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Project Title: Ferson-Otter Creek Dam Removal (FFS #R3TC)
State: Illinois
Project Description: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Carterville Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office in southern Illinois received $14,000 from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which brought the removal of the Creek Bend Forest Preserve Dam and modification to the Davoust Dam, two primary fish passage barriers in the lowermost portion of the Fox River watershed of northeast Illinois.
The Davoust Dam is a rock dam comprised of boulders which were hand modified so they now allow passage for aquatic organisms during all stream flows. The Creek Bend Forest Preserve Dam was also removed and bank stabilization work completed during this project that ended in the Fall of 2010.
The previous barriers in the Ferson-Otter Creek watershed adversely impacted movements and limited habitat availability for fish and mussels. Restoration of fish passage in the lower Ferson-Otter Creek watershed was a first step in reconnecting this system to downstream source communities, and helped reopen the lower watershed for spawning and nursery habitat. By reconnecting previously fragmented habitat, this project benefits the larger Fox River watershed, which is a tributary to Green Bay in Lake Michigan.
For additional information about the Carterville National Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office, visit the Carterville-Marion NWFCO website.
News Releases:
Secretary Salazar Announces Grant Award for Ferson-Otter Creek Fish Passage Restoration in Illinois
Originally posted 08/06/2009
Updated 09/25/2009
Page Completed 11/02/2011
