Detroit River tour highlights restoration successes, $1-billion cleanup hurdle: ‘We all have a role to play’

The Detroit River has undergone a dramatic transformation from a heavily polluted industrial waterway 50 years ago to a recreational attraction, but significant work remains. Friends of the Detroit River and partners including the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers are tackling the biggest challenge: remediating 3.6 million cubic yards of contaminated sediment loaded with PCBs, mercury, and other toxins—a $1-billion project that's already secured $10 million in recent EPA and EGLE funding.

The nonprofit recently led a boat tour highlighting restoration successes, including 13 completed habitat projects around the river. The final major project, Lakewood East Park on Detroit's shoreline, is expected to begin construction this month and run three years, removing hardened seawalls to restore natural shoreline and wetlands that fish and wildlife depend on. The organization needs about $350 million more in nonfederal matching funds, but the Great Lakes Legacy Act provides a 65% federal match for private donations, making community support directly impactful.