Large tributaries to Lake Michigan used for passage by recreational and commercial vessels suffer from increasing sediment loads, making passage difficult, if not impossible. Dredging is a common mechanism to alleviate this condition; however, dredging often raises environmental concerns involving reduced clarity of the water and resuspension of harmful agents during dredging, and disposal locations.

The Grand Calumet River and the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal contain between 4,000,000 and 5,000,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediments. Approximately 150,000 cubic yards of these sediments move into the southern end of Lake Michigan annually.³⁸

For more than 20 years, various proposals for dredging and disposal have been considered. Because the treatment of the toxic materials contained in the sediments is extremely expensive, the thrust of those proposals has been upon the development of a confined disposal facility. One proposal in 1976 would have stored the materials on an island near the Inland Steel lakefill, and a similar proposal in 1986 would have used East Chicago's lakefront Jeorse Park. Both these proposals were rejected.

With the passage of time, the magnitude and the cost of dredging and disposal have grown. The current proposal would use the former Energy Cooperative, Inc. refinery (commonly called the "ECI site") for placement of the confined disposal facility. The 75-acre ECI site is framed by the ship canal and Indianapolis Boulevard in East Chicago. The city became the owner of the heavily polluted property in 1989 as payment for back taxes owed by the bankrupt facility, along with an estimated $37 million liability for a cleanup required under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. The project is estimated to require 33 years for completion at a cost of $127,000,000.³⁹

Sediment cleanup activities are planned in the Roxana Marsh area of the Grand Calumet River. In addition, removal of contaminated sediment is being planned for the portion of the Indiana Harbor Ship Canal south of the Corps of Engineer's project, and the east and west branches of the Grand Calumet River.⁴⁰


Ground Water Quality

Ground water supplies are obtained from aquifers or subsurface formations of rock saturated with water. The hydrologic characteristics of aquifers and natural chemistry of ground water determine the availability and suitability of regional ground water resources.⁴¹

The quality of ground water determines the specific use of this resource. Naturally-occurring elements are present in ground water due to the geological materials through which the waters circulate. However, elevated levels of these and artificial chemical constituents could indicate human-induced pollution of the resource.

The intensive settlement that has occurred over the last century in Northwest Indiana has provided opportunities for ground water contamination. No where within the state has ground water contamination become more pervasive than in the Indiana Area of Concern, a locality which includes the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, a portion of the Grand Calumet River and its watershed. In the Area of Concern alone, there are five sites which are on the Environmental Protection Agency's National Priorities List of Superfund sites and 150 known leaking underground storage tanks. Other potential sources for ground water contamination in the Lake Michigan Region include sanitary landfills, sewage treatment plants, industrial facilities, septic and underground storage tanks, and road-salt storage facilities.⁴²

Substances contaminating the ground water in Indiana are both inorganic and organic and include petroleum and petroleum products, metal, chlorides and slats, nitrates, pesticides, and chlorinated, non-halogenated, or aromatic volatile organic compounds. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management maintains a registry of case histories of ground water contamination within the Lake Michigan Region.⁴³

Several efforts have taken place or are currently underway to detect and remediate ground water contamination. In the early 1980s, concern over the quality of ground water in Northwest Indiana led to the development of a ground water strategy study for Lake and Porter Counties. The study was to collect and analyze ground water quality information, delineate aquifer systems, and review Indiana's existing ground water laws and programs. Since 1981, the Environmental Protection Agency has studied the occurrence of 26 volatile organic compounds in the ground water supplies serving over 400 community water systems.

A major focus of a recent private well water testing program in Indiana was to collect information on the effects of two widely-used agricultural chemicals, atrazine and alachlor, on rural water supplies. The program was sponsored by the Indiana Farm Bureau, soil and water conservation districts, county health departments, resource conservation and development districts, county extension services, and other local entities. LaPorte County is the only county in the Lake Michigan Region with data resulting from this program.⁴⁴

Recent ground water studies in the Area of Concern have been conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey. Although few people in northwest Indiana depend on the Calumet Aquifer for drinking water, there are concerns with the impacts ground water contamination may have on nearby streams and wetlands. Computer modeling shows that the Calumet Aquifer often discharges ground water into the Indiana Harbor Canal, a large reach of the Grand Calumet River, Lake Michigan, local wetlands, the Silurian bedrock, and municipal sewers. In 1987, correlation between ground water quality and land use were interpreted from chemistry data. The analyses showed higher concentrations of organic materials in wells near industrial lands.⁴⁵

A second study by the U.S. Geological Survey was conducted in 1991 for a more detailed analysis of water quality and land use relationships. Further studies indicate that the East Branch of the Little Calumet River and the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal generally receive the greatest pollutant load from direct ground water discharge. The Silurian bedrock and the sewer system receive intermediate loads, while Lake Michigan receives the smallest relative contaminant load from direct ground water discharge. Contaminated ground water in the Area of Concern, however, is still an environmental hazard to Lake Michigan because of the direct discharge of the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal into the lake.⁴⁶

The potential affects of fertilizers on groundwater quality prompted the Environmental Protection Agency to develop and implement a Pesticides and Ground Water Strategy. The Indiana State Chemist is the primary agency in the development of a State Pesticide Management Plan for Indiana which coincides with the principles in the federal agency's strategy. In 1989, Indiana established the Ground Water Task Force as the oversight committee for implementing the Ground Water Protection Strategy.⁴⁷

The development of a program plan for delineating and managing wellhead protection zones (WHP) for public water supplies is one priority action designated by the state ground water strategy. The federal Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1986 established the WHP program but requires states to develop a plan in order to receive funding for the program. As part of program development the Indiana Department of Environmental Management identified 218 public water supply systems in Indiana as priority sites for wellhead protection. Nine of the priority sites are located in the Lake Michigan Region.⁴⁸

In 1994, a joint effort was created through a Memorandum of Cooperation to determine (1) the presence of free phase hydrocarbons in the ground water near the Grand Calumet River and Indiana Harbor Ship Canal at the intersection of the Lake George Branch; and (2) whether the constituent is migrating from the ground water to the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal. The participants in this effort include the Environmental Protection Agency, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, Amoco Corporation, Mobil Oil Corporation, Northern Indiana Public Service Company, Phillips Pipe Line Company, and Safety-Kleen Corporation.⁴⁹

Amoco Corporation is pursuing groundwater remediation associated with compliance with the memorandum. Amoco is working to prevent hydrocarbons from moving beyond its property and to eliminate the free-phase hydrocarbons. In some areas, the free phase product has been observed in quantities up to one-half foot thick. Once the petroleum product is removed from the groundwater, there is a residual amount of oil that adheres to the soil. A biovent system has recently been installed to encourage microbial degradation of the residual hydrocarbons. The biovent system draws fresh air into the soil, allowing microbes to survive and use the hydrocarbons as a food source.⁵⁰


Beach Closings Due to Bacterial Contamination

Monitoring water quality along Lake Michigan beaches, including E. coli and total bacterial counts, is an important element for assuring the beaches can be used safely for swimming, wading, fishing, and other recreational uses. Bacterial contamination of Indiana beaches has been a chronic though relatively infrequent cause of beach closings along the Indiana shoreline. A recent initiative assisted by the Lake Michigan Coastal Coordination Program has helped bring together local, state, and federal agencies, as well as the Indiana Geological Survey, to begin a coordinated effort to determine the causes and solutions to bacterial contamination.⁵¹ For more information, see the Internet:
http://www.dnr.state.in.us/lakemich/beach.htm

Salt Creek Moratorium

In 1975, the former Stream Pollution Control Board proscribed new discharges into Salt Creek unless a determination was made that new discharges would not adversely impact water quality to the detriment of the salmonid fishery. This pronouncement is sometimes called the "Salt Creek Moratorium." The "moratorium envisioned utilizing the NPDES permitting system as the primary tool for protecting the water quality of the Salt Creek watershed. . . . The current NPDES permitting system supersedes the moratorium as the means for regulating discharges to the Salt Creek watershed."⁵² Based on this letter, the Natural Resources Commission has twice found the Salt Creek Moratorium is no longer in effect.⁵³




Indiana Fish Consumption Advisory

Annually, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, and the Indiana State Department of Health establish the Indiana Fish Advisory. Each year, recent fish monitoring data is reviewed in order to develop the new statewide fish consumption advisory.⁵⁴

The 1998 advisory is based on levels of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) and mercury found in fish tissue. Criteria for placing fish on the 1998 Indiana Fish Consumption Advisory uses the Great Lakes Task Force risk-based approach

The advisory groups⁵⁵ are as follows:

• Group 1: Unrestricted Consumption.
  
  
• Group 2:

  One meal per week for adult males and females. One meal per moth for women who are pregnant or breast-feeding, women who plan to have children, and children under the age of 15..
  
  

• Group 3:

  One meal per month for adult males and females. Women who are pregnant or breast-feeding, women who plan to have children, and children under the age of 15 do not eat.
  
  

• Group 4:

  One meal every 2 months for adult males and females. Women who are pregnant or breast-feeding, women who plan to have children, and children under the age of 15 do not eat.
  
  

• Group 5: No consumption.
  
  

Fish consumption advisories in Lake Michigan and its tributaries in Lake County apply to the Goldfish and Golden Shiner in Lake County. These fish are in Advisory Group 5 and are under advisory due to levels of PCBs. All fish of all size from the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal in Lake County are in Advisory Group 5 due to both mercury and PCBs.⁵⁶

The following tables identify the fish under advisory for waters of Lake Michigan and its tributaries in Lake County, LaPorte County, and Porter County.⁵⁷

Fish Consumption Advisories in Lake Michigan and Its Tributaries
Fish	Size (inches)	PCB	Group
Black Crappie	7-8	PCB	3
	8+	PCB	4
Bloater	10+	PCB	3
Brook Trout	All	PCB	3
Brown Trout	Up to 18	PCB	3
Brown Trout	18-27	PCB	4
Brown Trout	27+	PCB	5
Carp	All	PCB and Mercury	5
Catfish	All	PCB	5
Chinook Salmon	Up to 26	PCB	3
	26-30	PCB	4
	30+	PCB	5
Coho Salmon	17-28	PCB	3
	28+	PCB	4
Lake Trout	Up to 21	PCB	3
	21-26	PCB	4
	26+	PCB	5
Lake whitefish	9-12	PCB and Mercury	2
	12-20	PCB and Mercury	3
	20-24	PCB and Mercury	4
	24+	PCB and Mercury	5
Largemouth Bass	4-7	PCB	3
	7+	PCB	4
Longnose Sucker	14-23	PCB and Mercury	4
	23+	PCB	5
Northern Pike	10-14	PCB	3
Northern Pike	14+	PCB	4
Pink Salmon	All	PCB	3
Rainbow Trout	Up to 22	PCB	3
	22+	PCB	4
Steelhead	26-32	PCB	4
	32+	PCB	5
Walleye	17-26	PCB	3
Walleye	26+	PCB	4
White Sucker	15-23	PCB and Mercury	3
	23+	PCB	4

Fish Consumption Advisories for the St. Joseph River in St. Joseph County58
Fish	Size (inches)	Contaminant	Group
Black Redhorse	14-17	PCB and Mercury	3
Black Redhorse	17+	PCB and Mercury	4
Carp	20+	PCB and Mercury	5
Channel Catfish	22+	PCB and Mercury	4
Golden Redhorse	13-22	PCB	3
Golden Redhorse	22+	PCB	4
Largemouth Bass	15-16	PCB and Mercury	3
Largemouth Bass	16-18	PCB and Mercury	4
Largemouth Bass	18+	PCB and Mercury	5
Shorthead Redhorse	15-19	PCB and Mercury	3
Shorthead Redhorse	19+	PCB and Mercury	4
Smallmouth Bass	7-9	PCB and Mercury	2
Smallmouth Bass	9+	PCB and Mercury	3
Quillback	18+	PCB	3
White Sucker	14-16	PCB	3
White Sucker	16+	PCB	4