West Branch Forest Preserve Wetland, Fen, & River Restoration

This complex, multi-year project involved the restoration of a 350-acre area within a forest preserve including a one-mile section of the West Branch of the DuPage River, 158 acres of wetlands, a 34-acre fen, and adjacent prairie and savanna communities. Project goals included improving stormwater management, enhancing aquatic and terrestrial habitat, and reducing invasive species pressure to allow native communities to establish. The river restoration posed a daunting challenge, requiring a solution that involved diverting the existing river while accommodating 100-year storm event volumes. We restored the river in phases, building lined diversion channels along the length of the river, addressing erosion issues, stabilizing the banks, and enhancing wetland hydrology by connecting the river to the floodplain.

Owner

DuPage County Department of Stormwater Management

Additional Info

Project Highlight:

River enhancements included placing 3,500 linear feet of root wads and 5,000 boulders along the shoreline and riverbed to address erosion issues and stabilize the banks.
Strategic areas of the site were regraded and structural berms constructed to enhance wetland hydrology.
The material excavated for the channels was stockpiled out of the floodplain prior to being placed back in the channels and restored.
Because of its highly sensitive environment, the 34-acre fen had to be cleared by hand.
We installed 150,000 native plants and seeded more than 200 acres with native plants.
In addition to the County, the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County also directed work related to the enhancement.
Construction was followed by three years of ecological maintenance and monitoring.