The Rouge River—part of a 436-square-mile watershed—was plagued by combined sewer overflows (CSO) and poor stormwater quality for decades. An urban river outside Detroit, Michigan, the Rouge has undergone major improvements over the past 9 years thanks to the Rouge River National Wet Weather Demonstration Project. The project, to restore and protect water quality, control CSOs and other nonpoint sources of pollution, and implement watershed management practices, began in 1992. Supported in part by EPA grants, the project included pollution control facilities and established design criteria and best management practices to restore the river's degraded habitats.
By empowering local communities to develop their own CSO control designs as part of the comprehensive program, different approaches were identified and implemented, including sewer separation, storage transport tunnels, and variations on the conventional storage-treatment scheme. In addition to dramatically improving water quality, the construction of smaller CSO control facilities for a 1-year, 1-hour storm, as opposed to facilities for a 25-year, 1-hour storm, saved Detroit and its suburbs hundreds of millions of dollars. These smaller facilities still meet public health requirements while eliminating sewage discharges.
In addition to addressing CSOs, various stormwater controls were implemented, including nutrient, flow, and soil erosion management; wetlands restoration; ecosystem and habitat improvements; recreational amenities; and regulation and local ordinance development to integrate both short- and long-term solutions for the area. Residents and visitors now enjoy canoeing, golfing, and activities at Newburgh Lake and along the river, none of which were possible before this project. Wetlands at the local golf course are also used as an education center for local schoolchildren.