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Tuesday, July 10, 2001

A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plan to spend $307 million over the next 15 years to restore ecosystems along the Ohio River could mean renewed environmental awareness in Lawrence County.

The plans – which emphasize the words "restore" and "protect" – have the potential to affect the health, function and future of the river, Corps officials said.

In general, the Corps project would be similar in size to the restoration of the Florida Everglades.

Army engineers want to:

-Restore 25,000 acres of bottomland hardwood forests, much of which was lost for fuel to steamboats or cleared for development.

-Protect 40 islands and a hundred miles of pristine shoreline.

-Restore 25,000 acres of wetlands and 1,250 acres of other property, both of which act as nurseries for fish and animals.

What specific changes await Lawrence County are unknown at the time, but public meetings have been scheduled to discuss ideas.

The closest meeting for local residents will be at Portsmouth on Aug. 7. The meeting will take place 5-7 p.m. at Shawnee State University’s University Center.

Lawrence County Commission president Paul Herrell said that environmental work along the Ohio likely could be a positive for the Tri-State area if done carefully.

But, it would be nice to see more recreation projects, too, Herrell said.

"That would especially be good in floodprone areas, like parks or ballfields and more boat access to the river," he said.

 

Tribune staff/AP wire reports

President Bush’s 2002 budget did not include any money for the Ohio River restoration program.

Sixty-five percent of it is to be paid for by federal tax dollars with the rest coming from local governments, state natural resource agencies and nonprofits.

That could be a problem in Lawrence County, which already suffers from an economic downturn and cuts in state-provided project money, Lawrence County Commission president Paul Herrell said.

Michael Holley, a project manager for the corps, said no more than $10 million per year will be spent in the first five years of the program; no more than $15 million annually will be spent in the last 10 years.

And each proposed project, he said, will go through a series of studies that will examine its impact before funding is requested.

”Overall, these would improve the ecological integrity of the system,” said Jerry Schulte, a biologist with the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission, a water pollution control agency. ”It would undoubtedly have a positive effect.”

Yet, the corps’ plan worries some.

Michael C. Miller, a professor of biological sciences at the University of Cincinnati, has been studying microscopic animals in the river for 30 years.

Miller said the corps is good at pouring cement and moving dirt. Those activities can harm the river.

”The Army Corps has a vested interest in that they have to keep their contractors busy,” Miller said. ”Most construction would be detrimental to the river. The report has the words ecology and preservation, but they carry some big cement along with them.”

The Ohio River used to be shallow enough to walk across in most parts. The first series of dams was built around 1900. Another series of locks and dams was constructed by the corps in the 1960s to maintain a minimum water level so barges could travel the river.

The river allows the transport of 230 million tons of cargo each year.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.