Efforts to Save Buffalo Reef from Stamp Sand Waste Continue in Houghton County

Strategic Insights -

Efforts to mitigate the environmental threat posed by historic copper mine tailings, known as stamp sands, to Buffalo Reef in Lake Superior's Grand Traverse Bay have been ongoing for years. Dredging crews initially removed a 25-foot-high bank from the Lake Superior shoreline in 2019, and subsequent harbor dredging efforts have kept the waterway open for fishing, boating, and other recreational activities. The multi-agency Buffalo Reef Task Force continues to develop a long-term strategy to address the issue, focusing on constructing an upland facility for stamp sand disposal and a 2,000-foot-long jetty to intercept migrating stamp sands.

Key Takeaways:

  • Over the past 100 years, wind and waves have moved historic copper mine tailings from the Wolverine and Mohawk mines south down the shoreline, inundating natural sand beach areas and threatening to cover spawning habitat and recruitment areas for Lake Superior whitefish and lake trout.
  • The Buffalo Reef Task Force has evaluated the feasibility and cost estimates of more than a dozen potential ideas for disposing of dredged stamp sands, ultimately deciding to construct an upland facility for stamp sand disposal.
  • Geotechnical work for the proposed jetty was completed last fall, and design is expected to be finished in three months.
  • The estimated cost of the long-term project is $2.1 billion over its timeline.
  • Dredging the harbor at the mouth of the Traverse River is necessary to save and restore Buffalo Reef, but it will also have other immediate impacts, including damage to property and loss of local jobs.
  • The project is being executed in cooperation with several agencies, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Statistics:

  • The stamp sands have moved roughly five miles south down the shoreline over the past approximately 100 years.
  • The estimated cost of the long-term project is $2.1 billion over its timeline.
  • Geotechnical work for the proposed jetty was completed last fall.
  • Design for the proposed jetty is expected to be finished in three months.

Sources:

  • "Dredging crew to return to Grand Traverse Harbor this summer to save Buffalo Reef" (author not specified) - Global Data Point, 2022.
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (no specific citation, referenced in the article).