Urban Rivers

In 2013 Josh Yellin, Zachary Damato and Nick Wesley raised concerns about water pollution and ecological degradation in the Chicago River system.{{Cite web |last=Berg |first=Nate |date=July 6, 2022 |title=From industrial waste to floating wetlands, how Chicago's Wild Mile is reinventing the urban river |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90766604/from-industrial-waste-to-floating-wetlands-how-chicagos-wild-mile-is-reinventing-the-urban-river}} To combat the issues they founded Urban rivers as "The Naru Project" in 2014.{{cite web |title=Rewilding Rivers: A Tale of Floating Wetlands in Chicago |url=https://www.sheddaquarium.org/stories/rewilding-rivers-a-tale-of-floating-wetlands-in-chicago}} The organization's first focus was on addressing their concerns related to water pollution and ecological degradation at Chicago Rivers South Branch "Bubbly Creek."{{Cite web |last=Wetli |first=Patty |date=October 31, 2022 |title=Floating Wetlands Bring New Life to Infamous Section of Chicago River's South Branch |url=https://news.wttw.com/2022/10/31/floating-wetlands-bring-new-life-infamous-section-chicago-river-s-south-branch}} The creek was used for commercial transportation and through much of its history as a dumping ground for nearby meat packing industries.{{Cite web |last=Wang |first=Xuandi |date=2022-11-10 |title=Here's How A Local Group Is Reviving The Chicago River's Freshwater Mussels |url=http://blockclubchicago.org/2022/11/10/urban-rivers-revives-freshwater-mussels-in-chicago-river/ |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=Block Club Chicago |language=en-US}}

Urban Rivers works alongside local and state universities in Illinois. They consult with these institutions on local plants, water chemistry, aquatic macroinvertebrates, and fish. In order to monitor and study changes in stream health related to bug populations Urban Rivers collaborates with Northeastern Illinois University, DePaul University as well as the Chicago Metropolitan Water Reclamation District . To study water chemistry and geology Urban Rivers works with Dr. Eric Peterson from the geology department at Illinois State University.{{Cite web |title=Floating gardens: More than just a pretty place |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/491866 |access-date=2024-03-07 |website=EurekAlert! |language=en}} Dr. Petersons work focuses on studying the presence of nutrients, chloride, oxygen, chlorophyll, and heavy metals in the Wild Mile.

Urban Rivers has published works, alongside researchers from Northeastern University in Boston and the National Aquarium in Baltimore Urban Rivers has helped determine the ecological impacts of floating wetlands across three contrasting sites in Chicago, Baltimore, and Boston.{{Cite journal |last1=Rome |first1=McNamara |last2=Happel |first2=Austin |last3=Dahlenburg |first3=Charmaine |last4=Nicodemus |first4=Phil |last5=Schott |first5=Eric |last6=Mueller |first6=Stephanie |last7=Lovell |first7=Kathryne |last8=Beighley |first8=R. Edward |date=2023-06-15 |title=Application of floating wetlands for the improvement of degraded urban waters: Findings from three multi-year pilot-scale installations |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969723012858 |journal=Science of the Total Environment |volume=877 |pages=162669 |doi=10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162669 |pmid=36907411 |bibcode=2023ScTEn.877p2669R |issn=0048-9697|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite web |last=Wettli |first=Patty |date=March 31, 2023 |title=Are Floating Wetlands Making a Difference in Urban Rivers? Chicago Researchers Say the Ecosystem Life Rafts Are Working |url=https://news.wttw.com/2023/03/31/are-floating-wetlands-making-difference-urban-rivers-chicago-researchers-say-ecosystem }}{{Cite web |title=New Research Underscores the Initial Benefits of Floating Wetlands in Urban Waterways |url=https://www.aza.org/connect-stories/stories/new-research-underscores-the-initial-benefits-of-floating-wetlands-in-urban-waterways |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=www.aza.org |language=en-us}} Based on their observations in the Wild Mile the researchers published a study on the application of floating wetlands for the improvement of degraded urban water.

Alongside Shedd Aquarium, Urban Rivers added over three thousand square feet of floating habitat to the South Branch of the Chicago River. They create the habitats by utilizing a 'riverponic' system: they combine together polyethylene and metal frames, matting, dropping them in the water, adding plants, and anchoring the islands to the river bottom.{{Cite web |title=How Floating Wetlands Are Helping to Clean Up Urban Waters |url=https://e360.yale.edu/features/floating-wetlands-cities-pollution |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=Yale E360 |language=en-US}}

The Wild Mile is Chicago's first floating eco-park,{{Cite web |last=Team |first=CBS Chicago |date=2022-10-12 |title=Wild Mile, Chicago's first floating eco-park, opens near Goose Island - CBS Chicago |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/wild-mile-chicagos-first-floating-eco-park-opens-near-goose-island/ |access-date=2024-04-20 |website=www.cbsnews.com |language=en-US}} it is made using Urban Rivers 'riverponic' system to emulate natural river ecologies.{{Cite web |title=Urban Rivers and SOM Construct a Floating Urban Sanctuary in the Chicago River {{!}} Architectural Record |url=https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/15780-urban-rivers-and-som-construct-a-floating-urban-sanctuary-in-the-chicago-river |access-date=2024-04-20 |website=www.architecturalrecord.com |language=en}} Together with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Urban Rivers designed the Wild Mile to attract wildlife such as pollinators, birds, fish, and turtles. SOM and Urban Rivers also enlisted the help of Omni Ecosystems, Near North Unity Program, REI, Wholefoods , engineers at Tetra Tech, d’Escoto, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on the project. Peter Nagle, Curator of Aquatics at Chicago's Botanic Garden, heads Urban rivers work on plant life in their biomes, informing them on vegetation design. Urban Rivers uses “river rangers” to oversee the well-being of plants and wildlife and address issues like litter, weeds, and invasive species.{{Cite web |title=Six Ways You Can Help the Chicago River |url=https://interactive.wttw.com/chicago-river-tour/six-ways-help-chicago-river |website=WTTW Interactive}}

The City of Chicago is the primary funder of Urban Rivers 'Wild Mile.'{{Cite web |title=Financing Approved for "Wild Mile" and Other Riverfront Projects |url=https://www.chicago.gov/content/city/en/depts/dcd/provdrs/sustain/news/2019/december/financing-proposed-for--wild-mile--and-other-riverfront-projects.html |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=www.chicago.gov |language=en}} The city's first financial contribution was $1.4 million dollars granted to Urban Rivers through Open Space Impact Fees (OSIF). These fees are paid by new residential development projects in order to develop and improve public open spaces. In addition to this funding, in 2022 Mountain Dew named Urban Rivers as a recipient of their 2022 Outdoor Grant.{{Cite press release |last=PepsiCo |title=MTN DEW® Awards $200,000 to 40 Nonprofit Organizations That Champion the Great Outdoors |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mtn-dew-awards-200-000-to-40-nonprofit-organizations-that-champion-the-great-outdoors-301462425.html |access-date=2024-04-17 |website=www.prnewswire.com |language=en}} Using these funds Urban Rivers plans to double the size of the existing Wild Mile and place a third location by the junction of the Chicago river and the North Shore Channel with funding from National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.{{Cite web |title=NFWF Awards $1.7 Million in New Conservation Grants to Benefit Wildlife and Improve Access to Greenspace in the Chicago-Calumet Region {{!}} NFWF |url=https://www.nfwf.org/media-center/press-releases/nfwf-awards-1-7-million-new-conservation-grants-benefit-wildlife-and-improve-access-greenspace |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=www.nfwf.org |language=en}}

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District conducts fish surveys alongside the Shedd Aquarium{{Cite web |last=Anderson |first=Jordan |date=2022-10-29 |title=Shedd Aquarium, Urban Rivers to bring over 3,000 square feet of floating wetlands to the South Side |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2022/10/29/shedd-aquarium-urban-rivers-to-bring-over-3000-square-feet-of-floating-wetlands-to-the-south-side/ |access-date=2024-03-07 |website=Chicago Tribune |language=en-US}} in the Wild Mile looking at larval and juvenile fish to aid Urban rivers, which support plant community growth alongside the fish reproductive cycle.

The Goose Island Overlook has hosted seed starting and guerrilla gardening classes on Urban Rivers learning platform in the Wild Mile.{{Cite web |last=Wittich |first=Jake |date=2022-07-13 |title=The Wild Mile's First Stretch Is Ready, Bringing Floating Gardens, Paths And More To Chicago River's North Branch |url=http://blockclubchicago.org/2022/07/13/the-wild-miles-first-stretch-is-ready-bringing-floating-gardens-paths-and-more-to-chicago-rivers-north-branch/ |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=Block Club Chicago |language=en-US}}

In May 2023, a picture of a large snapping turtle nearby the Wild Mile went viral and was dubbed Chonkasaurus Rex. Urban Rivers' Phil Nicodemus noted that snapping turtles were a common sight in the area since the river rehabilitation began.{{Cite web |date=2023-05-12 |title=Meet 'Chonkosaurus,' the viral Chicago River snapping turtle |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/chonkosaurus-chicago-river-snapping-turtle-viral-rcna84211 |access-date=2024-04-22 |website=NBC News |language=en}}

Utilizing funding from Kickstarter, Urban Rivers developed a prototype autonomous robot to remove trash from the waterways.{{Cite web |date=2018-04-03 |title=You Could Drive This River-Cleaning Trashbot From Anywhere |url=https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/robots/a19676406/chicago-river-trashbot-urban-rivers/ |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=Popular Mechanics |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Kart |first=Jeff |title=Pilot A Trash Robot To Attack River Pollution |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffkart/2018/05/02/pilot-a-trash-robot-to-attack-river-pollution/ |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=Forbes |language=en}}

As part of their waterway improvement project at Goose Island, Urban rivers has helped reproduce more than fifteen hundred mussels (Pyganodon grandis) by extracting larvae and installing temporary habitats. Mussels remove sediment and consume algae and plankton, thus largely improving river odor. In 2024, Urban rivers was granted a permit by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to capture five pregnant river mollusks in order to promote their reproductive cycle.{{Cite web |last=Wetli |first=Patty |title=Native Mollusks Are Key to Freshwater Ecosystems. Here's How One Group is Helping Build Mussel Mass on the Chicago River |url=https://news.wttw.com/2024/01/30/native-mollusks-are-key-freshwater-ecosystems-here-s-how-one-group-helping-build-mussel}}

Urban Rivers hosts summer programs; in 2023, they hosted the Environmental Justice Freedom School (EJFS). EJFS is an opportunity for students to receive climate and environment education.{{Cite web |last=Khera |first=Indira |title=New summer program for students tours Chicago pollution hotspots |date=23 June 2023 |url=https://chicago.suntimes.com/education/2023/6/23/23771640/new-summer-program-for-students-tours-chicago-pollution-hotspots}}

Category:Non-profit organizations based in Chicago