Crab Orchard Creek Watershed

A Flood Control Project in the Upper Crab Orchard Creek Watershed

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Residents felt helpless. Low income households often must accept the cumulative effects flooding has on their lives since they lack the resources to repair and replace damaged property. One elderly woman explained, “It’s bad, but what can you do? You don’t have the money to move. Once I had flood insurance, but it’s so expensive. I can’t afford it.” People with the fewest financial resources had to tolerate musty carpets, buckling damp floors, and mud-stained walls instead of repairing the damage.

The Ashley Park neighborhood, located along Fairgrounds Creek, also experienced recurrent flooding. Property values in this newer, more prosperous area were falling due to the reputation for flooding. It wasn’t unusual for a storm to leave two feet of water in homes.

For one family, a second flood struck one year to the day after they incurred $45,000 in damages from a previous flood. The homeowner called the mayor on Christmas Eve morning, “You’ve got to do something. The water’s rising and my wife’s hysterical. We can’t take this anymore.” Damage to one’s home can cause feelings of helplessness, frustration, despair, anger and loss. The psychological toll can persist long after floodwaters have receded.

The Solution

Attempts to address flooding in Marion began in earnest after a particularly devastating flood in 1962. An initial study indicated, however, that it wasn’t economically feasible to solve the problem. Mayor Butler recalled, “When the state said they couldn’t do anything, people thought... well, with government help ruled out, the city can’t do it.”

But a small group of local citizens and the city were undeterred. After another big flood in 1977, they gained the support and assistance of the Williamson County Soil and Water Conservation District and Congressman Glen Poshard. They established partnerships with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS, then called the Soil Conservation Service), Illinois Department of Agriculture, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Illinois Department of Transportation, and others. Using NRCS’s resource planning process the local people developed a plan of action to address the community’s concerns with extensive input from farmers, residents and city officials.

The PL-566 Watershed Work Plan was approved by the project partners on July 24, 1990. NRCS did the design and engineering. Potential adverse environmental effects of the project were identified, and a strategy was developed to mitigate impacts. An archeological review also identified six archeological sites which were protected during construction. Construction began in May 1994.

The Project

The flood control project involved channel work, floodway construction, and fish and wildlife habitat improvements. West End Creek, which goes through the center of Marion, was widened and 2,250 feet of concrete channel and 4,760 feet of earthen channel was constructed. Nine bridges were replaced. The channel of Crab Orchard Construction of the concrete channel on a portion of West End Creek.

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