Dedicated
to
Michigan's
Huron River

Three seasons of the year on Argo Pond, rowers gather morning, afternoon and evening, slip their boats into the water and glide across the scenic waterway in silent harmony.

At water's edge, joggers and birdwatchers pass along popular shoreline trails, while fishermen troll nearby for nibbles among lily pads and herons.

The beauty of the area along the Huron River has made it an increasingly popular spot for recreation in Ann Arbor, but the landscape could change dramatically if the city adopts a competing vision that will get a serious look in upcoming months.

The city's environmental commission is expected to start drafting a management plan for the Ann Arbor section of the Huron and its impoundments. And that will mean addressing river management questions - such as whether to remove Argo Dam, an idea the state Department of Natural Resources has advocated for a decade because of the detrimental environmental impacts.

Removing the dam would eliminate the pond and allow the city to reclaim land along the river. An estimated 40 to 50 acres of city-owned land now lies under water. It's valued at roughly $4 million to $5 million - a gold mine of potential parkland in a city where large tracts of vacant land for any use are essentially gone.

In addition to expanding recreational opportunities on the newly reclaimed land, the move also might create new water recreation options because the river may have enough of a gradient change to produce some whitewater.

While park supporters and those focused on the river's environmental health think the idea of removing the dam is worth debating, opposition is growing in the Ann Arbor rowing community.

Local rowers estimate as many as 600 people - members of at least four clubs and other area residents - use Argo Pond to row. Some are amateurs in their first season of a newfound sport; others have gone on to national rowing championships and the Olympics. They say it's a better location than other area ponds for a variety of reasons, and that removing the dam would likely mean the death of a popular community sport.

The dam is one of four owned by the city. Barton Dam is a revenue generator for hydroelectric power, raising, along with Superior Dam, roughly $500,000 a year for the city. And because Barton Dam creates the pond that supplies the city's water, it's not a likely candidate for removal.

Geddes Dam creates the pond at Gallup Park, arguably the city's most popular site for a variety of recreational activities.

But then there's Argo Dam, originally built in 1920 to produce hydropower by Detroit Edison. It was decommissioned in 1963 and purchased by the city. Ann Arbor had to rebuild it in the early 1970s because of safety issues.

Today, it serves as a footpath across the river, and creates the 92-acre Argo Pond. The impoundment is nearly two miles long from Barton to Argo dams.

In 1995, the state Department of Natural Resources identified it as a priority for removal, since it no longer serves its original purpose and because removal would help water quality, and fish and mussel habitat.

The U.S. Geological Survey also identified Argo as one of the two dams in Michigan that most dramatically alter the natural flow of the river, according to a 2003 Huron River Watershed Council report. The council itself has long advocated the removal of the dam to improve river health.

A series of aging ponds

Argo Pond's environmental problems are not unique. All of the ponds along the river through Ann Arbor are filled with sediment, which raises water temperatures and provides ample food for weed growth. That threatens native plants and animals.

Weeds are so thick in some ponds along the river that residents have complained or asked for herbicide application, said Laura Rubin, executive director of the Huron River Watershed Council. And in Argo, some of the rowing teams make near-daily trips through the pond in summertime with a weedcutter to clear a path for boats, she said.

That makes the problem worse by spreading spores for new weeds everywhere, she noted. But it illustrates the age and impairment of the ponds.

"These just aren't high-quality bodies of water,'' said Elizabeth Riggs, a watershed specialist with the watershed council. "They are starting to show their age.'' The U.S. Geological Survey runs a gauging station just below Argo Dam for taking stream flow measurements. That data, compared with the data from upriver, show the Huron is very "flashy'' at that point, said hydrologist Steve Blumer. That means that the river runs low quickly, and peaks quickly as well. That tendency can interfere with the

USGS data, he said.

"It's not natural,'' he said. "It's not a typical stream hydrograph.''Another plus, proponents say, would be the creation of recreational opportunities the city doesn't have.

The riverbed under the pond is believed to be steep and narrow enough that, if the dam were removed, whitewater would roll past Bandemer Park, said Matt Naud, city environmental coordinator.

"It's an issue I think we do need to look at with full consideration of all the stakeholders, including the rowing clubs,'' said Mayor John Hieftje. "That's certainly a use that we want to continue in Ann Arbor.''

But he added that there might be other places for rowing.

"If that were to come to pass, it's possible another place for rowers could be found that's just as good or better,'' he said. "In the back of my mind is the possibility of a whitewater park.''

A rowing refuge

Though there are individuals opposed for aesthetic reasons, or because they enjoy canoeing or fishing there, the largest organized opposition is the rowing community, observers say. Rowers say Argo is the best place around for their sport, for a number of reasons.

The sport has been around for generations, and has been active on Argo Pond since at least the mid-1970s, when the University of Michigan men's rowing team first began using it.

Over the years, it's become increasingly popular, rowers say. Both high schools have added teams and coaches say they expect there to be eventual demand from the new high school.

Since its inception in the early 1980s, the Ann Arbor Rowing Club has grown to more than 200 members, with another 240 or so going through summer beginner programs, said Sarah Marsh, president of the board of the Ann Arbor Rowing Club. And there are roughly 150 student rowers at Huron and Pioneer.

At nearly two miles from Argo Dam to Barton Dam, the pond is the longest continuous stretch of rowable water nearby, rowers say.

And while Geddes Pond in Gallup Park has more than a mile of rowable water, it is crowded with canoeists and kayakers, and there's no storage space for the expensive boats that rowers use. Two high school teams, the U-M men's team and the Ann Arbor Rowing Club share space in a small building on Argo's shores.While Geddes Pond would be convenient for the team from nearby Huron High, building storage on school property wouldn't solve the problem of students trying to carry 60-foot-long boats across busy Fuller Road, said Huron head coach Mike Johnston.Marsh also noted that pitting the debate as one of rowers against the environment was an unfair dichotomy. Many rowers regularly pick up trash and are volunteer stewards in nearby parks, she said.

"We're all environmentalists,'' she said. "We do this because it's outdoors.''

And, at least for the sake of restoring fish populations, there's the question of how much good dam removal would actually do.

"If you maintain the Barton Dam and you maintain the dam at Gallup, then you have impounded the river on either side of the watercourse you're talking about,'' said Ann Arbor resident Ron Woodman, a past president of the club and longtime rower. "So it's not like you've created a wild river. ... you've just modified the span in between, to a degree.''

Gregg Hartsuff, head coach of the U-M team, has been rowing on Argo for 15 years.

"I can lay witness to the fact that the river has gotten more shallow over time'' because of sedimentation,'' he said. "We know what's at stake. But we'd rather see it dredged'' with the dam left in place, he said.

The lack of space elsewhere would likely spell big trouble for all rowers - private, club and school-based, rowers say.

"If it does come down to it, it would pretty much put an end to rowing in Ann Arbor,'' said Rich Griffith, head coach at Pioneer High School, which has about 80 boys and girls on its team.

Cost and other problems

The rowing community is not the only obstacle for advocates of dam removal. How to pay for it and total costs haven't been addressed.

Dam removal can be an expensive project, particularly if sediment, which can accumulate behind a dam, has to be dredged. Though previous studies indicate toxin-laced sediment is not likely an issue, it will get more and more expensive if dredging involves disposing of polluted soil.

"If there are high levels (of pollutants), it would pretty much be a conversation-ender,'' Riggs said.

According to a 2002 study commissioned by the watershed council, there are 184,000 cubic yards of sediment behind the dam. That's enough to cover 34 football fields in hip-deep muck.

And sediment will continue to pile up behind the dam in coming years. It will have to be dredged if the dam is left in place, Riggs said.

Currently, it costs about $20,000 a year to operate and maintain the dam, according to Sumedh Bahl of the city water utilities department. But every 15 to 20 years it requires major work. The last overhaul, in 1993, cost $140,000.

That's money advocates say would be better spent on dam removal and restoration.

Naud said the commission would likely begin drafting a request for proposals for a consultant to help create the river management plan.

He said there would be numerous opportunities for public input, and a task force.

"There are hard choices,'' he said. But the possibility of gaining some 50 acres of parkland is "a pretty compelling thing that I think we ought to take a look at.''

from the Ann Arbor News