce Koehler, OKI RegionalCouncil of Governments

Interstate 75 construction at the intersection with Mill Creek inButler County. OKI Photo


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Mill Creek estuary spring home of many species of youngOhio River fish

The lower Mill Creek is a uniqueand valued local natural historyresource in southwest Ohio

On May 23, 2003 a team fromUniversity of Cincinnati exam-ined the fishery of the MillCreek at the Hopple Street Via-duct during high water thatflooded the four-foot pipe cross-ing that normally makes a wa-terfall at the site.

After thirteen days of floodedconditions, we proposed thatthe fish should be the sameabove and below the pipe cross-ing. The surprising fact fromthis boat electrofishing surveywas the number of Ohio Riverspecies that were using the MillCreek Estuary during the springfloods.

Eleven species were caught in asample of only 134 fish. The di-versity based on this sample sizewas high. Although the pipecrossing waterfall was floodedby several feet of water, differ-ences in depth and in riparianzone, found only 53% overlap inthe fisheries above and belowthis pipe crossing.

The surprising discovery was a

run of one year old white bass,

emerald shiners, carp, drum,gizzard shad and quillback in theMill Creek. Predators were pre-sent as well including somelarge sauger.

Most of the fish-eating birds de-pend upon the nursery foryoung-of-the-year fish that mi-grate into the Mill Creek tobreed. The migration of OhioRiver fish, including large

(greater than four pound) buf-falo and carp, up the floodedMill Creek provides the foodbase for one of the most prolificrookeries for herons in South-west Ohio.

The fish-eating great blue her-ons, black-crowned night her-ons, green herons, and kingfish-ers were dense along the lowerMill Creek. The rookery of state

endangered black-crowned nightheron, one of three in the state,was occupied with mating pairs.

Many trees had been washed outby the several rains during May.However, the healthy ripariantrees in the lower 1.7 miles ofthe Mill Creek remain a uniqueresource despite the noise ofthe railroad yard on the Eastside and the Mill Creek Water

Reclamation Plant on the Westside of the Mill Creek.

It is perhaps the only estuary ofthe Ohio River in this area thatis not dominated by motor boatsand human disturbances.

A proposal has been submitted

to MSD to enhance the habitatof the Mill Creek at HoppleStreet site and an old roadcrossing a the North end of theMill Creek plant.

Submitted by Dr. Michael C. Miller, professor and aquatic ecologist, De- partment of Biological Sciences, Uni-versity of Cincinnati.

Black-crowned Night HeronPhoto by Jesse Cohen,

National Zoological Park

Emerald ShinerOhio Dept. of Natural Resources

CONTESTCALLING ALL SHUTTERBUGS!

Have you photographedanything beautiful, un-usual, or noteworthy

related to the Mill Creekwatershed?

Submit pictures (limit 3) by

December 1st for display andjudging at the January 2004

Council meeting.Prizes will be awarded!

Email (subject Contest) to:

[email protected]

or mail to:

1 N. Commerce Park Dr., Ste 222,

Cincinnati OH 45215


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To:

For more information, contact:

Nancy Ellwood, Executive DirectorMill Creek Watershed Council

One North Commerce Park Drive

Suite 222

Cincinnati, Ohio 45215

Phone: 513.563.8800Fax: 513.563.8810

E-mail address:

[email protected].

Website: www.millcreekwatershed.org

One North Commerce Park Drive, Suite 222Cincinnati, OH 45215

Mill Creek Watershed Council

July 25, 8:30 am Mill Creek Watershed Council Executive Committeemeeting at the City of Wyoming Municipal Building Conference Room(800 Oak Avenue). Call Nancy Ellwood 513.563.8800 for more infor-mation.

July 25, 10:00 am Mill Creek Watershed Council meeting. City ofWyoming Council Chambers (800 Oak Avenue). Call Nancy Ellwood513.563.8800 for information.

October 4, 7:00 pm Capture the Creek 2003 Art Exhibit and Sale.The second Capture the Creek event will take place between 7:00 and11:00 pm on Saturday, October 4th at the Cincinnati Museum Center.Artworks from 33 local artists representing the spirit of the Mill Creekwill be on display and will be sold at the silent auction. The eveningincludes a reception, dinner and live music. The event is formal and

advanced ticket purchase is required. Tickets will be $50 person andwill be available on-line and by mail on August 1st.

Check the www.capturethecreek.com website for information or callNancy Ellwood at 513.563.8800.

Upcoming Events:

Council Mission:To promote the improvement of the Mill Creek watershed to create

integrated environmental, aesthetic, recreational, and economic benefitsfor present and future generations.

Newsletter also available in color at:www.millcreekwatershed.org

spring 2003 voice of the mill creek newsletter, mill creek watershed council

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