GCR - Abandoned RR Bridge Traditional Cache
GCR - Abandoned RR Bridge
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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A small Lock-N-Lock. Enjoy a short stroll along this beleaguered waterway. Perhaps in the years to come we might get to see this waterway return to life.
The Grand Calumet River Basin once was an expansive (30,000 acres) dune and swale ecosystem adjacent to Lake Michigan.
After suffering from over a century of environmental neglect the Grand Calumet River is highly polluted. It has been listed as one of the 43 Great Lakes Areas of Concern (AoC) since 1986. AoC's are designated by having an impairment in at least one of fourteen beneficial uses. The Grand Calumet is the only AoC to be impaired on all fourteen.
Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption
Tainting of fish and wildlife flavor
Degradation of fish and wildlife populations
Fish tumors or other deformities
Bird or animal deformities or reproduction problems
Degradation of benthos
Restrictions on dredging activities
Eutrophication or undesirable algae
Drinking water restrictions, or taste and odor problems
Beach closings
Degradation of aesthetics
Added costs to agriculture or industry
Degradation of phytoplankton and zooplankton
Loss of fish and wildlife habitat
There are a few remnants (about 2,000 acres) left that provide habitat for 66 state rare and endangered species.
These areas contain tracks of dune and swale topography and associated rare plant and animals species, such as Franklin's ground squirrel, Blanding's turtle, the glass lizard and the black crowned night heron, among others.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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