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Little Miami cleanup hits milestone

By Eric Bradley • • November 7, 2009

In 1968, the Little Miami River was named Ohio's first National Wild and Scenic
River.

But 41 years ago, the river was long on wild and short on scenic.

"Junk cars, herds of cattle, concrete dumped along the river, those sorts of
things," could be found in the river or on its shores, said Eric Partee.

• Photos: Little Miami cleanup

Partee, 57, has spent almost half of his life on the river, having worked 27
years and counting at Little Miami Inc., where he is executive director.

The agency, founded in 1967 to preserve and protect the river, existed before
there was even a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, created three years later
by President Richard Nixon.

Flash forward to today.

The lower Little Miami River watershed, the stretch through Hamilton County that
for years has been the river's most troublesome area, has met 96 percent of
Clean Water Act goals, a leap of 53 percentage points from 11 years ago,
according to a report issued last week by the Ohio Environmental Protection
Agency.

Biologists measured the health of 182,938 fish and 200,000 macroinvertebrates in
a two-year study, the result of which authors said mark a "milestone" in efforts
to improve the water quality of the Little Miami.

Upgrades at several wastewater treatment plants in the watershed were cited as
key to the turnaround in the Little Miami, classified as an "exceptional
warmwater habitat" - the most protective designation given to waters in Ohio
because such streams are capable of maintaining an exceptional array of aquatic
life.

"We're probably 90 percent to where we were 200 years ago when Tecumseh was
running around trying to save his homeland," Partee said.

The improvements are a long time coming, said activists and government workers
who have toiled for years and in some cases, decades, to clean the river.
(2 of 3)

What it took

Since its formation, Little Miami Inc. has been the tip of the spear in efforts
to save its namesake river from the pollution afflicting it.

Now, the junk cars, cattle and concrete are gone. The Little Miami River has
more to fear from rowdy locals "cabrewing," or canoeing while drinking, than a
culture where people think it's acceptable to drop an old water heater in the
river or harvest gravel from the waters to construct foundations.

"Back then, the whole idea of protecting the environment had not really taken
hold yet," said Partee.

Cleaning up a 100-mile-long river running through five Ohio counties has been a
gargantuan task that has required a large group of people with diverse skills,
interests and levels of involvement.

But whether it was someone like Partee, one of the larger wastewater agencies, a
farmer willing to implement a conservation plan or just someone who cared enough
to volunteer to pick up trash, those diverse efforts converged to result in a
better river.

"Everyone can pat themselves on the back," said Bruce Smith, senior engineer
with the Cincinnati Metropolitan Sewer District. "The public investment, as well
as the nonprofit investment, has been significant."

For context, Smith said the MSD has spent $29 million since 2005 at its Sycamore
Creek plant in Symmes Township to improve water quality.

Experts said that kind of infrastructure work, along with similar upgrades by
Warren and Greene counties, did much to cut down on phosphorous levels in the
river that can lead to algae that hogs oxygen needed by native organisms.

Phosphorous also clings to soil particles, vast quantities of which can make it
into the river due to development, smothering aquatic life and blocking
sunlight, said Dave McElroy, director of the Warren County Soil and Water
Conservation District.

For 20 years, McElroy has been instrumental in regulating surface and soil
runoff at construction sites in Warren County, where development has boomed.

He describes his job as "triage," trying to stabilize the river as development
rages, by suggesting ways to limit erosion or methods of leading runoff water
away from the river.
(3 of 3)

Like others in the first generation who came to clean up the Little Miami,
McElroy learned conservation as he went along.

"Regulation on erosion was something that was relatively new 20 years ago," he
said.
The view from Loveland

The work of McElroy and others is apparent in a place such as Loveland, a city
downstream with a historic downtown bisected by the river.

Loveland Mayor Rob Weisgerber said a vision of a thriving Little Miami River
basin is something the people of Southwest Ohio can rally behind. "When you
think about the river being one of the first national scenic rivers, there's a
lot of synergy that comes together to protect and highlight that."

Of the 25 sites studied by the Ohio EPA, one did not pass muster - the location
closest to the Ohio River, the lowest site sampled, near Beechmont Avenue in
Anderson Township.

The poor performance of that site was attributed to urban runoffs, industrial
discharges and sewer overflows from Duck Creek. Cumulative downstream effects
from being low on the Little Miami River near its confluence with the Ohio River
were also factors.

A consent decree between the Ohio EPA and MSD calls for spending $2 billion by
2019 to allay sewer outflows, said Ohio EPA spokeswoman Heather Lauer.

"Folks realize what needs to be done, but it's very, very expensive to do it,"
Lauer said.

The Ohio EPA study also recommends maintaining the highest standards of
wastewater treatment to combat excess nutrients in the Little Miami River.

Beyond the continuing grunt work, Partee said the challenge is to pass on a
passion for conservation to the next generation. Because after all, it has been
more than 40 years since this all started.

But is he ready to hang it up?

"I've got a few more good years left in me," Partee said with a laugh.

Though much has been accomplished, there is still more to do and gains to be
solidified, and with that Partee turns serious.

"If the grassroots support for environmental protection goes away, that means
the politics and public policy changes, and not for the better," he said.

What it took

Since its formation, Little Miami Inc. has been the tip of the spear in efforts
to save its namesake river from the pollution afflicting it.

Now, the junk cars, cattle and concrete are gone. The Little Miami River has
more to fear from rowdy locals "cabrewing," or canoeing while drinking, than a
culture where people think it's acceptable to drop an old water heater in the
river or harvest gravel from the waters to construct foundations.

"Back then, the whole idea of protecting the environment had not really taken
hold yet," said Partee.

Cleaning up a 100-mile-long river running through five Ohio counties has been a
gargantuan task that has required a large group of people with diverse skills,
interests and levels of involvement.

But whether it was someone like Partee, one of the larger wastewater agencies, a
farmer willing to implement a conservation plan or just someone who cared enough
to volunteer to pick up trash, those diverse efforts converged to result in a
better river.

"Everyone can pat themselves on the back," said Bruce Smith, senior engineer
with the Cincinnati Metropolitan Sewer District. "The public investment, as well
as the nonprofit investment, has been significant."

For context, Smith said the MSD has spent $29 million since 2005 at its Sycamore
Creek plant in Symmes Township to improve water quality.

Experts said that kind of infrastructure work, along with similar upgrades by
Warren and Greene counties, did much to cut down on phosphorous levels in the
river that can lead to algae that hogs oxygen needed by native organisms.

Phosphorous also clings to soil particles, vast quantities of which can make it
into the river due to development, smothering aquatic life and blocking
sunlight, said Dave McElroy, director of the Warren County Soil and Water
Conservation District.

For 20 years, McElroy has been instrumental in regulating surface and soil
runoff at construction sites in Warren County, where development has boomed.

He describes his job as "triage," trying to stabilize the river as development
rages, by suggesting ways to limit erosion or methods of leading runoff water
away from the river.

Like others in the first generation who came to clean up the Little Miami,
McElroy learned conservation as he went along.

"Regulation on erosion was something that was relatively new 20 years ago," he
said.
The view from Loveland

The work of McElroy and others is apparent in a place such as Loveland, a city
downstream with a historic downtown bisected by the river.

Loveland Mayor Rob Weisgerber said a vision of a thriving Little Miami River
basin is something the people of Southwest Ohio can rally behind. "When you
think about the river being one of the first national scenic rivers, there's a
lot of synergy that comes together to protect and highlight that."

Of the 25 sites studied by the Ohio EPA, one did not pass muster - the location
closest to the Ohio River, the lowest site sampled, near Beechmont Avenue in
Anderson Township.

The poor performance of that site was attributed to urban runoffs, industrial
discharges and sewer overflows from Duck Creek. Cumulative downstream effects
from being low on the Little Miami River near its confluence with the Ohio River
were also factors.

A consent decree between the Ohio EPA and MSD calls for spending $2 billion by
2019 to allay sewer outflows, said Ohio EPA spokeswoman Heather Lauer.

"Folks realize what needs to be done, but it's very, very expensive to do it,"
Lauer said.

The Ohio EPA study also recommends maintaining the highest standards of
wastewater treatment to combat excess nutrients in the Little Miami River.

Beyond the continuing grunt work, Partee said the challenge is to pass on a
passion for conservation to the next generation. Because after all, it has been
more than 40 years since this all started.

But is he ready to hang it up?

"I've got a few more good years left in me," Partee said with a laugh.

Though much has been accomplished, there is still more to do and gains to be
solidified, and with that Partee turns serious.

"If the grassroots support for environmental protection goes away, that means
the politics and public policy changes, and not for the better," he said.

http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs...S01/911080312/

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