From slough back to river?

by Bob Spaulding

The lack of water flow alongside the upper part of Grey Cloud Island has become a source of substantial environmental degradation, and Grey Cloud Island Township is working to do something about it.

Home to several wooded homesteads, and a large gravel mine, Grey Cloud Island is actually two islands perched in the middle of the Mississippi just north of Hastings. The Grey Cloud Channel separates the Cities of St. Paul Park and Cottage Grove from the Island itself.

The modern history of the Grey Cloud Channel stretches back to 1965. In that year, an earthen dike was erected between Grey Cloud Island on one side, and St. Paul Park. The dike carries traffic on Grey Cloud Island Drive onto and off of Upper Grey Cloud Island.

When the dike was constructed, pipes were installed in the dike to allow water to continue to flow through the backwater channel in the area. But over time, those pipes have filled in or collapsed, leaving the backwater channel to become a stagnant pool of muck.

Over time, the flow diminished perceptibly, explains Township Board Member Paul Schonecker. The flow was much less by the early 1980s, but there was still flow. Today, theres nothing.

The result is striking: the water has become a murky ooze that has become increasingly unsupportive of life, exacting potentially permanent damage on the areas ecology.

The lack of flow increases the rate of eutrophication — the nutrient enrichment of the water and soil in the area — which can result in a condition known as hypertrophy. The water stagnates, and water temperatures stratify. Organic material collecting on the bottom consumes oxygen from the lower reaches of water until no oxygen is left. As a result, life of all forms increasingly cannot be supported.

Hypertrophy is all too common along the Missisissippi River – the legacy of countless dikes, dams, and transportation projects that have alterted the flow of the river substantially, frequently exacting quiet damage on the rivers ecology.

To remedy the situation, Grey Cloud Island Township has been seeking funding to reconnect the backwater channel to the larger river. An application sent earlier this year to a Metropolitan Council-administered fund was not approved.

But the Townships resolve has only been strengthened. Theyve raised awareness of the need to tackle the issue within the larger community, and have identified several additional potential sources of revenue.

We continue to have conversations and expect to pursue a number of avenues in the near future, Schonecker said.

FMR will be working with the Township to help ensure the project can get underway soon – and return the Grey Cloud Channel to a fully-functional river habitat.