St. Louis District Celebrates Illinois River Island Restoration

The St. Louis Engineer District celebrated the completion of three Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program (NESP) projects on the Illinois River on September 24 when it held the dedication ceremony for Alton Pool Islands, Twin Islands and Moore’s Towhead NESP projects. The celebration also served as part of the kickoff of the district’s annual River Resources Action Team, or RRAT, barge trip on the Mississippi River.

“NESP has two components: navigation and ecosystem,” said Col. Andy Pannier, commander of the St. Louis District. “While navigation projects garner a lot of attention, the ecosystem part of the program is equally important, which is why we are here today.”

The ecosystem part of NESP consists of approximately 225 projects on the Upper Mississippi River. They come in many different shapes and sizes: island building, floodplain restoration, water level management, backwater or side channel restoration, spillway, dam and levee modification. If the project is on federal land, then it is 100 percent federally funded. If non-federal land is included, the cost is split 65-percent federal, 35-percent non-federal.

The projects enhance geomorphic diversity and reduce erosion, create and/or improve deep water fish habitat, improve native fish habitat and increase side channel diversity.

The St. Louis District hosts the annually RRAT trip within the St. Louis District. The event is the St. Louis District’s coordination forum to discuss environmental issues and compliance and to share lessons learned with the district’s partners and stakeholders. The trip has taken place each year since the early 1970s, after the passage of environmental laws like the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act.