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The project’s primary ecological objectives were to improve habitat, reduce bank erosion and improve water quality within a 1.5-mile channelized stream running through the Springbrook Prairie Nature Preserve.
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The project’s engineering objectives focused on reconnecting the stream to the historic floodplain to improve its ability to absorb larger volumes of water and dissipate energy in major storm events.
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The remeandered stream bed was designed to elevate it to normal entrenchment conditions and saturate hydric soils to form a riparian wetland zone that would absorb floodwaters.
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Constructed to mimic a naturally-made stream bed, each bend in the new channel was excavated deeper to create a pool, each crossover was elevated to create a riffle and the stone-lined channel bottom was sloped to follow the water flow.
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The stream bank was stabilized using root wads and footer logs in the bends of the newly meandered creek and the top of the bank was stabilized with 10-foot-wide by 1-foot-deep burrito-style wrapped topsoil.
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A major project challenge involved building the new channel over the old channel while maintaining stream flows.
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All construction, stabilization, seeding restoration and planting were completed by V3.
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This project won the Illinois ASCE Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Award (less than $5 million).

Client
Forest Preserve District of DuPage County
Owner
Forest Preserve District of DuPage County
Project Cost
$4,981,114