A newly finished $1.1 million renovation of the Sterling Relief Drain will improve stormwater management and water quality in the county while adding thousands of native plants and a half-mile walking trail, experts say.
Sterling Heights and Macomb County officials said the drain corridor is an example of green infrastructure, with 100 total acres of habitat restored and 5,000 trees and shrubs. The centerpiece of the second phase of the project, completed this month, is a pedestrian and biking path about half a mile long.
“This is a remarkable project that is very environmentally friendly by improving water quality and the local habitat while boosting the city’s recreational opportunities for residents providing this new path for their enjoyment,” said Candice Miller, Macomb County Public Works commissioner.
Sterling Heights Mayor Michael Taylor called the project “an investment in the long-term resilience of our community.”
Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Candice S. Miller and Sterling Heights officials discuss the green infrastructure project and the newly completed hike/bike path in the Sterling Relief Drain.
The drain is located just south of Metropolitan Parkway in Sterling Heights, running west to east from Ryan Road to Schoenherr Road, where it meets the larger Red Run drain. About 20% of the stormwater and snowmelt from the city passes through the drain, according to the Macomb County Public Works Commission.
The first phase of the project, completed in 2019, renovated a stretch between Van Dyke Road and Schoenherr Road.
The city of Sterling Heights and the Macomb County Public Works Office, along with grants from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, DTE and Consumers Energy, paid for the project.
Sterling Heights contributed just over $400,000 to build the trail; the National Fish and Wildlife grant totaled $415,000; a federal earmark added $50,000 to plant trees; Consumers gave a $40,000 grant; and DTE contributed $4,000.
The rest, about $187,000, came from Macomb County and Sterling Relief Drain District funds, according to the county public works commission.
The water that passes through the Sterling Relief Drain eventually flows into the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair, according to Bill Shuster, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Wayne State University.
“As rainfall or snow melt hits the streets or other impervious surfaces, these are directly connected to the sewer and inlets all over southeast Michigan, all over the built world,” he said.
The goal of the Sterling drain improvements, said Shuster, is to “catch those flows before they get a head of steam up and can basically take up valuable capacity downstream in the sewer system.”
Planting trees, shrubs and native perennials on the surface of the drain creates a natural filter for minerals and other pollutants, according to Kelly Karll, Manager of Environment and Infrastructure with the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG).
Karll, who frequently works with county and local officials to improve stormwater management infrastructure, said the water that runs through the drain picks up pollutants upstream because much of the drainage area is “highly urbanized.”
“The biggest benefit is water quality,” said Karll, “so if they’re filtering out pollutants upstream, much of that’s not getting conveyed downstream ultimately into the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair.”
The drain upgrades is expected to remove some 50,000 pounds of sediment from the stormwater flowing through it each year, including 800 pounds of phosphorus and 4,500 pounds of nitrogen, according to the Macomb County Public Works Commission.
Removing those minerals helps downstream bodies of water like Lake St. Clair maintain a healthy ecosystem, said Shuster, the WSU professor.
When the nitrogen levels in a lake are too high, he said, algae blooms can form and choke off other forms of life. “Oxygen demand goes up and everything dies,” Shuster said.
The walking and biking path creates “an important new connection for residents to walk, run and bike safely through our community,” said Kyle Langois, director of Sterling Heights Parks and Recreation.
“Beyond the drainage improvements, this project gives us an opportunity to expand access to recreation and a broader trail network,” Langois said.
An aerial view shows a portion of the Sterling Relief Drain, where a $1.1 million improvement project was recently completed. The drain runs from Ryan Road to Shoenherr Road just south of Metropolitan Parkway in Sterling Heights.
Karll said positioning a project like the drain renovation as an “amenity,” not just an upgrade to water resource management, can improve community buy-in.
“Well, if you’re designing a nice wetland that’s going to hold water, you can put a trail around it and integrate different vegetation,” Karll said. “It’s how you design it and integrate it into the landscape to make it an amenity for the public and give access to the public.”
bwarren@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Sterling Heights transforms drain into green space
