Pointe Mouillee Confined Disposal Area Detroit And Rouge Rivers PDF Download

Containment of the polluted dredge spoil will remove it as a source of pollution to the open waters of the bay. Dikes will protect Pointe Mouillee Wildlife shoreland marshes from further erosion and create additional fishing habitat. Future development and management of the site and marshlands will optimize wildlife habitats and provide recreational potential for waterfowlers and naturalists. Replacement of 700 acres of Lake Erie bottomland by the proposed structure may introduce an adverse esthetic impact on the natural landforms of the area. The dikes and management measures would create a secondary adverse impact on historical and biological relationships of the marsh to the lake. Although the structure will offer a protection against erosion from wave action, it will not prevent losses of vegetation from flooding. The function of the marsh as a spawning and feeding habitat for fish, as it existed in the 1930's, is now measurably reduced and would not resume behind the anticipated dikes. A lagoon situation behind the dikes, which would enhance conditions relative to spawning and feeding, is dependent on levels of turbidity and concentrations of pollutants that may result. Alternatives to the recommend plan include: (1) Resume open lake disposal which would return pollutants to the waterways, but such action is prohibited by request of the Governor of Michigan; (2) Discontinue dredging of polluted sediments which would reduce channel depths and curtail shipping; and (3) Use another site for disposal.