Tell your state leaders to support river restoration and floating parks!

The Chicago River of Illinois has experienced a classic Anthropocene urban river restoration success story! After decades of dedicated work cleaning up pollution, it’s home to 77 species of fish, up from just 5 in the 1970s. Kayaking is now common. The city of Chicago is planning its first downtown open-water swim since the 1920s for later this September. A large snapping turtle dubbed “Chonkosaurus” has become a viral example of the ecosystem’s rejuvenation.

And on the newly clean Chicago River, the fascinating “Wild Mile” project is being built as a first-ever biodiversity-aiding floating park! It combines public-accessible boardwalks with a network of modular pontoons sheltering floating wetlands formed of Illinois plant species, some of which are also hosting projects to restore endangered freshwater mussels. The plants’ roots and the mussels both act as a 24/7 free water filter, further benefiting the ecosystem and the public by removing heavy metals, regulating nutrient cycles and preventing toxic algae blooms. The Wild Mile is also highly resilient, anchored to both the river floor and the seawall to adapt to rapid changes in water levels, and has already stayed put during dramatic floods.

Restored rivers and floating parks are a massive win-win-win, offering habitat for wildlife, a heat refuge and quality-of-life boost for humans, and an economic value addition for communities all at once! The Chicago River is just one of a great multitude of urban waterway restoration efforts going on across America. State governments should proactively seek out and support river restoration projects, and ensure a supportive legal, regulatory, and permitting environment for floating parks.

Tell your state leaders to support river restoration and floating parks!