Dam in St. Charles, Illinois. Photo by Al Watts, April 15, 2024.
In a letter sent to municipalities on the Fox River in Kane County on June 14, 2024, the Army Corps of Engineers reported that it intends to conduct a broader review of the impact of dam removal.[1] There were no specifics or timelines announced in their letter. According to the Elgin Courier-News, Elgin Mayor Dave Kaptain speculates this means “a stop on this whole process. …It looks like to me they’re saying we’re going to reload and start all over.”[2] The letter, however, suggests the Army Corps is looking to perform additional analyses to enhance the existing report, not “start all over.”
One of the reasons the Army Corps notes in their June 14 letter is their decision to reevaluate historic resources on the Fox River as we reported last month.
Last fall, the Army Corps of Engineers released a draft report of the Fox River Connectivity and Habitat Study which recommended all the dams on the Fox River in Kane County be removed to improve water quality and habitats for wildlife. Concerns emerged about the river’s depth and width without the dams and how that may affect property values, historical resources, and other matters. To better understand the impacts in St. Charles if its dam is removed, the city created a joint task force with the St. Charles Park District and other volunteers to engage outside experts and develop a report of their findings for the city council. Earlier this year, the Army Corps of Engineers requested that each city indicate by next spring (2025) whether they will allow their dam to be removed at no cost or keep the dam and pay for its maintenance in perpetuity. The Army Corps has not announced if this deadline has been extended considering their desire to acquire additional information about the impact of removing the dams on the Fox River, but the deadline will likely be extended.
At its August 1, 2024 meeting, St. Charles’s Fox River Dam Joint Task Force was pleased with the Corps’s decision to gather more information because it should give the task force more time to do its work. The approximately 50 residents who attended also seemed relieved there would likely be a longer evaluation process. Task force subcommittees on environment, recreation, economic impact, and the Army Corps presented questions they wanted answers from independent consultants the city would hire. While there were many detailed questions, the overwhelming theme was the need for a detailed hydrology report. The task force members and the public seemed to agree that understanding the changes to the depth and width of the river in St. Charles after the dam is removed will lead to answers for most of their other concerns.
City Manager Heather McGuire explained that city staff would consolidate the information the task force requested into a scope of services for their review at a public meeting in a couple of months. A request for proposals would then be sent out to hire a consultant to study the impact of the removal of the dam in St. Charles and answer the task force’s questions. McGuire estimated the process would take three to six months.
McGuire also noted the task force’s significant accomplishments since being assembled earlier this year. First, the task force, with public input, has identified the key questions that need to be answered so that the city council can make an informed decision on whether to have the dam removed. Second, the task force’s diligent process has demonstrated the importance of the dam removal issue in St. Charles to the public and the Army Corps of Engineers.
The Army Corps’s decision to gather additional information, especially on the impact on historic resources if the dams are removed, is a welcome development. While more time for evaluation may not change the outcome, this time can be used to better understand the far-reaching implications of water quality, natural habitats, property values, and historical resources if the dams on the Fox River in Kane County are removed.
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[1] Ryan Johnson to Municipal Stakeholders, “Section 519 Fox River Connectivity & Habitat Study Updates,” June 14, 2024, https://www.geneva.il.us/DocumentCenter/View/14987/USACE-Municipal-Correspondence.
[2] Gloria Casas, “Fox River Dam Removal on Hold for Now as Army Corps Says it Wants to Do More Research,” Elgin Courier-News, July 26, 2024, https://www.chicagotribune.com/2024/07/26/fox-river-dam-removal-on-hold-for-now-as-army-corps-says-it-wants-to-do-more-research/?clearUserState=true.