Manistique River AOC

On this page:

• Overview
• Beneficial Use Impairments
• Remediation and Restoration Work
• Partners

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Overview

The Manistique River in Michigan was designated as an Area of Concern (AOC) under the 1987 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. The Manistique River is located in Schoolcraft County in Michigan's central Upper Peninsula. The river flows southwest through the county and discharges into Lake Michigan at the city of Manistique.

The Manistique Harbor is a deep-draft harbor that has supported numerous commercial and recreational activities since the late 1800s. Most notably, the harbor has been a significant lumber port due to Manistique’s location at the mouth of a largely forested watershed. As a result, sawmills and paper manufacturing facilities developed on the Manistique River have had negative environmental effects. The Manistique River was designated as an AOC due to:

• Historical polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB), metals and other contamination from local industries
• Organic waste (sawdust and woodchips) from sawmill and paper mill operations
• Combined sewer overflows and bacterial contamination

Restoration of the Manistique River AOC is important for the ecological, economic, and human health of the region. The Manistique River supports several species of sport fish, waterfowl, and mammals. The local community also uses the river and harbor for recreation. Local, state, and federal organizations worked together to complete all remediation and restoration projects needed to delist the Manistique River AOC.

Beneficial Use Impairments

An interim success of remediation and restoration work is removing Beneficial Use Impairments (BUIs). BUIs are designations given by the International Joint Commission, representing different types of significant environmental degradation.

The Manistique River AOC was originally listed with the five BUIs outlined below. BUIs are removed when monitoring results demonstrate significant environmental health improvements. Due to extensive remediation and restoration work within the AOC by multiple partners since the 1990s, four BUIs have been removed. Remedial actions have been completed and monitoring will be performed to  assess whether restoration targets have been met for the one remaining BUI. The Manistique River AOC will begin the delisting process when all the BUIs are removed. Manistique River BUIs include(d): 

• Restrictions on Fish and Wildlife Consumption
• Manistique River AOC Restrictions on Dredging (pdf) (3.66 MB)  - Removed September 2021
• Beach Closings – Removed May 2010
• Loss of Fish and Wildlife Habitat – Removed September 2008
• Degradation of Benthos – Removed November 2006

Remediation and Restoration Work

Federal, state, and local partners have made significant progress by implementing numerous monitoring, remediation, and restoration projects with the goal of delisting the Manistique River AOC.

EPA Superfund activities between 1993 and 2000 removed over 10,000 pounds of PCBs as a result of the removal of 187,500 cubic yards of contaminated sediment and woody debris. The Superfund cleanup objectives were met, but elevated PCB concentrations remained in some areas of the AOC that still contributed to impairments of beneficial uses. Since then, projects have included additional sediment investigations, biological investigations (focusing on PCB bioaccumulation in mussels, fish, tree swallow eggs, spiders and worms), and contaminated sediment cleanup.

In 2016 and 2019 two additional sediment remediation projects were conducted to address the remaining PCB contamination in the AOC. As of November 2019, all remediation and restoration actions identified for the Manistique River AOC are complete. Partners will now focus on assessing the impacts of the final restoration project to the environment in relation to the remaining BUI.

• Documents on Restoring the Manistique River AOC
• Remediation and Restoration Projects for Manistique River AOC
• Completed Project Highlights for Manistique River AOC

Partners

• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• U.S. Geological Survey
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
• Manistique River Public Advisory Committee