Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency– Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Hydrology of and Current Monitoring Issues for the Chicago Area Waterway System, Northeastern Illinois Scientific Investigations Report 2015–5115 Version 1.1, March 2016 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Front cover: A USGS crew prepares for an acoustic Doppler current meter discharge measurement on the South Branch of the Chicago River, part of the Chicago Area Waterway System. Hydrology of and Current Monitoring Issues for the Chicago Area Waterway System, Northeastern Illinois By James J. Duncker and Kevin K. Johnson Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency– Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Scientific Investigations Report 2015–5115 Version 1.1, March 2016 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Department of the Interior Sally Jewell, Secretary U.S. Geological Survey Suzette M. Kimball, Director U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2016 First release: 2015 Revised: March 2016 (ver 1.1) For more information on the USGS—the Federal source for science about the Earth, its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment—visit http://www.usgs.gov or call 1–888–ASK–USGS. For an overview of USGS information products, including maps, imagery, and publications, visit http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod/. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Although this information product, for the most part, is in the public domain, it also may contain copyrighted materials as noted in the text. Permission to reproduce copyrighted items must be secured from the copyright owner. Suggested citation: Duncker, J.J. and Johnson, K.K., 2016, Hydrology of and current monitoring issues for the Chicago Area Waterway System, northeastern Illinois (ver. 1.1 March 2016): U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2015–5115, 48 p., http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/sir20155115. ISSN 2328-0328 (online) iii Contents Abstract ...........................................................................................................................................................1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................1 Purpose and Scope ..............................................................................................................................3 Chronology of Construction and Regulation for the Chicago Area Waterway System ...........3 Chicago Area Hydrology ...............................................................................................................................5 Precipitation...........................................................................................................................................5 Groundwater ..........................................................................................................................................6 Surface Water .......................................................................................................................................9 North Shore Channel ................................................................................................................10 North Branch Chicago River ...................................................................................................12 Mainstem Chicago River .........................................................................................................14 South Branch Chicago River ...................................................................................................20 South Fork of the South Branch Chicago River (Bubbly Creek) ........................................22 Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal ...........................................................................................22 Summit Conduit ..........................................................................................................................31 Calumet Sag Channel ...............................................................................................................32 Little Calumet River ...................................................................................................................40 Current Monitoring Issues for the Chicago Area Waterway System .................................................40 Lake Michigan Diversion Accounting ............................................................................................41 Regional Flooding ...............................................................................................................................41 Power Plant Thermal Load Modeling ..............................................................................................42 Infrastructure Design ........................................................................................................................42 Waterway Separation ........................................................................................................................45 Summary .......................................................................................................................................................46 References Cited..........................................................................................................................................47 Figures 1. Map showing the Chicago Area Waterway System study area, northeastern Illinois .....2 2. Historical engineering drawings of the map, profile, and cross-sections of the Main Drainage Channel for the Chicago Sanitary District of Chicago, from Chicago to Joliet, Illinois ..................................................................................................................................3 3. Map showing the Tunnel and Reservoir Plan service area, Chicago, Illinois ....................4 4. Schematic drawing of the hydrologic cycle ............................................................................5 5. Maps showing A, pre-diversion, and B, post-diversion surface drainage in Chicago, Illinois, and vicinity .......................................................................................................................6 6. Map showing lines of equal precipitation pattern for the 2012 water year, Chicago, Illinois, and vicinity .......................................................................................................................6 7. Schematic cross-section diagram showing the elevations of the water table, local combined sewer invert, and Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal water-surface elevation in the Pilsen neighborhood on the south side of Chicago, Illinois. .....................7 iv 8. Map showing the potentiometric surface of the deep sandstone aquifers in the Chicago area, northeastern Illinois, fall 2007 ...........................................................................8 9. Graph showing water-surface profile data for the Chicago Area Waterway System, Chicago, Illinois, and vicinity during an April 17–18, 2013, storm and the extent of drawdown of the water surface at points along the waterway ...........................................9 10. Map showing the Chicago Area Waterway System with the North Shore Channel, Chicago, Illinois, and vicinity ....................................................................................................11 11. Graph showing mean daily discharge for the North Shore Channel at Wilmette, Illinois, for the 2003 water year, which is the last year of record .......................................12 12. Map showing the Chicago Area Waterway System, including the North Branch Chicago River and U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations, Chicago, Illinois, and vicinity .....................................................................................................................13 13. Graph showing mean daily discharge for the streamflow-gaging station (05536105) on the North Branch Chicago River at Albany Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, and vicinity, for the 2012 water year ..............................................................................................................14 14. Photograph showing the concrete control structure at the confluence of the North Branch Chicago River and the North Shore Channel, Chicago, Illinois, and vicinity ......15 15. Map showing the Chicago Area Waterway System and the mainstem of the Chicago River, Chicago, Illinois ................................................................................................16 16. Data from acoustic Doppler current profiler measurements in the mainstem of the Chicago River near Columbus Drive in Chicago, Illinois showing: A, typical low-flow water velocity magnitude and B, direction; C, typical high-flow velocity magnitude and D, direction; E, reverse flow magnitude and F, direction ..............................................17 17. Graph showing gage heights for the Chicago River at Columbus Drive at Chicago, Illinois, streamflow-gaging station, hourly precipitation measured at the Chicago Lock, and gate settings at the Chicago River Controlling Works during the April 2013 storm ....................................................................................................................................20 18. Map showing the Chicago Area Waterway System including