National Water-Quality Assessment Study Unit

Upper Illinois River Basin Study Unit

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

National Water-Quality Assessment Program

Environmental Setting of the

Upper Illinois River Basin and 

Implications for Water Quality

Water-Resources Investigations Report 98–4268
Environmental Setting of the 

Upper Illinois River Basin and 

Implications for Water Quality

By Terri L. Arnold, Daniel J. Sullivan, Mitchell A. Harris, Faith A. Fitzpatrick, Barbara C. Scudder,

Peter M. Ruhl, Dorothea W. Hanchar, and Jana S. Stewart

Urbana, Illinois

1999

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

Water-Resources Investigations Report 98–4268
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

BRUCE BABBITT, Secretary

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

Charles G. Groat, Director

For additional information write to: Copies of this report can be purchased

from:

U.S. Geological Survey

Branch of Information Services

Box 25286

Denver, CO 80225-0286

The use of firm, trade, and brand names in this report is for identification purposes 

only and does not constitute endorsement by the U.S. Geological Survey.

District Chief

U.S. Geological Survey, WRD

221 N. Broadway

Urbana, IL 61801

Information regarding National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program is available on 

the Internet on the World Wide Web. You may connect to the NAWQA Home Page using the 

Uniform Resource Locator (URL):

http://wwwrvares.er.usgs.gov/nawqa/nawqa_home.html
FOREWORD

The mission of the U.S. Geological Survey 

(USGS) is to assess the quantity and quality of the 

earth resources of the Nation and to provide information that will assist resource managers and policymakers at Federal, State, and local levels in making sound 

decisions. Assessment of water-quality conditions and 

trends is an important part of this overall mission.

One of the greatest challenges faced by waterresources scientists is acquiring reliable information 

that will guide the use and protection of the Nation’s 

water resources. That challenge is being addressed by 

Federal, State, interstate, and local water-resource 

agencies and by many academic institutions. These 

organizations are collecting water-quality data for a 

host of purposes that include: compliance with permits 

and water-supply standards; development of remediation plans for specific contamination problems; operational decisions on industrial, wastewater, or watersupply facilities; and research on factors that affect 

water quality. An additional need for water-quality 

information is to provide a basis on which regionaland national-level policy decisions can be based. Wise 

decisions must be based on sound information. As a 

society we need to know whether certain types of 

water-quality problems are isolated or ubiquitous, 

whether there are significant differences in conditions 

among regions, whether the conditions are changing 

over time, and why these conditions change from 

place to place and over time. The information can be 

used to help determine the efficacy of existing waterquality policies and to help analysts determine the 

need for and likely consequences of new policies.

To address these needs, the U.S. Congress appropriated funds in 1986 for the USGS to begin a pilot program in seven project areas to develop and refine the 

National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program. In 1991, the USGS began full implementation of 

the program. The NAWQA Program builds upon an 

existing base of water-quality studies of the USGS, as 

well as those of other Federal, State, and local agencies. 

The objectives of the NAWQA Program are to:

• Describe current water-quality conditions for a 

large part of the Nation’s freshwater streams, 

rivers, and aquifers.

• Describe how water quality is changing over 

time.

• Improve understanding of the primary natural 

and human factors that affect water-quality

conditions.

This information will help support the development 

and evaluation of management, regulatory, and monitoring decisions by other Federal, State, and local 

agencies to protect, use, and enhance water resources. 

The goals of the NAWQA Program are being 

achieved through ongoing and proposed investigations 

of 59 of the Nation’s most important river basins and 

aquifer systems, which are referred to as study units. 

These study units are distributed throughout the 

Nation and cover a diversity of hydrogeologic settings. 

More than two-thirds of the Nation’s freshwater use 

occurs within the 59 study units and more than 

two-thirds of the people served by public water-supply 

systems live within their boundaries.

National synthesis of data analysis, based on 

aggregation of comparable information obtained from 

the study units, is a major component of the program. 

This effort focuses on selected water-quality topics 

using nationally consistent information. Comparative 

studies will explain differences and similarities in 

observed water-quality conditions among study areas 

and will identify changes and trends and their causes. 

The first topics addressed by the national synthesis are 

pesticides, nutrients, volatile organic compounds, and 

aquatic biology. Discussions on these and other waterquality topics will be published in periodic summaries 

of the quality of the Nation’s ground and surface water 

as the information becomes available.

This report is an element of the comprehensive 

body of information developed as part of the NAWQA 

Program. The program depends heavily on the advice, 

cooperation, and information from many Federal, 

State, interstate, Tribal, and local agencies and the 

public. The assistance and suggestions of all are 

greatly appreciated.

Robert M. Hirsch

Chief Hydrologist

Contents V

CONTENTS

Foreward ................................................................................................................................................................................ III

Abstract.................................................................................................................................................................................. 1

Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................................... 1

Purpose and Scope....................................................................................................................................................... 3

Location and Extent of the Study Area........................................................................................................................ 3

Acknowledgments ....................................................................................................................................................... 5

Environmental Setting ........................................................................................................................................................... 5

Natural Factors............................................................................................................................................................. 5

Bedrock Geology............................................................................................................................................... 5

Physiography and Surficial Geology ................................................................................................................. 9

Soils ................................................................................................................................................................... 18

Vegetation .......................................................................................................................................................... 18

Climate............................................................................................................................................................... 21

Ecoregions ......................................................................................................................................................... 23

Human Factors............................................................................................................................................................. 25

Land Use............................................................................................................................................................ 25

Urbanization ...................................................................................................................................................... 26

Population Change............................................................................................................................................. 26

Hydrologic Characteristics .......................................................................................................................................... 26

Surface Water..................................................................................................................................................... 26

Streamflow Characteristics ...................................................................................................................... 31

Floods and Droughts................................................................................................................................ 38

Lakes and Wetlands ................................................................................................................................. 38

Water Chemistry ...................................................................................................................................... 39

Aquatic Biological Characteristics .................................................................................................................... 40

Early Biogeographic Setting.................................................................................................................... 40

Early Aquatic Communities..................................................................................................................... 43

Recent Conditions and Trends................................................................................................................. 43

Nonindigenous Species............................................................................................................................ 44

Threatened and Endangered Species ....................................................................................................... 46

Ground Water..................................................................................................................................................... 47

Surficial Aquifers..................................................................................................................................... 47

Bedrock Aquifers..................................................................................................................................... 47

Surface-Water and Ground-Water Interactions........................................................................................ 49

Water Use........................................................................................................................................................... 49

Implications of Environmental Setting for Water Quality..................................................................................................... 50

Study Area Stratification by Natural and Human Factors ........................................................................................... 50

Surface Water and Aquatic Biota................................................................................................................................. 52

Ground Water............................................................................................................................................................... 55

Summary................................................................................................................................................................................ 56

References Cited.................................................................................................................................................................... 57

Appendix 1. Bibliography of U.S. Geological Survey Reports from the Upper Illinois River Basin Pilot Study of 

the National Water-Quality Assessment Program.................................................................................................... 67

FIGURES

1. Map showing the location of National Water-Quality Assessment Program study units and their proposed

implementation dates................................................................................................................................................ 2
VI Contents

2. Graph showing the rotation schedule for activities in the upper Illinois River Basin study unit as part

of the National Water-Quality Assessment Program, 1997–2010............................................................................ 3

3–19. Maps of the upper Illinois River Basin showing:

3. Drainage basins ............................................................................................................................................... 4

4. (A) Generalized uppermost bedrock geology and (B) uppermost bedrock geology....................................... 6

5. Coal seams mined............................................................................................................................................ 10

6. Approximate historical extent of glacial lobes................................................................................................ 11

7. Prominent glacial moraines ............................................................................................................................. 12

8. Quaternary deposits......................................................................................................................................... 13

9. Surface topography.......................................................................................................................................... 14

10. Physiography ................................................................................................................................................... 15

11. Thickness of Quaternary deposits ................................................................................................................... 17

12. Soil order of the uppermost horizon................................................................................................................ 19

13. Soil permeability ............................................................................................................................................. 20

14. Potential-natural vegetation............................................................................................................................. 22

15. Average annual precipitation for the period 1961–90 ..................................................................................... 24

16. Anderson level-1 land-use classification, 1990 ............................................................................................... 27

17. Urbanization .................................................................................................................................................... 28

18. Calculated mean annual streamflows .............................................................................................................. 32

19. Active U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations, 1997.................................................................. 35

20. Graphs showing mean monthly streamflow at four stations in the upper Illinois River Basin, 1950–97................ 37

21–22. Maps of the upper Illinois River Basin showing:

21. Loads of selected constituents......................................................................................................................... 41

22. Uppermost bedrock aquifers ........................................................................................................................... 48

23. Graphs showing surface- and ground-water use in the upper Illinois River Basin, 1995........................................ 51

24–25. Maps of the upper Illinois River Basin showing:

24. Level-3 surface-water stratification ................................................................................................................. 53

25. Level-4 ground-water stratification ................................................................................................................. 54

TABLES (all apply to the upper Illinois River Basin unless indicated)

1. Uppermost bedrock stratigraphy............................................................................................................................. 8

2. Uppermost Quaternary stratigraphy ....................................................................................................................... 16

3. Land use, 1970 and 1990........................................................................................................................................ 26

4. Population change, by county, for the period 1970–90 .......................................................................................... 29

5. Active U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations, 1997......................................................................... 33

6. Flow-duration characteristics at selected streamflow-gaging stations.................................................................... 36

7. Trends in streamflow at selected streamflow-gaging stations, 1950–97................................................................. 38

8. Biological Stream Characterization (BSC) categories............................................................................................ 45

9. Summary of Biological Stream Characterization (BSC) of the Des Plaines, Fox, and Kankakee River 

Basins in Illinois ..................................................................................................................................................... 45

10. Historically recorded fish species that are listed as threatened, endangered, or of special concern by 

the States of Illinois, Indiana, or Wisconsin ........................................................................................................... 46

11. History of water use................................................................................................................................................ 49
Contents VII

CONVERSION FACTORS, VERTICAL DATUM, AND ABBREVIATIONS

Temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (°F) may be converted to degrees Celsius (°C) as follows:

°C = (°F - 32) / 1.8

Vertical datum: In this report, "sea level" refers to the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929

(NGVD of 1929)—a geodetic datum derived from a general adjustment of the first-order level nets

of both the United States and Canada, formerly called Sea Level Datum of 1929.

Concentrations of chemical constituents in water are given either in milligrams per liter (mg/L) or

micrograms per liter (μg/L).

Abbreviations used in this report:.

Multiply By To obtain

Length

inch (in.) 25.4 millimeter

foot (ft) 0.3048 meter

mile (mi) 1.609 kilometer

Area

acre 4,047 square meter

square mile (mi2) 2.590 square kilometer 

Flow rate

cubic foot per second (ft3/s) 0.02832 cubic meter per second 

million gallons per day (Mgal/d) 0.04381 cubic meter per second

inch per year (in/yr) 25.4 millimeter per year

Mass

ton per day (ton/d) 0.9072 metric ton per day

APC Areas of Probable Concern

BSC Biological Stream Characterization

IBI Index of Biotic Integrity

IEPA Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

INHS Illinois Natural History Survey

LIRB Lower Illinois River Basin

MWRDGC Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago

NAWQA National Water-Quality Assessment Program

TARP Tunnel and Reservoir Plan

UIRB Upper Illinois River Basin

USEPA United States Environmental Protection Agency

USGS United States Geological Survey

Introduction 1

Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and 

Implications for Water Quality

By Terri L. Arnold, Daniel J. Sullivan, Mitchell A. Harris, Faith A. Fitzpatrick, Barbara C. Scudder, 

Peter M. Ruhl, Dorothea W. Hanchar, and Jana S. Stewart

Abstract

The upper Illinois 

River Basin (UIRB) is the 

10,949 square mile drainage 

area upstream from Ottawa, 

Illinois, on the Illinois River. 

The UIRB is one of 13 studies 

that began in 1996 as part 

of the U.S. Geological 

Survey’s National WaterQuality Assessment program. 

A compilation of environmental 

data from Federal, State, and 

local agencies provides a 

description of the environmental setting of the UIRB. Environmental data include natural 

factors such as bedrock geology, 

physiography and surficial geology, soils, vegetation, climate, 

and ecoregions; and human 

factors such as land use, urbanization trends, and population 

change. Characterization of the 

environmental setting is useful 

for understanding the physical, 

chemical, and biological characteristics of surface and 

ground water in the UIRB and 

the possible implications of 

that environmental setting for 

water quality. Some of the 

possible implications identified 

include depletion of dissolved 

oxygen because of high concentrations of organic matter in 

wastewater, increased flooding 

because of suburbanization, 

elevated arsenic concentrations 

in ground water because of 

weathering of shale bedrock, 

and decreasing ground-water 

levels because of heavy pumping of water from the bedrock 

aquifers.

 INTRODUCTION

The National Water-Quality 

Assessment (NAWQA) program 

of the U.S. Geological Survey 

(USGS) was designed to provide a 

national view of the status and 

trends of the Nation’s water 

resources (Hirsch and others, 

1988). On this national scale, 

consistent monitoring of waterquality conditions over time and a 

nationally comparable description 

of water resources are provided. 

Concerns for the unique hydrologic 

systems of individual drainage 

basins are balanced with nationally 

consistent design criteria. The 

program utilizes an interdisciplinary approach to study basin 

ecosystems by incorporating 

ground- and surface-water 

hydrology and biology. Results 

from NAWQA studies will help in 

understanding how natural and 

human factors affect water quality.

The building blocks of the 

NAWQA program are approximately 60 major surface-water 

drainage basins, called study units 

(fig. 1). The number of study units 

varies with changes in priority and 

funding for the NAWQA program. 

These drainage basins include 

about one-half of the area of the 

conterminous United States, 

supply water to approximately 

65 percent of the population 

that uses public water supplies, 

and represent a variety of natural 

and manmade settings and waterquality issues. The study units are 

divided into three groups that 

operate on a 10-year rotational 

schedule. This schedule is 

designed to provide periods of 

initial planning and analysis of 

available data, intensive data 

collection and interpretation, 

report writing, and low-level 

monitoring activities (fig. 2). 

(Gilliom and others, 1995).

In 1986, the upper Illinois 

River Basin (UIRB) was selected 

as one of seven study units to 

participate in the pilot phase 

of the National Water-Quality 

Assessment program. The UIRB 

pilot study focused on surface 

water (Mades, 1987), but the 

study that began in 1996 includes 

surface-water, ground-water, and 
2 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality Puget Sound Basin Yakima River Basin Willamette Basin Yellowstone Upper Snake River Basin Sacramento River Basin Red River of the North Basin Great Salt Lake Basins Nevada Basin and Range Santa Ana Basin

SouthCentralTexas

SouthernHighPlains

Rio

Grande

Valley

AcadianPontchartrain

Mobile River

and

Tributaries

Ozark

Plateaus

Central

Arizona

Basins

NorthPlatteBasin

Kansas River Basin

Central Nebraska

Basins

South Platte

Basin

Upper Arkansas

River Basin

KentuckyRiver Basin

ApalachicolaChattahoocheeFlint River Basin

CanadianCimarron

River

Basins

Southern

Santee

Upper

Mississippi

River

Basin

Eastern

Iowa

Basins

WesternLakeMichiganDrainage

Upper Illinois

River Basin

Lower Illinois

River Basin White

River

Basin

Great andLittle MiamiRiverBasins

Lake ErieLake St. Clair

Drainage

AlbemarlePamlico

Drainage

Kanawha-New River Basin

Delmarva Peninsula

Potomac River Basin

Connecticut,Housatonic,and Thames River Basins

Upper

Tennessee

River

Basin

Long Island andNew JerseyCoastal Drainages

Hudson River

Basin

Allegheny and

MonongahelaRiver Basins Lower

Susquehanna

River

Basin

Mississippi

Embayment

San

JoaquinTulare

Basins

Upper

Colorado

River

Basin

Northern Rockies

Intermontane

Basins

Middle Arkansas

River Basin

Trinity

River

Basin

GeorgiaFlorida

Coastal

Plain

Lower

Tennessee

River Basin

River Basin

Basin

and

Coastal

Drainages

Florida

Puget SoundBasin

Central Central

Columbia Columbia

Plateau Plateau

Central

Columbia

Plateau

Yakima RiverBasin

WillametteBasin Yellowstone

Upper

Snake River

Basin

Sacramento

RiverBasin

Red River

of the

NorthBasin

GreatSaltLakeBasins

Nevada Basinand Range

SantaAna RiverBasin

SouthCentralTexas

SouthernHighPlains

Rio

Grande

Valley

AcadianPontchartrain

Mobile River

and

Tributaries

Ozark

Plateaus

Central

Arizona

Basins

Cook InletBasin

Oahu

NorthPlatteBasin

Kansas RiverBasin

Central Nebraska

Basins

SouthPlatte

Basin

UpperArkansas

RiverBasin

KentuckyRiver Basin

ApalachicolaChattahoocheeFlint RiverBasin

CanadianCimarron River

Basins

Southern

Santee

Upper

Mississippi

River

Basin

Eastern

Iowa

Basins

Western

LakeMichiganDrainage

UpperIllinois

RiverBasin

LowerIllinois

RiverBasin White

River

Basin

Great andLittle MiamiRiverBasins

LakeErieLakeSt. Clair

Drainage

AlbemarlePamlico

Drainage

Kanawha-New RiverBasins

DelmarvaPeninsula

Potomac RiverBasin

Connecticut,Housatonic,andThames RiverBasins

New England

Coastal Basins

England

Coastal Basins

Upper

Tennessee

River

Basin

Long Island andNew JerseyCoastal Drainages

Hudson River

Basin

Allegheny andMonongahelaRiverBasins Lower

Susquehanna

River

Basin

Mississippi

Embayment

San

JoaquinTulare

Basins

Upper

Colorado

River

Basin

Northern Rockies

Intermontane

Basins

MiddleArkansas

RiverBasin

Trinity

River

Basin

GeorgiaFlorida

Coastal

Plain

Lower

Tennessee

RiverBasin

RiverBasin

Basin

and

Coastal

Drainages

Florida

Cheyenne

and

Belle Fourche

Basins

and

Belle Fourche

Basins

Delaware River Basin are Riv are River Basin er Basin

0 200 400 MILES0 200 400 KILOMETERS

EXPLANATION

BEGAN IN FISCAL YEAR 1991BEGAN IN FISCAL YEAR 1994BEGAN IN FISCAL YEAR 1997SCHEDULED TO BEGIN IN FISCAL YEAR 1999NOT SCHEDULED YETHIGH PLAINS REGIONAL GROUND-WATER STUDY,

BEGAN IN FISCAL YEAR 1997

Figure 1. Location of National Water-Quality Assessment program study units and their proposed implementation dates.
Introduction 3

ACTIVITY

FISCAL

YEAR 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Report Writing

Initial Planning and

Analysis of Available Data

Intensive Data Collection

and Interpretation

Low-level Monitoring

Activities

biology studies (Friedel, 1998). 

Fourteen U.S. Geological Survey 

reports and several journal articles 

were published as a result of the 

pilot study. A bibliography of the 

USGS reports that were published 

as part of the UIRB NAWQA pilot 

study are listed in appendix 1 of 

this report. The lower Illinois River 

Basin (LIRB) study unit of the 

NAWQA program is currently 

assessing the surface- and groundwater quality and biology for the 

drainage area of the Illinois River 

downstream from the UIRB 

(Warner, 1998).

Purpose and Scope

This report describes the 

environmental setting of the 

UIRB study unit and the possible 

implications of that setting for 

water quality. The environmental 

setting comprises the natural and 

human factors that define the 

hydrologic characteristics of the 

basin. Natural factors include 

bedrock geology, physiography 

and surficial geology, soils, vegetation, climate, and ecoregions. 

Human factors include land use, 

urbanization trends, and population 

change. Each of the natural and 

human factors affects the physical, 

chemical, and biological characteristics of surface and ground water. 

The interrelatedness of these 

factors and characteristics must 

be considered when determining 

the implications for water quality 

in the UIRB. The information 

contained in this report is a compilation of data collected from 

Federal, State, and local agencies 

that will facilitate selection of 

monitoring sites and interpretation 

of water quality in the basin.

Location and Extent of the 

Study Area

The upper Illinois River 

Basin includes parts of 16 counties 

in northeastern Illinois (62 percent 

of the basin), 13 counties in northwestern Indiana (28 percent of the 

basin), 7 counties in southeastern 

Wisconsin (10 percent of the 

basin), and 1 county in southwestern Michigan (less than 0.1 percent 

of the basin). Because the part of 

the basin that is in Michigan is 

small, it will not be specifically 

discussed in this report. The drainage area of the UIRB is 10,949 mi2

upstream from Ottawa, Illinois, on 

the Illinois River and contains 

the following major subbasins 

(hydrologic units): Kankakee 

River, Iroquois River, Fox River, 

Des Plaines River, Chicago River, 

and Illinois River (fig. 3).

The Kankakee River Basin 

(hydrologic unit 07120001) 

drains the largest part of the UIRB, 

27.6 percent. The Kankakee River 

flows from Indiana towards Illinois 

in a general northeast to southwest 

trend and turns northwestward at 

the confluence with the Iroquois 

River about 4.8 miles upstream 

from Kankakee, Illinois (fig. 3). 

The Kankakee River joins the 

Des Plaines River to form the 

Illinois River near the Grundy 

and Will County line in Illinois.

The Iroquois River Basin 

(hydrologic unit 07120002) lies to 

the south of the Kankakee River 

Basin and makes up 19.6 percent 

of the UIRB. The Iroquois River 

flows from Indiana into Illinois 

from northeast to southwest, 

turns northwestward at Watseka, 

Illinois, and joins the Kankakee 

River near Kankakee, Illinois 

(fig. 3). Because the Iroquois 

River is a tributary to the Kankakee 

River, it is often included in discussions of the Kankakee River Basin.

The upper Fox River Basin 

(hydrologic unit 07120006) and the 

lower Fox River Basin (hydrologic 

unit 07120007) make up the Fox 

River Basin, which is 24.3 percent 

Figure 2. Rotation schedule for activities in the upper Illinois River Basin study unit as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment 

program, 1997–2010.
4 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 3. Drainage basins in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from Seaber and others, 1984).
Environmental Setting 5

of the UIRB. The Fox River flows 

north to south from Wisconsin into 

Illinois, turns to the southwest at 

Aurora, Illinois, and joins the 

Illinois River at Ottawa, Illinois, 

near the terminus of the UIRB 

(fig. 3).

The Des Plaines River Basin 

(hydrologic unit 07120004) is 

13.3 percent of the UIRB. The 

Des Plaines River flows north to 

south from Wisconsin into Illinois, 

turns southwest at Lyons, Illinois, 

follows the Chicago Sanitary and 

Ship Canal, and joins the Illinois 

River at the confluence of the 

Illinois and Kankakee Rivers near 

the Grundy and Will County line 

(fig. 3). The Des Plaines River 

drainage area includes 673 mi2

that originally drained to Lake 

Michigan through the Chicago 

and Calumet Rivers.

The Chicago River Basin 

(hydrologic unit 07120003) is 

the smallest part of the UIRB, 

6 percent. The Chicago River, 

which flowed into Lake Michigan 

prior to the early 1900’s, now 

flows from north to south through 

Lake and Cook Counties in Illinois 

and joins the Chicago Sanitary 

and Ship Canal near Chicago, 

Illinois. The canal flows into the 

Des Plaines River at Joliet, Illinois 

(fig. 3). As a tributary of the 

Des Plaines River, the Chicago 

River is often included in discussions of the Des Plaines River 

Basin.

The Illinois River (hydrologic unit 07120005) is 9.2 percent 

of the UIRB. The mainstem flows 

from the confluence of the 

Des Plaines and Kankakee Rivers 

westward towards Ottawa, Illinois 

(fig. 3). The Illinois River, lower 

reaches of the Des Plaines River, 

and two canal systems in the 

Chicago metropolitan area 

provide a navigable link between 

Lake Michigan and the Mississippi 

River.

Acknowledgments

Assistance and data 

provided by members of the UIRB 

NAWQA liaison committee and 

their affiliated agencies are recognized as an integral part of this 

report. Committee members 

represent Federal, State, local, 

and private agencies with interest 

in the upper Illinois River Basin.

ENVIRONMENTAL

SETTING

Natural Factors

Natural factors are those 

natural environmental characteristics such as bedrock geology, 

physiography and surficial geology, soils, vegetation, climate, 

and ecoregions. These factors can 

affect the hydrologic characteristics of the UIRB, and descriptions 

of these factors provide the basis 

for understanding the environmental setting of the UIRB study area.

Bedrock Geology

The composition of bedrock 

(consolidated) materials affects 

the flow, transport properties, 

and chemistry of surface and 

ground water in the UIRB. Structural features, such as joints and 

faults, influence ground-water 

storage and enhance or reduce the 

potential for water movement.

The entire UIRB is underlain 

by Precambrian granitic rocks at 

depths ranging from about 1,000 ft 

below land surface in the northern 

part of the basin to about 7,000 ft in 

the southeastern part. The Precambrian rocks are overlain by sedimentary rocks of the Cambrian 

System. These sedimentary rocks 

are predominately sandstone and 

include three of the most heavily 

used aquifers in the study area. The 

Cambrian rocks range in thickness 

from about 1,000 ft in the northern 

part of the study area to about 

5,000 ft in the southeastern part 

and are entirely below land surface 

in the UIRB. Ordovician-aged 

rocks overlie the Cambrian rocks 

and are composed predominately 

of limestone and dolomite but also 

include some sandstone and shale. 

The Ordovician rocks are less than 

1,000 ft thick in the northern and 

western parts of the UIRB, where 

they are exposed in heavily eroded 

areas, and about 1,500 ft thick in 

the southeastern part (Willman and 

others, 1975). Where present, the 

Maquoketa Shale confines the 

Cambrian-Ordovician bedrock 

aquifer.

The uppermost bedrock 

units of the Kankakee River 

Basin are predominately SilurianDevonian dolomite and limestone, 

and shale (fig. 4a). In Indiana, 

the limestone and dolomite are 

part of the Muscatatuck Group 

and Wabash Formation (Gray and 

others, 1987). The shale units in 

Indiana are the Ellsworth, Antrim, 

and New Albany shales (table 1). 

In Illinois, the limestone and 

dolomite are undifferentiated, and 

the shale is the Maquoketa Shale 

(Willman and others, 1975)

(table 1).

The uppermost bedrock 

units of the Iroquois River Basin 

are predominately SilurianDevonian dolomite and limestone, 

and shale; Mississippian siltstone; 

and Pennsylvanian sandstone. In 
6 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 4. (A) Generalized uppermost bedrock geology in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from Willman and others, 1975; 

Gray and others, 1987; and Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey, 1981).
Environmental Setting 7

Figure 4. (B) Uppermost bedrock geology in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from Willman and others, 1975; Gray and others, 

1987; and Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey, 1981).
8 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality Table 1. Uppermost bedrock stratigraphy of the upper Illinois River Basin [modified from Willman and others, 1975; Gray and others, 1987; and Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey, 1981] Illinois Indiana Wisconsin Period Geologic unit Lithology Geologic unit Lithology Geologic unit Lithology Pennsylvanian Carbondale Formation Grey shale, subgraywackes sandstone, grey argilla- ceous limestone, and coal Not present as uppermost bedrock Not present as uppermost bedrock Pennsylvanian Modesto Formation Grey shale, thin argillaceous limestone, and thin coal beds Not present as uppermost bedrock Not present as uppermost bedrock Pennsylvanian Not present as uppermost bedrock Raccoon Creek Group Mostly shale and sandstone; thin beds of limestone, clay, and coal Not present as uppermost bedrock Pennsylvanian Spoon Formation Well developed sandstone, coal, and limestone Not present as uppermost bedrock Not present as uppermost bedrock Mississippian Not present in study area Ellsworth Shale Green shale; some black shale in lower part Not present as uppermost bedrock Mississippian Valmeyeran Series Siltstone and limestone Borden Group Siltstone with lenses of limestone in lower part Not present as uppermost bedrock Mississippian Kinderhookian Series Shale with thin limestone Not present as uppermost bedrock Not present as uppermost bedrock Devonian Upper Black and grey shale of the New Albany Shale New Albany Shale Black and greenish-grey shale Not present as uppermost bedrock Devonian Middle Limestone Muscatatuck Group Limestone and dolomite Not present as uppermost bedrock Devonian Not present as uppermost bedrock Antrim Shale Black shale, grey shale and limestone in lower part Not present as uppermost bedrock Silurian Not present as uppermost bedrock Louisville Limestone Limestone Not present as uppermost bedrock Silurian Undifferentiated Limestone and dolomite Wabash Formation Limestone, dolomite, and argillaceous dolomite Undifferentiated Dolomite

Ordovician Ancell Group Sandstone, argillaceous and

sandy limestone, and dolomite. St. Peter Sandstone and Glenwood formation

Not present as uppermost bedrock Not present as uppermost bedrock

Ordovician GalenaPlatteville 

Group

Limestone and dolomite

Not present as uppermost bedrock Not present as uppermost bedrock

Ordovician Maquoketa Shale

Group

Shale and limestone Maquoketa Group Not present as uppermost 

bedrock

Maquoketa Formation Shale and dolomite

Ordovician Prairie du Chien

Group

Cherty dolomite with

interbedded sandstone Not present as uppermost bedrock

Prairie du Chien Group Dolomite with

some sandstoneand shale

Ordovician

Not present as uppermost bedrock Not present as uppermost bedrock

Sinnipee Group Dolomite with

some limestoneand shale

Cambrian Undifferentiated Sandstone and dolomite Not present as uppermost bedrock Not present as uppermost bedrock
Environmental Setting 9

Indiana, the limestone and dolomite compose the Muscatatuck 

Group, Wabash Formation, and 

Louisville Limestone; the shale 

is the New Albany shale; the siltstone is part of the Borden Group; 

and the sandstone is part of the 

Raccoon Creek Group (Gray and 

others, 1987). In Illinois, the limestone and dolomite is undifferentiated, the shale is part of the Upper 

Devonian and the Mississippian 

Kinderhookian Series, the siltstone 

is part of the Valmeyeran Series, 

and the sandstone is the Spoon 

Formation (fig. 4; table 1). The 

Kentland Dome, a small structural 

feature (approximately 5 mi2

), 

is in southern Newton County, 

Indiana (fig. 4b). This feature is 

represented by dipping Ordovician 

and Silurian rocks that have been 

uplifted approximately 2,000 ft 

(Fenelon and others, 1994).

The uppermost bedrock 

units of the upper Fox River Basin 

are predominately undifferentiated 

Silurian-Devonian dolomite and 

limestone, and Ordovician shale 

of the Maquoketa Shale Group in 

Illinois; and the Maquoketa Formation and Sinnipee Groups in 

Wisconsin (fig. 4; table 1). The 

uppermost bedrock units of the 

lower Fox River Basin are predominately undifferentiated SilurianDevonian dolomite and limestone, 

Ordovician limestone of the 

Galena-Platteville Group, Ordovician dolomite of the Prairie du 

Chien Group, Ordovician shale of 

the Maquoketa Shale Group, and 

Cambrian-Ordovician sandstone. 

The Prairie du Chien Group is 

exposed along the Fox River 

Valley (Willman and others, 1975) 

(fig. 4). The Sandwich Fault is 

evident in southern De Kalb 

County in Illinois where Cambrian 

rocks are adjacent to Ordovician 

rocks (fig. 4b).

The uppermost bedrock 

units of the Chicago and 

Des Plaines River Basins are 

predominately undifferentiated 

Silurian-Devonian dolomite and 

limestone, and Ordovician shale 

of the Maquoketa Shale Group 

(fig. 4). The Des Plaines Disturbance fault, unexposed at the 

surface, is in northern Cook 

County, Illinois, near the 

Des Plaines and Chicago River 

Basin drainage divide (fig. 4b). 

The origin of the fault has been 

explained as being from either 

volcanic activity or from meteoric 

impact (Willman and others, 

1975).

The uppermost bedrock 

units of the Illinois River Basin 

are predominately Pennsylvanian 

shale of the Carbondale Formation, 

Ordovician shale of the Maquoketa 

Shale Group, and Ordovician limestone and dolomite of the GalenaPlatteville Formation (fig. 4) 

(Willman and others, 1975). The 

Carbondale Formation contains 

coal seams and is a source for 

mining in the UIRB (fig. 5).

Physiography and Surficial Geology

Studying the physiography 

provides a generalized description 

of the natural characteristics of an 

area by aggregating areas that were 

formed under similar conditions 

and have similar surficial geology. 

A description of these factors is an 

important part of the environmental setting because the composition 

and origin of surficial deposits 

affect soil composition and water 

chemistry. When water flows 

through the interstitial spaces of 

surficial deposits, its chemical 

composition and/or the minerals 

in the surficial deposits can be 

changed by processes like ion 

exchange. The surficial sand, and 

sand and gravel deposits form the 

important unconsolidated aquifers 

in the basin. Surficial geologic 

materials are broken down by 

weathering processes and form the 

parent material for most soils in the 

UIRB. Most of the unconsolidated 

surficial deposits in the basin are of 

glacial, fluvial, or aeolian origin.

Surficial geologic materials 

were deposited and land-surface 

features were formed in the UIRB 

during five major glacial periods. 

With each glacial advance and 

retreat, succeeding glaciers modified the deposits left during previous periods. The most recent 

period of glaciation, called the 

Wisconsinan period, occurred 

about 17,000–12,000 years ago 

(Willman and Frye, 1970; Gilbert, 

1980). The Lake Michigan, Saginaw, and Huron-Erie glacial lobes 

once covered the UIRB (fig. 6). 

Typical glacial features such as 

till and outwash plains, moraines, 

kettles, kames, and drumlins are 

found in various parts of the basin, 

but moraines are the most prevalent glacial feature (fig. 7). Bedrock has been exposed in places 

along the Illinois, Des Plaines, and 

Kankakee River valleys by glacial 

processes such as meltwater 

floods (Illinois State Geological 

Survey, 1973). Except for these 

bedrock exposures in major river 

valleys, unconsolidated glacial 

(Quaternary) deposits cover most 

of the study area (fig. 8).

In recent times, glacial 

deposits and features have been 

modified by wind and water 

erosion (Piskin and Bergstrom, 

1975). The glacial and erosional 

processes are the sources of the 

present-day landforms in the 

UIRB; these landforms are the 
10 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

basis for the following physiographic definitions. Overall, topography in the UIRB varies from 

443 ft above sea level in the 

Chicago River Basin and the western parts of the Kankakee River 

Basin to 1,250 ft above sea level 

in the northern extremes of the 

upper Fox River Basin (fig. 9).

The UIRB lies in the Central 

Lowlands physiographic province 

and is divided into two physiographic sections: the Great Lake 

Section and the Till Plains Section 

(Fenneman, 1938). Leighton and 

others (1948) divided the Illinois 

part of these sections into two 

subsections each. In the Illinois 

part of the UIRB, the Great Lake 

Section was divided into the 

Chicago Lake Plain and the 

Wheaton Morainal Plain, whereas 

the Till Plains Section was divided 

into the Kankakee Till Plain and 

the Bloomington Ridged Plain. 

For the Indiana part of the UIRB, 

Schneider (1966) subdivided the 

Great Lake and the Till Plains 

physiographic sections into the 

Northern Moraine and Lake 

Region and the Tipton Till Plain. 

In the area of the UIRB, the 

Northern Moraine and Lake 

Region subsection was further 

divided into the Valparaiso 

Morainal Area, the Kankakee 

Outwash and Lacustrine Plain, and 

the Steuben Morainal Lake Area 

(Schneider, 1966).

Figure 5. Coal seams mined in the upper Illinois River Basin (from Illinois State Geological Survey, 1991).
Environmental Setting 11

Figure 6. Approximate historical extent of glacial lobes in the upper Illinois River Basin 

(modified from Hansel and Johnson, 1996).

Although the physiography 

has been delineated and named in 

various ways, defining characteristics of the physiographic sections 

correspond well across State lines. 

The Valparaiso Morainal Area 

in Indiana corresponds to the 

Wheaton Morainal Plain in 

Illinois. The Kankakee Outwash 

and Lacustrine Plain in Indiana 

corresponds to the Kankakee Till 

Plain in Illinois. The Tipton Till 

Plain in Indiana corresponds to 

the Bloomington Ridged Plain in 

Illinois. For the purpose of this 

report, the Illinois terms will be 

used when describing physiography that corresponds across 

Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin 

State lines. (fig. 10)

The Chicago Lake Plain 

(4.7 percent of the basin) is 

approximately the area that is 

now metropolitan Chicago in the 

Chicago River Basin. The plain is 

a relatively flat, glacio-lacustrine 

deposit formed by the slow moving 

waters of glacial Lake Chicago. 

Glacial Lake Chicago was formed 

when meltwater accumulated 

behind the Wisconsinan glacier’s 

Valparaiso moraine. The meltwater 

eventually broke through a low 

spot in the moraine and drained 

back into the present day Lake 

Michigan Basin (Horsley, 1986). 

The Chicago Lake Plain consists 

of poorly drained lake clay and silt 

overlying the limestone of the 

Niagara Formation (Mayer and 

Wade, 1969) and lake sand and 

gravel (fig. 8). These deposits are 

the Carmi and Dolton Members of 

the Equality/Atherton Formation. 

Clayey till of the Wedron Formation (Wadsworth Till Member) 

also is present and is deposited as 

moraines (table 2). Surficial deposits in the Chicago Lake Plain 

generally are less than 200 ft thick 

with areas of less than 50 ft thick 

near the Des Plaines River, 

Chicago River, Calumet Sag 

Channel, and Lake Michigan shore 

(fig. 11). Local topography typically varies less than 50 ft with a 

minimum elevation of 580 ft and 

a maximum elevation of 699 ft 

above sea level.

The Wheaton Morainal Plain 

(32 percent of the basin) is approximately the area of the upper Fox 

River Basin and the northern 

part of the Kankakee River Basin 

(fig. 10). This area is characterized 

by gently rolling Wisconsinan-age 

moraines that are approximately 

parallel to the Lake Michigan 

shoreline. The Wheaton Morainal 

Plain is predominately clayey till 

of the Wadsworth Till Member/

Oak Creek Formation, and sandy 

and loamy till, and sand and gravel 

of the Haeger Till Member/New 

Berlin Formation (fig. 8, table 2). 

Other surficial deposits in this area 

include lake clay and silt, and alluvium. Bedrock is exposed along 

the downstream reaches of the 

Des Plaines River and along parts 
12 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 7. Prominent glacial moraines in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from 

Sugden and John, 1976).

of the Fox River. Surficial deposits 

in the Wheaton Morainal Plain are 

generally between 50 and 200 ft 

thick; however, deposits in some 

northern areas of the UIRB are less 

than 50 ft thick, and deposits in 

many southern areas are greater 

than 200 ft thick (fig. 11). Relief 

generally is less than 100 ft with a 

minimum elevation of 505 ft and a 

maximum elevation of 1,188 ft 

above sea level (fig. 9). As the 

Wisconsinan glacier retreated 

through the upper Fox River Basin, 

many lakes (kames) and some 

swamps were formed by isolated 

buried ice blocks melting in 

depressions made by the glacier 

(Mades, 1987).

The Kankakee Till Plain 

(37 percent of the basin) is approximately the area covered by the 

western three-quarters of the 

Kankakee River Basin, the Illinois 

River Basin, and the western part 

of the Iroquois River Basin 

(fig. 10). The Kankakee Till Plain 

is an outwash plain formed by the 

variable gradient, variable volume, 

and variable velocity of glacial 

floods (Mickelson and others, 

1984). Surficial deposits are 

predominately outwash sand and 

gravel of the Henry/Atherton 

Formation (Mackinaw and Batavia 

Members in Illinois, undifferentiated in Indiana) (fig. 8, table 2) 

but also include alluvium and fill 

materials. Bedrock is exposed 

along the downstream reaches of 

the Kankakee River. Surficial 

deposits generally are less than 

200 ft thick; however, some deposits in the Kankakee River lowland 

are less than 50 ft thick, and some 

deposits in the upland are greater 

than 200 ft thick (fig. 11). Local 

changes in elevation generally are 

less than 100 ft with a minimum 

elevation of 482 ft and a maximum 

elevation of 899 ft above sea level 

(fig. 9).

The Bloomington Ridged 

Plain (22 percent of the basin) is 

approximately the area of the lower 

Fox River Basin and the southern 

part of the Iroquois River Basin 

(fig. 10). Surficial deposits in this 

area are mostly loamy till (Malden 

Till Member) and clayey till 

(Yorkville Till Member) of the 

Wedron Formation (fig. 8, table 2) 

deposited as moraines by the 

Lake Michigan glacial lobe (fig. 6). 

The lower Fox River Basin has 

well developed rolling moraines, 

whereas the southern part of the 

Iroquois River Basin has lower 

and more gently rolling moraines. 

In the Iroquois River Basin, the 

Bloomington Ridged Plain is 

mostly loamy till (unnamed in 

Illinois; Trafalgar Formation in 

Indiana), and lake clay and silt 

(Carmi Member of the Equality 

Formation) deposited by the 

Huron-Erie glacial lobe (fig. 6). 

Surficial deposits generally are less 
Environmental Setting 13

Figure 8. Quaternary deposits in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from Lineback and others, 1983) (Quaternary Geologic Map of 

the Chicago 4°x6° Quadrangle, United States).
14 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 9. Surface topography of the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from U.S. Geological Survey [undated]).
Environmental Setting 15

Figure 10. Physiography of the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from Fenneman, 1938; Leighton and others, 1948; and Schneider, 

1966).
16 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality Table 2. Uppermost Quaternary stratigraphy of the upper Illinois River Basin [modified from Willman and others, 1975; Gray, 1989; Lineback and others, 1983; and Mickleson and others, 1984] Illinois Indiana Wisconsin Formation Member Lithology Formation Lithology Formation Lithology Henry Batavia Outwash plains: sand, gravel, and silt. Atherton Outwash facies: gravel and sand of glacial outwash deposits. Present, but unnamed Henry Mackinaw Valley trains: sand, pebbly sand, and gravel; well-sorted. Atherton Outwash facies: gravel and sand of glacial outwash deposits. Present, but unnamed Henry Wasco Ice contact deposits: sand and gravel in kames, eskers, and deltas. No information No information Equality Carmi Clay, silt, and some sand. Atherton Lacustrine facies: silt, sand, and clay of glacial lake sediments. Present, but unnamed Equality Dolton Mostly sand with beds of silt and gravel deposited as beaches and sand bars. Best developed in Cook County. Atherton Lacustrine facies: silt, sand, and clay of glacial lake sediments. Not present as uppermost deposit Wedron Tiskilwa Till Pinkish-tan sand, most extensive member of Wedron Formation. No information Tiskilwa Pink, medium textured till of sand, silt, and clay. Wedron Malden Till Silty, sandy, loamy yellow-gray till with lenses of gravel and sand. No information No information Wedron Yorkville Till Clayey, dark greenish-grey till with small dolomite pebbles. Trafalgar Dark grey loam with areas of calcareous till and lenses of silt, sand, and gravel. New Berlin Lower unit is proglacial outwash sand and gravel. Upper unit is gravelly sandy loamy till. Wedron Haeger Till Calcareous, gravelly, silty till. Not present as uppermost deposit New Berlin Lower unit is proglacial outwash sand and gravel. Upper unit is gravelly sandy

loamy till.

Wedron Wadsworth Till Clayey grey tills deposited 

as moraines.

Present, but unidentified on source maps Oak Creek Calcareous fine-grained till and

lacustrine clay, silt, and sand deposited as moraines.

Grayslake Peat Peat, sandy and silty peat,

muck and clay.

Present, but unnamed Not present as uppermost deposit

Cahokia Alluvium Silt, clay, and silty sand with

lenses of sand and gravel.

Martinsville Alluvial facies: mud, silt, sand,

and gravel of present-day streams.

Not present as uppermost deposit

Parkland Sand Windblown sand in dunes and

sheet-like deposits.

Atherton Dune facies: dune sand deposited on

the surface of outwash sediments.

Not present as uppermost deposit
Environmental Setting 17

Figure 11. Thickness of Quaternary deposits in the upper Illinois River Basin (from Soller, 1998).
18 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

than 200 ft thick; however, there 

are areas in both basins that are 

more than 400 feet thick (fig. 11). 

Topography in upland areas of the 

Bloomington Ridged Plain is flat 

or gently rolling. Lowland areas, 

such as along the Fox and Illinois 

Rivers, are very hilly and rugged 

with local relief as great as 300 ft 

where the rivers are deeply incised 

and bedrock is exposed (Piskin and 

Bergstrom, 1975). Topography 

generally varies less than 300 ft 

with a minimum elevation of 472 ft 

and a maximum elevation of 981 ft 

above sea level (fig. 9).

The Steuben Morainal Lake 

Area (4.3 percent of the basin) is 

the eastern-most part of the Kankakee River Basin (fig. 10). This area 

is characterized by hilly knob and 

kettle glacial terrain. Knobs are 

formed when a melting glacier 

deposits hills of sand and gravel 

into a depression left by the ice. 

Kettles are formed when ice blocks 

from a glacier melt in depressions 

left by the ice. The kettles form the 

basins for many kames and peat 

bogs in the area. Surficial deposits 

are predominately loamy till of the 

Trafalgar Formation deposited by 

the Saginaw glacial lobe (fig. 6) 

and generally are greater than 

200 ft thick (fig. 11). Topography 

generally is less than 100 ft with a 

minimum elevation of 721 ft and 

a maximum elevation of 899 ft 

above sea level (fig. 9) (Schneider, 

1966).

Soils

The texture and composition 

of soil affects the chemistry and 

infiltration rate of water. Soil 

texture and composition predominately is determined by climate, 

parent material, and vegetation. 

Temperature and precipitation 

determine the rate of chemical 

weathering and the development 

of soil materials. The more humid 

the climate, the faster soils can 

develop. During the Wisconsinan 

period, when most of the soils in 

the UIRB formed, the climate was 

more humid and warmer than at 

present (Fehrenbacher and others, 

1984).

In the UIRB, parent materials of soil are generally the underlying surficial deposits in which 

the soils are developed. The parent 

materials can be identified from the 

map showing Quaternary deposits 

(fig. 8). Some of the soil along 

the major river valleys, such as 

the Illinois River valley, is from 

decomposition of exposed bedrock 

(Fehrenbacher and others, 1984), 

but most of the soil in the UIRB is 

derived from the glacial surficial 

deposits discussed earlier in this 

report.

In addition to glacial materials, alluvium is a prime parent 

material for younger soils (entisols) around stream banks and 

flood plains in the UIRB (fig. 12). 

Entisols generally are light colored 

and sandy (Fehrenbacher and 

others, 1984); have poor horizon 

definition (Muller and Oberlander, 

1984); and, on a relative scale, are 

moderately to highly permeable 

(fig. 13). Entisols are common in 

the Kankakee and Illinois River 

Basins and cover 5 percent of the 

UIRB.

Soil development also is 

affected by vegetation because of 

the organic matter it contributes 

to the soil. Soils formed under 

grasslands tend to be dark and 

high in organic content (mollisols); 

in contrast, soils formed under 

forested land tend to be light 

colored and low in organic content 

(alfisols) (Fehrenbacher and 

others, 1984). Mollisols generally 

contain greater than 1 percent 

organic matter in their surficial 

horizon, whereas alfisols generally 

contain less than 1 percent 

organic matter. Mollisols cover 

59 percent of the UIRB and 

dominate the Iroquois, Illinois, 

Chicago, and lower Fox River 

Basins (fig. 12). Relative soil 

permeability of mollisols in the 

UIRB is low to very low (fig. 13). 

Alfisols cover 33 percent of the 

UIRB and are common around 

dry morainal areas and in gently 

rolling, well drained areas of the 

Kankakee, Des Plaines, and upper 

Fox River Basins (fig 12.). Relative soil permeability of alfisols is 

low to moderate (fig 13).

Histosols, soils from mostly 

organic parent materials, cover 

2 percent of the UIRB and are 

scattered throughout the Fox, 

Kankakee, and Iroquois River 

Basins (fig. 12). Generally, histosols have greater than 20 percent 

organic content in their surficial 

horizon and are found in low lying 

areas that remain wet most of the 

time (Fehrenbacher and others, 

1984). In the UIRB, histosols have 

relatively very low permeability 

(fig. 13).

 Inceptisols are soils with 

poorly developed soil horizons. 

These soils cover approximately 

1 percent of the UIRB and are 

found in the Fox and Des Plaines 

River Basins (fig. 12). On a relative 

scale, inceptisols are moderately 

permeable (fig. 13).

Vegetation

Vegetation is an important 

part of soil formation and the water 

cycle. The type and quantity of 

plant material contributes to the 

organic content of the soil and the 

activity of root growth affects 

breakdown of soil components. 
Environmental Setting 19

Figure 12. Soil order of the uppermost horizon in the upper Illinois River Basin (from U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1994).
20 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 13. Soil permeability in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1994).
Environmental Setting 21

In addition, vegetation intercepts 

precipitation and also draws 

moisture from the soil that could 

otherwise infiltrate to ground 

water.

 The central part of the 

UIRB lies in the eastern lobe of 

the grassland region of central 

North America and the eastern 

and northern parts lie in the deciduous forest regions. Prior to European settlement of the area, the 

UIRB vegetation communities 

included prairies, savannas, woodlands, and wetlands. Today, only 

fragments of the presettlement 

vegetation remain; the dominant 

modern vegetation is agricultural.

Plant communities that 

would exist if humans were not 

present in the basin and a climax 

plant community were allowed 

to develop naturally are called 

potential-natural vegetation. 

Küchler (1964) classified these 

potential plant communities on the 

basis of the one to three (usually 

two) dominant plant genera present 

in an area. On a national scale, six 

potential-natural vegetation types 

in the UIRB are defined by Küchler 

(1964): oak-hickory forest, beechmaple forest, maple-basswood forest, oak savanna, bluestem prairie, 

and mixed bluestem prairie and 

oak-hickory forest (fig. 14).

Prior to European settlement, the potential-natural 

vegetation of the central part of 

the UIRB was mostly a mixture of 

tallgrass bluestem prairie and oakhickory forest. In the western part 

of the basin, tallgrass prairie typically grew as broad expanses on 

the flat uplands and forests grew 

on protected slopes, in ravines, 

and in river valleys. The prairie 

ecosystem was formed and maintained by a harsh climate, grazing 

by free-ranging-large animals, and 

periodic fires. Tallgrass prairie 

plants typically have extensive 

deep root systems that build soil 

fertility. During the midnineteenth 

century, natural prairie land was 

converted to agricultural land when 

the metal plow was introduced and 

settlers discovered that prairie soils 

were more productive than forest 

soils (Illinois Department of 

Energy and Natural Resources, 

1994). As a result, only small 

fragments of prairie remain in the 

UIRB.

A national prairie restoration 

effort is ongoing at the Midewin 

National Tallgrass Prairie in Will 

County, Illinois. This 24-mi2

 area 

was established in 1996 on the 

grounds of the former Joliet 

Army Ammunition Plant (1940–

96) near the confluence of the 

Des Plaines and Kankakee Rivers. 

This prairie is the Nation’s first 

Federally designated tallgrass 

prairie and, in conjunction with 

nearby natural areas, forms the 

62-mi2

 Prairie Parklands Macrosite, which is a mix of public, 

private, and corporate lands 

managed to protect diversity 

(Midewin National Tallgrass 

Prairie, 1998).

Further east, in the upper 

reaches of the Kankakee River 

Basin, prairie vegetation 

characteristically decreased and 

was replaced by oak-hickory and 

beech-maple forest vegetation. 

In the upper Fox and Des Plaines 

River Basins, the tallgrass prairie 

graded northward into oak 

savanna and eventually into a 

maple-basswood forest. Oak 

savanna is tallgrass prairie with 

deciduous trees, characteristically 

Bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa), 

scattered singly or in groves 

(Küchler, 1964). Similarly, Finley 

(1976) depicted the original 

vegetation of the Wisconsin part 

of the UIRB as a mosaic of oak 

forest, oak savanna, prairie, maplebasswood-oak forest, and herbaceous and shrub wetlands.

Climate

The climate of the UIRB is 

classified as humid continental 

because of the cool, dry winters 

and warm, humid summers. Both 

seasons are usually dominated by 

cool, dry air from Canada (continental polar); warm, moist air from 

the Gulf of Mexico (maritime tropical); and occasionally warm, dry 

air from the Pacific Ocean (maritime polar). The combinations of 

cool, dry and warm, moist air are 

the sources of most precipitation in 

the basin. However, any combination of these three air masses can be 

over the basin at any time. Large 

daily fluctuations in temperature 

and precipitation can result from 

this combination (Muller and 

Oberlander, 1984).

The average annual temperature for the UIRB (1961–90) 

ranged from 46° F in the north of 

the basin to 51° F in the south of 

the basin. The coolest temperatures 

occurred during the winter months 

of December, January, and February; the minimum average monthly 

temperature occurred in January. 

During the period of record 

through 1995, minimum average 

January temperatures ranged from 

less than 4° F in the northwestern 

Wisconsin part of the basin to 

more than 11° F in the northeastern 

Indiana and southern Illinois parts 

of the basin. The average basinwide January temperature ranged 

from 18° F to 25° F during the 

same period (National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration, 

1995).
22 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 14. Potential-natural vegetation in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from Küchler, 1964).
Environmental Setting 23

The warmest temperatures 

in the UIRB (1961–90) occurred 

during the months of June, July, 

and August; the maximum average 

monthly temperature occurred in 

July. Maximum average July 

temperatures during the period of 

record through 1995 ranged from 

less than 77° F in the northern 

parts of the basin to greater than 

82° F in the southern part of the 

basin. The average basinwide July 

temperature ranged from 72° F to 

75° F during the same period 

(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 1995). 

Lake Michigan has a moderating 

effect on temperature near the 

shoreline because the water in 

Lake Michigan heats up and cools 

down more slowly than the surrounding land.

Average annual precipitation, including the liquid equivalent of snowfall, for the period 

1961–90 ranged from less than 

32 in. in the northern Wisconsin 

part of the basin to more than 38 in. 

near the southern and eastern Lake 

Michigan shoreline in the Indiana 

part of the basin (fig. 15). During 

the same period, the minimum 

mean monthly precipitation 

occurred in February (1.54 in.), 

and the maximum mean monthly 

precipitation occurred in June 

(3.61 in.) (National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration, 

1995). About 50 percent of the 

average annual precipitation, 

approximately 16–18 in., generally 

occurs during the growing season 

from May through mid-October.

On average, for the period of 

record through 1995, annual snowfall (including snow, ice, sleet, and 

hail) varied from less than 30 in/yr 

in the southwestern part of the 

basin in Illinois to greater than 

65 in/yr east of Lake Michigan in 

the extreme northeastern part of the 

basin in Indiana. West of Lake 

Michigan, in Wisconsin, average 

annual snowfall for the same 

period was less than 50 in/yr. 

Lake Michigan produces seasonal 

effects on precipitation in the 

basin for areas near the shoreline 

(Changnon, 1968).

 Evapotranspiration (moisture released from plants) returns 

an estimated 70 percent of the 

average annual precipitation to the 

atmosphere. Based on this percentage, average annual evapotranspiration ranges from about 22 in. in 

the northern part of the UIRB to 

about 27 in. in the eastern part. 

Approximately 75 percent of the 

average annual evapotranspiration 

usually occurs during the growing 

season (U.S. Geological Survey, 

1970). Evapotranspiration 

normally exceeds precipitation 

during the growing season and, 

thereby, depletes available soil 

moisture. During the nongrowing 

season, precipitation generally 

exceeds evapotranspiration and, 

thereby, replenishes soil moisture 

and recharges ground-water 

sources.

Ecoregions

Ecoregions are areas of relatively homogeneous ecological 

systems or relations between 

organisms and their environments 

(Omernik, 1987). Ecoregion classification builds on single-purpose 

geographical classifications (such 

as physiography, climate, or soils) 

to create a framework for understanding regional patterns and 

managing aquatic and terrestrial 

resources. Classification of ecoregions can assist environmental 

planners and decision makers 

in addressing environmental problems on a regional scale. Based on 

this regionalization, chemical or 

biological standards within a 

region can be established in order 

to evaluate environmental conditions. 

Omernik’s (1987) ecoregion 

classification, which divided the 

conterminous United States into 

76 level-3 ecoregions, is used by 

the NAWQA program to evaluate 

regional water-quality patterns. 

Omernik primarily used maps 

of land use, potential-natural 

vegetation, surficial geology, 

physiography, and climate to 

develop his classification, which 

resulted in areas that were relatively homogenous in their characteristics. Omernik and Gallant 

(1988) defined the “most typical” 

areas of each level-3 ecoregion for 

the upper Midwest States. A most 

typical area of an ecoregion has 

all characteristics that typify the 

level-3 ecoregion.

Over 80 percent of the UIRB 

is classified as the Central Corn 

Belt Plains ecoregion. Aside from 

the Chicago metropolitan area, 

land use in the Central Corn Belt 

Plains is mostly corn and soybean 

cultivation for livestock feed crops 

and some livestock production. 

The soils are typically mollisols. 

Historically, vegetation in the 

Central Corn Belt Plains was a 

mosaic of bluestem prairie and 

oak-hickory forest. The prairie 

typically covered the flat uplands, 

and the forest typically occupied 

stream valleys and moraines. High 

stream turbidity and sedimentation 

are a problem in the streams of this 

ecoregion (Omernik and Gallant, 

1988).

Parts of the upper Fox and 

upper reaches of the Des Plaines 

River Basins, about 10.5 percent 

of the UIRB, are classified in the 

Southeastern Wisconsin Till 
24 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 15. Average annual precipitation for the period 1961–90 in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration, 1995).
Environmental Setting 25

Plains ecoregion. In contrast to 

the feed-grain cultivation in the 

Central Corn Belt Plains, dairy 

and livestock production are the 

predominant land use in this 

ecoregion. Other land uses include 

cultivation for livestock-feed grain, 

canning, and truck crops; pasture; 

and woodlots. Watersheds generally are smaller in the Southeastern 

Wisconsin Till Plains than in 

the Central Corn Belt Plains, 

typically covering from about 

386 to 956 mi2

. Approximately 

25–30 percent of the streams are 

intermittent in this ecoregion. The 

Wisconsin Till Plains ecoregion 

lies within the Wheaton Morainal 

Plain physiographic subsection 

(fig. 10). The soils are typically 

alfisols and mollisols. The historical vegetation in the Southeastern 

Wisconsin Till Plains was a 

mixture of tallgrass prairie to the 

south, oak savanna to the west, and 

hardwood forest to the north 

(Omernik and Gallant, 1988).

The upper reaches of the 

Kankakee River Basin, 8.5 percent 

of the UIRB, are classified as less 

typical areas of the Southern 

Michigan/Northern Indiana Till 

Plains ecoregion. This is a transitional region between the hillier 

regions in northern Michigan and 

the flatter central and eastern corn 

belt plains to the south and overlaps the Steuben Morainal Lake 

Area physiographic subsection 

(fig. 10). Crop and livestock 

production are the most extensive 

land use in the UIRB part of this 

ecoregion, and gravel quarries are 

common. Streams tend to be sluggish, often bordered with swampy 

tracts. Stream channelization is 

widespread (Omernik and Gallant, 

1988).

Human Factors

Human factors that affect the 

hydrologic characteristics of the 

UIRB include land use, urbanization, and population change. These 

human factors have had an appreciable effect on the basin because 

people reshape the landscape to 

fit their needs. One of the earliest 

human activities was the development of transportation corridors. 

These corridors opened a passageway between the Great Lakes and 

the Mississippi River, first by using 

natural waterways and manmade 

canal systems and later by building 

railroads. With the ease of transportation came rapid settlement. 

Population in the basin grew 

steadily and created urban and 

industrial growth areas along the 

Lake Michigan shoreline and 

along major rivers, such as the 

Illinois and Des Plaines. Because 

of rapid urban growth in these 

areas, wastewater disposal became 

a serious issue (Mayor and Wade, 

1969). Railroads, such as the 

Illinois Central; Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy; and Chicago, 

Rock Island, and Pacific Railroads, 

soon supplemented and nearly 

replaced waterway transport 

(Conzen and Morales, 1989). Agriculture also developed as farmers 

moved into the basin to supply the 

growing urban areas with food and 

goods. Some of the earliest traded 

goods were lumber from Chicago, 

and coal and stone from the Illinois 

Valley (Conzen and Morales, 

1989).

Manmade features in the 

UIRB can be grouped into two 

broad categories that relate to 

agricultural and urban land use 

(Mades, 1987). Today, the UIRB 

receives numerous inputs of 

contaminants and nutrients from 

manmade sources that include 

municipal and industrial releases, 

urban and agricultural runoff, 

and atmospheric deposition. Data 

collected during the UIRB 

NAWQA pilot study (1986–92) 

indicated that differences in fish 

community structure and water 

quality could be correlated with 

differences in urban and agricultural land use (Fitzpatrick and 

others, 1995; Ruhl, 1995; Sullivan 

and others, 1998).

Land Use

In 1990, agriculture 

accounted for about 75 percent of 

the land use in the basin (table 3).

Corn was the principal row crop 

harvested in the basin, followed by 

soybeans. In 1985, approximately 

1.8 million acres of corn were 

harvested for seed, grain, silage, 

or sweet corn; and approximately 

1.4 million acres of soybeans were 

harvested for beans (Battaglin 

and Goolsby, 1995). In 1990, 

urban areas accounted for about 

17 percent of the land use in 

the basin and were concentrated 

mainly in the metropolitan areas 

in and around Chicago. Of this 

17 percent, 11 percent was used 

for low to high density residential 

purposes, and 6 percent was used 

for commercial and industrial 

purposes (Hitt, 1992). The land 

drained by the Calumet and lower 

Des Plaines Rivers was some of the 

most heavily industrialized in the 

Nation. Along these rivers, petroleum refining and steel manufacturing were the dominant industries 

(City of Chicago and Illinois 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

1989). In 1990, forests covered 

about 5 percent of the UIRB and 

were concentrated in city forest 

preserves and along large-stream 

riparian areas (fig. 16)
26 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

.

Since the 1970’s, agricultural areas have decreased by 

2 percent while urban areas have 

increased by 3 percent (table 3). 

Most of the recent urbanization is 

the result of development of new 

suburban and residential areas. The 

effects from converting previously 

agricultural land to new residential 

land are not fully known. Some 

of the possible implications of 

urbanization on streams include 

accelerated erosion and channel 

instability; loss of aquatic habitat; 

increase in peak flow, duration of 

peaks, and flood volumes; and loss 

of base flow from ground-water 

pumping and change in surface 

water drainage networks.

Urbanization

Urbanization began in the 

Chicago area soon after European 

settlement and was concentrated in 

the Des Plaines River Basin. In the 

last few decades, westward urban 

development of the Chicago and 

Milwaukee metropolitan areas has 

affected the Fox and lower reaches 

of the Kankakee River Basins 

(fig. 17). Specific areas of urban 

expansion are indicated by 

U.S. Geological Survey digital 

land-use data from approximately 

1975–82 (Fegeas and others, 1983; 

Fitzpatrick-Lins, 1980; Anderson 

and others, 1976), which was 

updated using 1990 Census data 

(Hitt, 1995). This urban expansion 

land-use category accounts for 

Table 3. Land use in the upper Illinois 

River Basin, 1970 and 1990 (modified from 

Hitt, U.S. Geological Survey, unpublished 

data, 1992)

Land-use

category

Total area

in 1970

(percent)

Total area

in 1990

(percent)

Agriculture 77 75

Urban 14 17

Forest 6 5

Other 3 3

about 3 percent of the basin and 

indicates areas with more than 

1,000 people per square mile. The 

updated land-use data indicate that 

low-density residential land use 

has increased from 8 percent to 

11 percent in approximately a 

10-year period from 1980 to 1990. 

The Northeastern Illinois Planning 

Commission estimates that from 

1970 to 1990 the population 

of Chicago grew by 4 percent, 

while the amount of urban land 

expanded by 51 percent—more 

than 360,000 acres (Illinois 

Department of Energy and 

Natural Resources and the 

Nature of Illinois Foundation, 

1994). Presently, there are no 

land-use/land-cover data available 

for the entire basin to quantify 

the exact amount of expansion, 

but expansion of suburbs has 

continued since 1990. Subbasins 

within the UIRB that are mostly 

affected by urban expansion 

include parts of the Des Plaines, 

Du Page, and Fox River Basins.

Population Change

Out of the approximately 

7.6 million people currently living 

in the UIRB, about 6 million live 

in the Chicago metropolitan area 

(3 million people live within the 

city limits of Chicago). Total 

population for the UIRB has 

increased from 7,211,669 in 1970 

to 7,602,203 in 1990 (U.S. Bureau 

of the Census, 1991; Lanfear, 

U.S. Geological Survey, 

unpublished data, 1993; Hitt, 

U.S. Geological Survey, unpublished digital data, 1992). County 

population data for the years 1970, 

1980, and 1990 indicate a similar 

trend for urban expansion in the 

counties surrounding Chicago 

(table 4). Counties with the greatest 

increases in population from 1970 

to 1990 are on the western and 

southern edge of the Chicago area 

and include McHenry (39 percent), 

Du Page (38 percent), Kendall 

(31 percent), Will (31 percent), 

Lake (26 percent), Kane (21 percent), and Grundy (18 percent) 

Counties in Illinois. Other counties 

in the basin with population growth 

greater than 10 percent are near 

smaller urban areas that also are 

undergoing urban expansion, 

such as the Counties of Waukesha, 

Wisconsin and Porter, Indiana. 

In contrast, many counties that 

predominately consist of either 

agricultural or densely-populated 

urban land have had declines in 

population from 1970 to 1990 

(table 4).

Hydrologic Characteristics

Surface Water

The quantity, distribution, 

and variability of streamflow has 

an appreciable effect on the quality 

of surface water in the UIRB. The 

quantity of water in a stream can 

affect the stream’s ability to 

support aquatic life, to assimilate 

or dilute waste discharges, and to 

carry suspended sediment. The 

temporal variability of streamflow 

is an important cause of the temporal variability of water quality, and 

knowledge of streamflow is important to understanding the water 

and ecological dynamics of a 

watershed.

Human factors have caused 

four major changes in the UIRB 

and have significantly affected the 

quality of surface waters. These 

changes are the construction of 

navigable waterways, diversion of 

Lake Michigan water, construction 

of wastewater-treatment plants, 

and agricultural activities. Mades 
Hydrologic Characteristics 27

Figure 16. Anderson level-1 land-use classification in the upper Illinois River Basin, 1990 (from Hitt, U.S. Geological Survey, unpublished 

data, 1992).
28 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 17. Urbanization in the upper Illinois River Basin (from Hitt, U.S. Geological Survey, unpublished data, 1992).
Hydrologic Characteristics 29

Table 4. Population change, by county, for the period 1970–90 in the upper Illinois River Basin (modified from 

Lanfear, U.S. Geological Survey, unpublished data, 1993; and Hitt, U.S. Geological Survey, unpublished data, 1992)

County County population Change in population

1970 1980 1990 1970 to 1980 1980 to 1990 1970 to 1990

Illinois

Cook 5,426,286 5,191,233 5,105,067 −235,053 −86,166 −321,219

De Kalb 71,589 74,624 77,932 3,035 3,308 6,343

Du Page 487,578 658,835 781,666 171,257 122,831 294,088

Ford 16,370 15,265 14,275 −1,105 −990 −2,095

Grundy 26,510 30,582 32,337 4,072 1,755 5,827

Iroquois 33,505 32,976 30,787 −529 −2,189 −2,718

Kane 250,806 278,405 317,471 27,599 39,066 66,665

Kankakee 97,161 102,926 96,255 5,765 −6,671 −906

Kendall 26,348 37,202 39,413 10,854 2,211 13,065

Lake 381,781 439,737 516,418 57,956 76,681 134,637

La Salle 111,298 112,033 106,913 735 −5,120 −4,385

Lee 37,918 36,328 34,392 −1,590 −1,936 −3,526

Livingston 40,650 41,381 39,301 731 −2,080 −1,349

McHenry 111,456 147,897 183,241 36,441 35,344 71,785

Vermilion 96,966 95,222 88,257 −1,744 −6,965 −8,709

Will 247,605 324,460 357,313 76,855 32,853 109,708

Indiana

Benton 11,252 10,218 9,441 −1,034 −777 −1,811

Elkhart 126,436 137,330 156,198 10,894 18,868 29,762

Jasper 20,414 26,138 24,960 5,724 −1,178 4,546

Kosciusko 48,086 59,555 65,294 11,469 5,739 17,208

Lake 545,886 522,872 475,594 −23,014 −47,278 −70,292

La Porte 105,254 108,632 107,066 3,378 −1,566 1,812

Marshall 34,964 39,155 42,182 4,191 3,027 7,218

Newton 11,596 14,844 13,551 3,248 −1,293 1,955

Porter 87,068 119,816 128,932 32,748 9,116 41,864

Pulaski 12,526 13,258 12,643 732 −615 117

St. Joseph 244,652 241,617 247,052 −3,035 5,435 2,400

Starke 19,270 21,997 22,747 2,727 750 3,477

White 20,981 23,867 23,265 2,886 −602 2,284

Michigan

Berrien 163,819 171,276 161,378 7,457 −9,898 −2,441

Wisconsin

Jefferson 60,028 66,152 67,783 6,124 1,631 7,755

Kenosha 117,842 123,137 128,181 5,295 5,044 10,339

Milwaukee 1,053,740 964,988 959,275 −88,752 −5,713 −94,465

Racine 170,751 173,132 175,034 2,381 1,902 4,283

Walworth 63,384 71,507 75,000 8,123 3,493 11,616

Washington 63,788 84,848 95,328 21,060 10,480 31,540

Waukesha 231,165 280,326 304,715 49,161 24,389 73,550
30 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

(1987) discusses these changes in 

detail; selected changes are 

discussed here.

A number of canals were 

built to enable navigation between 

Lake Michigan and the Mississippi 

River. The 96 mi long Illinois and 

Michigan Canal was opened to 

traffic in 1848 (Illinois Department 

of Public Works and Buildings, 

1969). This canal connected the 

Illinois River 14 mi downstream 

from Ottawa with Lake Michigan 

at Chicago. Subsequent competition from railroads led to further 

improvements in the Illinois River 

for navigational purposes; as a 

result, Chicago replaced St. Louis 

as the major center of commerce 

for the Illinois River Valley trade. 

The present navigable waterway 

was completed in 1939.

The city of Chicago has 

relied on Lake Michigan as a 

major source of freshwater from 

the time of its incorporation in 

1837 (Schodek, 1987). Waste 

disposal was accomplished 

through a sewer system that fed 

into the Chicago River and then 

into Lake Michigan. Untreated 

sewage often would flow into the 

water-supply intake cribs during 

floods and create health hazards. 

During the latter one-half of the 

19th century, periodic outbreaks of 

typhoid fever, amoebic dysentery, 

and cholera were attributed to 

contaminated lake water. In an 

effort to protect their Lake Michigan water supply, the city of 

Chicago redirected the flow of 

industrial and domestic wastes to 

the upper Illinois River system by 

way of the Chicago Sanitary and 

Ship Canal (Forbes and Richardson, 1913, 1919; Richardson, 

1928). The Chicago Sanitary and 

Ship Canal links the Chicago River 

to the Des Plaines River. A second 

canal, the Calumet Sag Channel, 

links the Chicago Sanitary and 

Ship Canal to the Calumet River 

(Mades, 1987).

Diversion of Lake Michigan 

water was begun in 1900 at a 

rate of about 3,000 ft3

/s. Of this 

amount, about 1,200 ft3/s was used 

for water supply and the remainder 

was used to dilute domestic and 

industrial wastes. The allowable 

rate of diversion varied over the 

years with maximum diversions 

of about 8,470 ft3

/s occurring 

during the late 1920’s. Guidelines, 

outlined in a 1980 amendment to 

the 1967 Supreme Court Decree, 

limit the diversion, including withdrawals for water supply, to an 

average of 3,200 ft3

/s over a 

40-year running accounting period 

(Espey and others, 1981).

Water-quality conditions 

in the UIRB were dramatically 

affected by these diversions, but 

water quality has improved since 

wastewater-treatment practices 

were begun. The Metropolitan 

Sanitary District of Greater 

Chicago (now called the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of 

Greater Chicago, or MWRDGC) 

began operation of the first largescale treatment plant in 1922 

(Metropolitan Sanitary District of 

Greater Chicago, 1982). As a 

result of the Clean Water Act, the 

U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency (USEPA) helped to 

finance improvements for wastewater treatment in order to 

reduce municipal and industrial 

pollution (U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, 1979). In 

1982, MWRDGC treatment plants 

served an area of 870 mi2

, including Chicago and 124 communities 

in Cook County. These plants 

treated a domestic wastewater 

load of 5.1 million persons and 

an industrial load equivalent to 

4.5 million persons (Terrio, 1994). 

The return flow from these 

treatment operations averaged 

2,200 ft3

/s. In 1983–84, 

MWRDGC ceased chlorination 

of wastewater at three treatment 

plants because chlorination 

provided limited benefits to the 

streams receiving the treated 

wastewater and possibly affected 

aquatic life. (Terrio, 1994). In 

addition, implementation of 

Chicago’s Tunnel and Reservoir 

Plan (TARP), a series of tunnels 

and reservoirs that capture overflow from combined sewers and 

store the water until it can be 

treated, resulted in improved 

quality and controlled quantity of 

effluent discharged from Chicago’s 

wastewater-treatment plants 

(Terrio, 1994).

Despite improvements in 

the effectiveness of wastewatertreatment plants since 1900

(U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1979; 1989), point 

sources in the Chicago area 

continue to be major sources 

of nutrients and contaminants 

in the UIRB. Approximately 

196 wastewater-treatment plants 

discharge wastewater to streams in 

the UIRB, the majority of which 

are located in the greater Chicago 

area (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1997b).

Agricultural practices in 

the lower Fox, Des Plaines, and 

Kankakee River Basins changed 

appreciably during the 1940’s and 

1950’s, nearly a century after 

these basins were first developed 

for agricultural purposes. Increasing demands for corn and soybeans 

in domestic and international 

markets caused an intensification 

in the cultivation of these row 

crops. Commercial fertilizers and 
Hydrologic Characteristics 31

pesticides were used in larger 

amounts to increase crop yields 

and profits. The practice of crop 

rotation decreased, and fall plowing increased. Irrigation, especially 

in the Indiana part of the Kankakee 

River Basin, has steadily increased. 

A nationwide study of waterquality trends concluded that 

trends in concentrations of total 

phosphorus and total nitrate 

observed from 1974 to 1981 show 

strong associations with measures 

of agricultural activity, such as 

fertilizer application rates (Smith 

and others, 1987). Because these 

intensified agricultural practices 

were effecting water quality negatively at the same time that 

wastewater-treatment improvements were effecting water quality 

positively, expected improvements 

in water quality have not been as 

dramatic as anticipated.

Streamflow Characteristics

Streamflow in the study area 

consists of overland flow, groundwater discharge, and point-source 

return flow. Overland flow is rainwater or snowmelt that flows over 

the land surface toward stream 

channels. Ground-water discharge 

enters stream channels from 

springs or as seepage. Typically, 

point-source return flow is previously used water that is discharged 

to streams from industrial and 

municipal wastewater-treatment 

facilities. In the UIRB, the original 

source of return-flow water is often 

ground water or Lake Michigan 

water and, thus, represents water 

introduced to the surface-water 

system that may not have been 

present under natural conditions.

The mean annual flow from 

the upper Illinois River Basin is 

estimated at 12,600 ft3

/s, on the 

basis of streamflow records from 

gaging stations near the terminus 

of the basin (fig. 18 and table 5). 

These stations, the Fox River at 

Dayton, Ill. (05552500), and the 

Illinois River at Marseilles, Ill. 

(05543500), have been in operation since 1915 and 1919, 

respectively. In 1997, there were 

78 active streamflow-gaging 

stations operated by the USGS in 

the study area (fig. 19, table 5).

Effects of geology and 

natural land-surface features on 

streamflow are indicated by the 

differences in flow-duration 

characteristics for rivers that 

receive little return flow, such as 

the upper reaches of the Kankakee 

River, the Iroquois River, and the 

upper Fox River (table 6). The 

drainage area size and land use 

above streamflow-gaging stations 

on the Kankakee and Iroquois 

Rivers are similar, but the clayey 

soils in the Iroquois River Basin 

result in slower infiltration of 

precipitation and less ground-water 

discharge and, thus, greater variations in streamflow. In fact, the 

index of variability for the Iroquois 

River station is almost 10 times 

greater than that for the Kankakee 

River station (table 6). In the upper 

Fox River Basin, the large percentage of low, poorly drained land and 

numerous lakes provide natural 

storage that affects streamflow in a 

manner similar to that of the sandy 

soils of the upper Kankakee River 

Basin.

Seasonal streamflow 

characteristics are consistent 

throughout the study area. The 

highest mean monthly streamflow 

of all streams and rivers generally 

occurs during June or July, and the 

lowest mean monthly streamflow 

generally occurs during December 

or January (fig. 20).

Streamflow data analyzed 

during the UIRB NAWQA pilot 

study indicated that flow trends 

during 1978–86 were above the 

long-term average at many 

streamflow-gaging stations 

(Schmidt and Blanchard, 1997). 

Presently, these trends are continuing. Regression analyses indicate 

significant increases in streamflow 

at a majority of stations for the 

period 1950–97 (table 7). Analysis 

of precipitation records for the 

1950–90 period showed no significant trend (National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration, 

1995); therefore, increased precipitation probably is not the source of 

the increased streamflow. For 

streamflow analysis, three flow 

regimes were analyzed: 7-day low 

flow, mean annual flow, and maximum annual flow. Mean annual 

streamflows increased during 

the 1950–97 period at all seven 

stations shown in table 7, which 

include streamflow in all the major 

subbasins of the upper Illinois 

River Basin. The 7-day low flow 

also increased at five of the seven 

stations analyzed, while maximum 

flow increased at three of the 

seven stations. The most dramatic 

increases occurred at stations 

draining urbanized land, although 

there also were increases at stations 

draining agricultural land.

The largest increase in 

mean annual streamflow from 

1950 to 1997 was 84 percent at 

the Des Plaines River at Riverside, 

Ill. (05532500). However, further 

analysis of mean annual streamflow data indicate a step increase 

around 1980. The two major 

wastewater-treatment plants 

upstream from this station began 

operations in 1975 and 1980, and 

contributed an average of about 32 

and 53 ft3

/s, respectively, to the 
32 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Base from U.S. Geological Survey

1:100,000 and 1:2,000,000 Digital Data

Albers Equal-Area Conic projection

Standard parallels 33° and 45°, central meridian -89°

89° 88° 87° 86°

43°

42°

41°

0

20

40 MILES

0

20

40 KILOMETERS

Lake

Michigan

Illinois

DuDes

River

BASIN BOUNDARY

EXPLANATION

05520500

100

500

1,000

10,000

15,000

2,500

50

5,000

05520500

05525000

05525500

05526000

05527500

05536000

05536275 05539000 05540500

05543500

05548280

05550000

05552500

05517500

WISCONSIN

ILLINOIS

ILLINOIS INDIANA

INDIANA

MICHIGAN

05529000

05532500

05545750 05527800

05543830

05522500

05536995 05515000

05516500

WIS

MICH

ILL IND

Study

Area

U.S. GEOLOGICAL

SURVEY STREAMFLOWGAGING STATION AND

STATION NUMBER

MEAN ANNUAL FLOW,

IN CUBIC FEET PER

SECOND--See table 5

Figure 18. Mean annual streamflows calculated for the upper Illinois River Basin.
Hydrologic Characteristics 33

USGS station

number

(fig. 19)

Site name

Drainage

area

(mi2

)

Start of

record

(water year1)

Mean

annual

discharge

(ft3/s)

Illinois River Basin

05543500 Illinois River at Marseilles, Ill. 8,259 1919 10,820

Fox River Basin

05543800 Fox River at Watertown Road near Waukesha, Wis. 77.4 1993 73.2

05543830 Fox River at Waukesha, Wis. 126 1963 104

05544200 Mukwonago River at Mukwonago, Wis. 74.1 1973 55.6

05544385 Muskego Lake Outlet near Wind Lake, Wis. 28.3 1988 17.0

05545750 Fox River near New Munster, Wis.2 811 1940 561

05547755 Squaw Creek at Round Lake, Ill. 17.2 1990 15.7

05548105 Nippersink Creek above Wonder Lake, Ill. 84.5 1994 50.5

05548110 Nippersink Creek below Wonder Lake, Ill. 97.3 1994 58.2

05548280 Nippersink Creek near Spring Grove, Ill. 192 1966 152

05550000 Fox River at Algonquin, Ill. 1,403 1916 885

05550500 Poplar Creek at Elgin, Ill. 35.2 1951 26.2

05551000 Fox River at South Elgin, Ill. 1,556 1961 1,290

05551200 Ferson Creek near St. Charles, Ill. 51.7 1961 42.2

05551700 Blackberry Creek near Yorkville, Ill. 70.2 1961 54.2

05552500 Fox River at Dayton, Ill. 2,642 1915 1,792

Kankakee River Basin

05515000 Kankakee River near North Liberty, Ind. 3174 1951 161

05515500 Kankakee River at Davis, Ind. 4

537 1905 526

05516500 Yellow River at Plymouth, Ind. 5

294 1948 272

05517000 Yellow River at Knox, Ind. 6

435 1905 414

05517500 Kankakee River at Dunns Bridge, Ind. 7

1,352 1948 1,399

05517530 Kankakee River near Kouts, Ind. 8

1,376 1975 1,565

05517890 Cobb Ditch near Kouts, Ind. 30.3 1968 34.5

05518000 Kankakee River at Shelby, Ind. 9

1,779 1923 1,702

05519000 Singleton Ditch at Schneider, Ind. 123 1948 116

05520500 Kankakee River at Momence, Ill. 102,294 1905 2,081

05521000 Iroquois River at Rosebud, Ind. 35.6 1948 28.9

05522500 Iroquois River at Rensselaer, Ind. 203 1948 184

05524500 Iroquois River near Foresman, Ind. 449 1949 409

05525000 Iroquois River at Iroquois, Ill. 686 1945 589

05525500 Sugar Creek at Milford, Ill. 446 1948 380

05526000 Iroquois River near Chebanse, Ill. 2,091 1923 1,741

05527500 Kankakee River near Wilmington, Ill. 5,150 1934 4,709

Des Plaines River Basin

05527800 Des Plaines River at Russell, Ill. 123 1967 97.9

05527950 Mill Creek at Old Mill Creek Ill. 61.0 1990 52.4

05528000 Des Plaines River near Gurnee, Ill. 232 1946 237

05528500 Buffalo Creek near Wheeling, Ill. 19.6 1952 18.1

05529000 Des Plaines River near Des Plaines, Ill. 360 1941 289

05529500 McDonald Creek near Mount Prospect, Ill. 7.93 1952 6.15

05530000 Weller Creek at Des Plaines, Ill. 13.2 1951 10.4

05530990 Salt Creek at Rolling Meadows, Ill. 30.5 1974 31.5

Table 5. Active U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations in the upper Illinois River Basin, 1997

[USGS, U.S. Geological Survey; mi2, square mile; ft3/s, cubic feet per second]
34 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Des Plaines River Basin—Continued

05531300 Salt Creek at Elmhurst, Ill. 91.5 1989 144

05531500 Salt Creek at Western Springs, Ill. 115 1946 128

05532000 Addison Creek at Bellwood, Ill. 17.9 1950 16.5

05532500 Des Plaines River at Riverside, Ill. 630 1944 538

05533000 Flag Creek near Willow Springs, Ill. 16.5 1951 20.9

05533400 Sawmill Creek near Lemont, Ill. 13.0 1986 11.1

05534500 North Branch Chicago River at Deerfield, Ill. 19.7 1952 16.3

05535000 Skokie River at Lake Forest, Ill. 13.0 1952 12.4

05535070 Skokie River near Highland Park, Ill. 21.1 1967 21.6

05535500 West Fork of North Branch Chicago River

at Northbrook, Ill.

11.5 1952 13.6

05536000 North Branch Chicago River at Niles, Ill. 100 1951 100

05536105 North Branch Chicago River at Albany Avenue

at Chicago, Ill.

113 1990 137

05536179 Hart Ditch at Dyer, Ind. 37.6 1990 47.7

05536190 Hart Ditch at Munster, Ind. 70.7 1942 69.0

05536195 Little Calumet River at Munster, Ind. 90.0 1958 73.6

05536215 Thorn Creek at Glenwood, Ill. 24.7 1949 39.8

05536235 Deer Creek near Chicago Heights, Ill. 23.1 1948 18.9

05536255 Butterfield Creek at Flossmoor, Ill. 23.5 1948 18.4

05536265 Lansing Ditch near Lansing, Ill. 8.84 1948 8.21

05536275 Thorn Creek at Thornton, Ill. 104 1948 106

05536290 Little Calumet River at South Holland, Ill. 208 1948 189

05536340 Midlothian Creek at Oak Forest, Ill. 12.6 1951 12.1

05536357 Grand Calumet River at Hohman Ave. at Hammond, Ind. Indeterminate 1992 45.7

05536500 Tinley Creek near Palos Park, Ill. 11.2 1951 11.0

05536995 Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal at Romeoville, Ill. 739 1985 113,493.

05537500 Long Run near Lemont, Ill. 20.9 1951 17.7

05539000 Hickory Creek at Joliet, Ill. 107 1945 88.9

05539900 West Branch Du Page River near West Chicago, Ill. 28.5 1961 36.2

05540060 Kress Creek at West Chicago, Ill. 18.1 1986 16.5

05540091 Spring Brook at Forest Preserve near Warrenville, Ill. 6.83 1992 14.8

05540095 West Branch Du Page River near Warrenville, Ill. 90.4 1969 105

05540130 West Branch Du Page River near Naperville, Ill. 123 1989 152

05540160 East Branch Du Page River near Downers Grove, Ill. 26.6 1990 48.8

05540195 St. Joseph Creek at Route 34 at Lisle, Ill. 11.1 1989 8.72

05540250 East Branch Du Page River at Bolingbrook, Ill. 75.8 1989 108

05540275 Spring Brook at 87th Street near Naperville, Ill. 9.90 1988 10.3

05540500 Du Page River at Shorewood, Ill. 324 1941 286

1One water year is from October through September.

2 Prior to 1993, published as “at Wilmot”, 05546500.

3 Of the drainage area listed for this site, 58.2 mi2 is probably noncontributing. 4 Of the drainage area listed for this site, 137 mi2 is probably noncontributing. 5 Of the drainage area listed for this site, 22 mi2 is probably noncontributing. 6 Of the drainage area listed for this site, 51 mi2 is probably noncontributing. 7 Of the drainage area listed for this site, 192 mi2 is probably noncontributing 8 Of the drainage area listed for this site, 194 mi2 is probably noncontributing. 9 Of the drainage area listed for this site, 201 mi2 is probably noncontributing. 10 Of the drainage area listed for this site, 201 mi2 is probably noncontributing. 11 Mean-annual discharge based on period of 1993–96 record.

USGS station

number

(fig. 19)

Site name

Drainage

area

(mi2

)

Start of

record

(water year1)

Mean

annual

discharge

(ft3/s)

Table 5. Active U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations in the upper Illinois River Basin, 1997—Continued
Hydrologic Characteristics 35

Figure 19. Active U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations in the upper Illinois River Basin, 1997.
36 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality Table 6. Flow-duration characteristics at selected streamflow-gaging stations in the upper Illinois River Basin [Flow-duration characteristics based on records collected prior to 1998 water year; exceedance frequency is percentage of time that indicated streamflow is equaled or exceeded; USGS, U.S. Geological Survey; mi2, square miles; ft3/s, cubic feet per second; --, no data] USGS streamflow- gaging station (fig. 19, table 5) USGS station name Period of record1 (water year2

)

1Continuous record shown.2One water year is from October through September.

Drainage

area

(mi2

)

Mean

annual

flow

(ft3/s)

Flow at exceedance

frequency for

period of record at indicated

percentile (ft3/s)

Flow at exceedance

frequency 1950–97 at

indicated percentile (ft3/s) Index of variability3

3Index of variability is the ratio of streamflows at the 10- and 90-percent exceedance frequencies.

90th

percentile

flow

per mi2

(ft3/s) 10 50 (median) 90 10 50 (median) 90

05520500 Kankakee River at Momence, Ill. 1915–present 42,294

4201 square miles probably is noncontributing.

2,066 4,300 1,580 655 4,658 1,850 712 6.5 0.34

05526000 Iroquois River near Chebanse, Ill. 1924–present 2,091 1,735 4,740 735 79 5,044 832 90 56.0 .0405532500 Des Plaines River at Riverside, Ill. 1943–present 630 535 1,320 290 34 1,385 318 50 27.7 .0805536995 Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal

at Romeoville, Ill.5

5Flow statistics for this site were based on 1991–97 data.

1984–present 739 3,536 5,080 3,110 2,140 -- -- -- -- --

05540500 Du Page River at Shorewood, Ill. 1940–present 324 285 618 162 46 650 176 53 12.3 .1605543500 Illinois River at Marseilles, Ill. 1919–present 68,259

6Does not include diversion from Lake Michigan through the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, which has occurred since Jan. 17, 1900.

10,810 19,400 9,020 4,590 19,598 7,618 4,392 4.5 .53

05550000 Fox River at Algonquin, Ill. 1915–present 1,403 884 2,000 590 186 2,167 684 224 9.7 .16

05552500 Fox River at Dayton, Ill. 1915–present 2,642 1,790 4,060 1,160 370 4,516 1,376 456 9.9 .17

streamflow at this station during 

1978–88 (Terrio, 1994). During the 

period 1975–97, mean annual 

streamflow was 682 ft3

/s compared 

with 565 ft3

/s for the period 

1950–97. Although there was 

an increase above the additional 

discharge from the wastewatertreatment plants, most of the 

increase in streamflow at this 

station is due to effluent return 

flow. Prior to 1975, effluent from 

this part of the Chicago area was 

treated at wastewater-treatment 

plants that discharged to the 

Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.

Streamflow data at the 

other stations shown in table 7 are 

normally distributed and seem to 

indicate a more gradual increase in 

flows. These trends are probably 

the result of three factors: land-use 

changes that have resulted in less 

infiltration and faster runoff of 

precipitation from the basins; 

gradually increasing ground-water 

pumpage and/or use of Lake 

Michigan waters; and the associated increase in wastewatertreatment plant effluent return 

flows. In urban areas, less infiltration and faster runoff result from 

an increase in impervious surfaces 

including roads, parking lots, and 

buildings. In agricultural areas, less 

infiltration and faster runoff result 

from the trend toward more intensive row-crop production and practices designed to speed drainage, 

including tile drains and the drainage of wetlands by ditching. In 

agricultural areas of the basin, an 

increase in the acreage of irrigated 

cropland probably also has contributed to increased streamflows as 

ground water from aquifers is 

brought to the surface and channeled toward streams through 

agricultural drainage systems.
Hydrologic Characteristics 37 Figure 20. Mean monthly streamflow at four stations in the upper Illinois River Basin, 1950–97.

16,000

8,000

6,000

14,00012,00010,000

200

1,200

800600400

1,000

0

4,000

3,0002,0001,000

500

3,500

3,0002,5002,0001,5001,000

J F M A M J J A S O ND

MONTH

J F M A M J J A S O ND

MONTH

MEAN MONTHLY STREAMFLOW, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

Station 05543500:Illinois River at Marseilles, Ill.Station 05532500:Des Plaines River at Riverside, Ill.

Station 05552500:Fox River at Dayton, Ill.Station 05526000Iroquois River near Chebanse, Ill.
38 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Table 7. Trends in streamflow at selected streamflow-gaging stations in the upper Illinois 

River Basin, 1950–97

[Trends are considered significant at p<0.05; USGS, U.S. Geological Survey; ft3/s, cubic feet per 

second; o, no trend; +, increasing trend; --, not applicable]

USGS

streamflowgaging station

(fig. 19, table 5)

Direction of flow trend Change in flow, in percent1

1Percent change is defined as the average yearly change divided by the mean annual flow.

7-day

low flow

Mean

annual

flow

Maximum

annual

flow

7-day

low

flow

(ft3/s)

Mean

annual

flow

(ft3/s)

Maximum

annual 

flow

(ft3/s)

05520500 o + + -- 39 38

05526000 + + o 113 47 --

05532500 +2

2Residuals were non-normal because of a step change in the data.

+ + 237 84 39

05540500 + + o 136 72 --

05543500 o + o -- 26 --

05550000 + + o 85 50 --

05552500 + + + 456 48 62

Floods and Droughts

Floods and droughts are 

caused by climatic conditions and 

affect surface runoff, soil moisture, 

stream discharge, and ground 

water. Local flooding generally is 

caused by isolated thunderstorms, 

whereas widespread flooding is 

caused by more extensive thunderstorms that cover a wide area, by 

rapid snowmelt in the spring, or 

by a combination of these factors 

(U.S. Geological Survey, 1991). 

Usually, some flooding occurs 

in the UIRB every year. In some 

years the floods are minor; in other 

years, floods are extensive and 

cause loss of life and property. The 

most widespread flooding to affect 

the UIRB was during 1943.

Floods of greater than 

100-year recurrence intervals 

have been experienced in the UIRB 

a number of times since records 

have been kept. On July 13, 1957, 

local rainfall of greater than 6 in. 

caused 9 deaths and extensive 

damage in northeastern Illinois. 

During February and March 1985, 

rain fell on snow-covered areas 

in northeastern Illinois and was 

followed by a second intense rainfall period. Subsequent flooding 

caused 26 counties to be declared 

disaster areas with $10 million 

worth of damage. During a 2-week 

period from September 20 to 

October 3, 1986, local rains caused 

flooding that resulted in 4 deaths 

and $50 million in damages.

Heavy rainfall on August 13 

and 14, 1987, caused severe flooding of urban areas by streams in 

Cook and Du Page Counties in 

Illinois. An all-time 24-hour 

rainfall record was set during the 

storm, with 9.35 in. falling at 

O’Hare International Airport 

(Chicago, Ill.). This record was 

more than 3 in. greater than the 

previous 24-hour record. The 

worst flooding occurred along the 

Des Plaines River and its tributary, 

Salt Creek. Record maximum peak 

streamflows were recorded at 

10 streamflow-gaging stations on 

8 streams.

Droughts are the result of 

more persistent climate patterns 

than those of floods, produce less 

precipitation than normal, and 

usually have a duration measured 

in years (U.S. Geological Survey, 

1991). Four droughts have been 

severe in all or part of the basin: 

1930–36, 1952–57,1962–67, and 

1975–78. The most severe drought 

basinwide was around 1957 when 

precipitation was 64 percent of the 

average, but less severe droughts 

have been observed during every 

decade from 1920 to 1980. The 

most severe drought in the 

Midwest, one that resulted in 

dustbowl conditions, occurred 

in the 1930’s. The drought of 

1952–57 was the most severe 

in terms of deficient streamflow 

in Illinois and was followed by 

another drought of almost equal 

severity only 5 years later 

(1962–67). The last major drought 

observed in all or part of the basin 

was during 1975–78, and this 

drought was the least severe of the 

four.

Lakes and Wetlands

Few natural lakes are present 

in the study area, with the exception of glacial lakes in the upper 

Fox River Basin in Wisconsin and 

McHenry County, Illinois. A few 

small remnant glacial lakes also 

exist in Lake County, Illinois. 

There are a number of manmade 

lakes throughout the basin.

Many wetland types occur in 

the basin, including marshes and 

shrub swamps, sedge meadows, 

fens, and bogs (Sullivan, undated). 

These wetland types are differentiated by their time of inundation, 

chemical properties, water depth, 

place in the landscape, and the 

plants and animals that occupy 

them. Wetlands are often located 

between terrestrial and aquatic 

systems, and function in hydrological, chemical, and biological roles 

(Mitsch and Gosselink, 1993). 

Although wetlands make up a relatively small amount (1 percent) of 

land cover in the UIRB, a great 

proportion of species, including 

endangered and threatened species, 
Hydrologic Characteristics 39

are dependent on wetlands (Illinois 

Department of Energy and Natural 

Resources, 1994). Alteration of 

wetlands changes the character of 

streams and can affect stream water 

quality (Mitsch and Gosselink, 

1993). Wetlands were once a major 

feature of the basin, but most of 

the wetlands in the upper Illinois 

River Basin were drained prior to 

the 1850’s. The effects of such 

extensive wetland drainage on the 

hydrology and water quality of 

the UIRB cannot be quantified 

because most of the drainage was 

completed before water-data 

collection programs were established.

Development of farmland in 

the Kankakee Till Plain (fig. 10) 

was made possible by the drainage 

of wetland areas such as the 

“Grand Marsh.” The Grand Marsh 

of the Kankakee River Basin was 

one of the largest wetlands in the 

interior United States until the 

early twentieth century (Mitsch 

and Gosselink, 1993). This marsh 

and swamp complex covered an 

area of about 400,000 acres in a 

corridor 3–5 mi wide on each side 

of the Kankakee River (Bellrose, 

1976; Meyer, 1936). The wetland 

was a mosaic of various types 

of grassy wetlands, hardwood 

swamps, and sandy islands; and 

supported a rich and diverse variety of fish, wildlife, and plants 

(Meyer, 1936). During the middle 

nineteenth century, tributaries to 

the Kankakee River were channelized and land was cleared and 

drained for agriculture. Prior to 

these changes, the area was a prime 

hunting and fishing region used 

by Indians, European traders and 

settlers, and American sportsmen. 

Channelization of the mainstem 

Kankakee River began in 1906 and 

the entire river in Indiana was 

channelized by 1918. Because of 

channelization, the length of the 

Kankakee River in Indiana was 

reduced from about 250 mi to 

about 80 mi. Riparian forest 

wetlands between the Indiana 

border and Momence, Illinois, are 

remnants of the Grand Marsh 

(Ivens and others, 1981; Mitsch 

and Gosselink, 1993). Presently 

(1998), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service is proposing the re-creation 

of a 30,000-acre Grand Kankakee 

Marsh National Wildlife Refuge in 

the Kankakee River Basin.

Remaining wetlands in the 

UIRB are mainly in riparian areas, 

with the largest areas occurring 

along the Kankakee River on 

both sides of the Illinois-Indiana 

border and along the Des Plaines 

River in Wisconsin. Small 

wetlands are scattered about the 

Fox River Basin in Wisconsin 

and in McHenry County, Illinois, 

and in the upper reaches of the 

Kankakee River Basin in Indiana.

Water Chemistry

Information on waterquality conditions in the 

UIRB is widely available. The 

NAWQA pilot study (1986–92) 

produced numerous reports 

about (1) changes in wastewatertreatment practices and effects 

on water quality (Terrio, 1994); 

(2) trace elements in water, 

sediment, and biota (Fitzpatrick 

and others, 1995); (3) relations 

between fish communities and 

environmental factors (Ruhl, 

1995); (4) nutrients, dissolved 

oxygen, and fecal-indicator 

bacteria (Terrio, 1995); 

(5) organic compounds in water, 

sediment, and biota (Sullivan and 

others, 1998); and produced a 

summary report (Schmidt and 

Blanchard, 1997). In addition, the 

Illinois Environmental Protection 

Agency (IEPA) produces a biannual report that summarizes results 

from their monitoring network 

(Illinois Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1996a, 1996b, 1996c).

Results of analyses of historical data indicate that the primary 

factor affecting water quality in the 

UIRB is land use (Schmidt and 

Blanchard, 1997). Distinct chemical signatures are seen in streams 

that drain urban land compared 

with streams that drain agricultural 

land. For trace inorganic constituents, loads were 2–13 times greater 

from the Chicago metropolitan 

area, mainly from the Des Plaines 

to the Illinois River (Schmidt and 

Blanchard, 1997). Nonagricultural 

synthetic organic compounds were 

similarly enriched in urban areas 

compared to agricultural areas 

(Sullivan and others, 1998).

Although the specific pesticides 

differed among land use, pesticides 

were found in both urban and agricultural areas with a few exceptions. The most commonly used 

herbicide in the Midwest in the 

1980’s and 1990’s, atrazine, was 

found in concentrations that 

exceeded USEPA standards in 

urban and agricultural streams 

(Sullivan and others, 1998).

As of 1996, IEPA samples 

39 stream sites in the UIRB (Illinois Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1996b). At most sites, 

samples are analyzed for nutrients 

and major ions. A number of other 

constituents may be monitored, 

depending on the location of the 

stream and important water-quality 

issues.

The IEPA reports that overall water quality in the State has 

steadily improved over the last 

26 years (Illinois Environmental 

Protection Agency, 1996c). The 
40 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

report notes declining trends in 

many conventional pollutants, as 

well as increased species diversity 

in the Illinois River. Much of the 

mainstem rivers in the upper 

Illinois River Basin were assessed 

as having “poor” water quality in 

1972; in 1996 most mainstem 

rivers had been upgraded to 

“fair” and a few were classified as 

“good.” Most of the nonmainstem 

streams were assessed as having 

“good” water quality in 1996; 

most nonmainstem streams were 

not assessed in 1972.

Constituent loads were 

calculated for selected sites in 

the UIRB (fig. 21) with IEPA data 

collected during 1978–97 using 

the Estimator program (Cohn and 

others, 1989). In general, nutrient 

loads, as illustrated by nitrogen and 

phosphorus, were greatest from the 

urban center of the Chicago metropolitan area, reflecting the effect 

of wastewater return flows to the 

Des Plaines River and Chicago 

Sanitary and Ship Canal. Totalsuspended solids loads were greatest from agricultural areas.

Aquatic Biological Characteristics

Water-quality assessments 

commonly utilize information 

about aquatic biology for determining the status of water resources. 

Perhaps the simplest approach is to 

use the presence of species with 

restrictive ecological requirements 

to indicate particular environmental conditions. For example, 

because trout require cool water, 

their presence can indicate that 

water temperature does not exceed 

a given threshold. A more complicated approach is to use information about the relative abundance 

of aquatic species to calculate 

various numerical indices. The 

Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI), 

which is based on the relative 

abundance of fish species, is 

one example of a widely used 

numerical index (Karr and others, 

1986).

Although each of these 

approaches varies in complexity, 

all require an understanding of 

biogeography, which is the study 

of the geographic distribution of 

plants and animals, and the factors 

that determine those distributions. 

These factors fall into two broad 

categories: (1) ecological factors 

and (2) historical factors. Ecological factors include structural 

habitat features, water-chemistry 

conditions, and biological interactions such as competition and 

predation. Historical factors 

include geologic and climatic 

conditions acting over geologic 

time scales and recent influences 

such as introduction of constituents 

associated with human activities 

(Gilbert, 1980).

Water-resource assessments 

usually focus on ecological factors 

and recent historical influences. 

Assessments based solely on 

ecological factors and recent 

historical influences, however, 

can be inaccurate or misleading if 

long-term geologic and climatic 

factors also are not considered. 

This result is particularly true at 

regional scales, where long-term 

geologic and climatic antecedent 

conditions can be important factors 

affecting species distributions 

(Gilbert, 1980; Jackson and 

Harvey, 1989).

Early Biogeographic Setting

The dominant long-term 

geologic and climatic factors 

affecting presettlement species 

distributions in the UIRB were the 

glacial periods. As the Wisconsinan glaciers advanced, aquatic 

species were either eliminated or 

displaced to areas where they 

could exist until the ice retreated. 

When the glaciers retreated, 

species reinvaded the glaciated 

regions. The majority of the 

present-day aquatic fauna of the 

UIRB reinvaded by moving north 

from the lower Mississippi River 

Basin. Interconnected meltwater 

lakes at the southern end of the 

retreating glaciers enhanced this 

reinvasion by providing avenues 

for rapid dispersal. The unglaciated 

(driftless) region of southwest 

Wisconsin and northwestern 

Illinois also was a source for 

reinvasion of the UIRB. Fishes that 

may have reinvaded from the driftless region include northern brook 

lamprey (Ichthyomyzon fossor), 

central mudminnow (Umbra limi), 

brassy minnow (Hybognathus 

hankinsoni), pugnose shiner 

(Notropis anogenus), blackchin 

shiner (Notropis heterodon), and 

common shiner (Luxilus cornutis) 

(Burr and Page, 1986). An outlet 

between the Great Lakes and the 

Susquehanna River on the Atlantic 

Slope provided an invasion pathway for spottail shiner (Notropis 

hudsonius) and banded killifish 

(Fundulus diaphanus). Red shiner 

(Cyprinella lutrensis) and suckermouth minnow (Phenacobius 

mirabilis) probably came from the 

west through aquatic connections 

to the Missouri River Basin (Burr 

and Page, 1986). The red shiner is 

of particular interest because the 

range of this plains-adapted species 

is expanding eastward and this 

species is displacing other fishes 

(Burr, 1991). Although the red 

shiner is not historically widespread in the UIRB, this fish 

may be expanding its range in the 

region. In 1990, the red shiner 

was captured in the Iroquois River 
Hydrologic Characteristics 41

Phosphorus

WIS

ILL

STUDYAREA

IND

Total Nitrogen

0 200 20

40 MILES

40 KILOMETERS

0 200 20

40 MILES

40 KILOMETERS

N

05552500 05552500

05550000

05551000

05551700

05548280

05532500

05536000

05531500

05537000

05527500

05540500

05552500

05543500

05526000

05520500

N

WISCONSINILLINOIS

ILLINOIS INDIANA

INDIANA

MICHIGAN

05550000

05551000

05551700

05548280

05532500

05536000

05531500

05537000

05527500

05540500

05552500

05543500

05526000

05520500

WISCONSINILLINOIS

ILLINOIS INDIANA

INDIANA

MICHIGAN

UNMONITORED RIVER UNMONITORED RIVERGAGING STATION AND

STATION NUMBER

GAGING STATION AND

STATION NUMBER

TOTAL NITROGEN LOAD,

IN TONS PER YEAR

TOTAL PHOSPHORUS LOAD,

IN TONS PER YEAR

EXPLANATION EXPLANATION

BASIN BOUNDARY BASIN BOUNDARY

1005001,0005,00010,00050,000

10501005001,0005,000

Figure 21. Loads of selected constituents in the upper Illinois River Basin.
42 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

0

0 20

20

40 MILES

40 KILOMETERS

WIS

ILL IND

STUDY

AREA

Total Suspended Solids

N

05552500

05550000

05551000

05551700

05548280 05527800

05532500

05536000

05529000

05540095

05534500

05531500

05537000 05536275

05539000

05527500

05540500 05552500

05543500

05526000

05542000

05525000

05525500

05520500

WISCONSIN

ILLINOIS

ILLINOIS INDIANA

INDIANA

MICHIGAN

UNMONITORED RIVER

GAGING STATION AND

STATION NUMBER

TOTAL SUSPENDED SOLIDS

LOAD, IN TONS PER YEAR

EXPLANATION

BASIN BOUNDARY

1,000

5,000

50,000

500,000

1,000,000

10,000

100,000

Figure 21. Continued.

Basin at stations in Illinois and 

Indiana (Simon, 1992).

One of the likely consequences of the Wisconsinan 

glaciation is that fishes that 

prefer small, clear streams were 

favored during the southern 

dispersal. Because water became 

tied up in glacial ice, rainfall 

declined, and the Mississippi 

River and its tributaries became 

less turbid, upland and clear-water 

species were able to utilize the 

tributaries for dispersal and refuge 

(Burr and Page, 1986). The pool of 

species available for reinvading the 

glaciated regions, thus, included 

many fishes that were adapted to 

small, clear streams. This fact 

suggests that the presettlement 

fish assemblage of the UIRB may 

have been particularly sensitive to 

increases in turbidity and sedimentation.

Another consequence of 

the Pleistocene glaciation is that 

the aquatic fauna of the upper 

midwestern United States, including the UIRB, consists of relatively 

few endemic species compared to 

other more stable regions, such as 

the Tennessee Uplands and the 

Ozark Plateau. Endemic species 

are those that are confined to a 

certain region or area. In general, 

areas with stable geologic and 
Hydrologic Characteristics 43

climatic history will have more 

endemic species than unstable 

regions. For example, the Great 

Lakes area, which also was 

covered by glaciers during the 

Pleistocene, has nine endemic 

fish species, whereas the climatically more stable Tennessee 

Uplands area has about 50 endemic 

fish species (Gilbert, 1980).

One of the most notable 

features of the aquatic biota of the 

UIRB is the presence of relic 

populations of species that have 

current-day distributions centered 

in the southern coastal plain of the 

Mississippi River Basin and Gulf 

Coast. These relic populations 

include those of the ironcolor 

shiner (Notropis chalybaeus) and 

the weed shiner (Notropis texanus), 

which are characteristic of southern lowland swamps. Both species 

are found in the northeastern part 

of the Kankakee River Basin (Burr 

and Page, 1986). Other relic populations found in or near the UIRB 

include the nonparasitic lamprey 

(Ichthyomyzon cf. gagei) and 

several kinds of plants. Ichthyomyzon cf. gagei, which is found in 

the southeastern United States, also 

may be found in Wisconsin (Lyons 

and others, 1997). Several southern 

Coastal Plain plants are found in 

the sandplains near Lake Michigan 

in southwestern Michigan and 

northern Indiana (Reznicek, 

1994).These relic populations 

probably became established 

during an unusually warm postglacial climatic period between 

4,000 and 8,000 years ago. 

Subsequent climatic cooling has 

reduced the northern range of these 

populations until they are found in 

only a few locations in the upper 

Midwest (Burr and Page, 1986).

Early Aquatic Communities

Landforms created by the 

Pleistocene glaciations, postglacial faunal reinvasion, and 

subsequent climatic variation are 

important factors for the development of presettlement aquatic 

communities in the UIRB. 

Although the productivity and 

diversity of presettlement aquatic 

communities were not formally 

cataloged, accounts of the early 

explorers and investigations of 

the late nineteenth and early 

twentieth century indicate these 

communities were large and 

diverse. When the first European 

explorers entered the Illinois River 

Basin, they described the area as 

“teeming” with fish and wildlife. 

Fish and waterfowl were plentiful, 

the mainstem of the Illinois River 

ran clear, and the associated backwaters and bottomland lakes had 

firm bottoms and luxurious stands 

of submerged and emergent 

aquatic macrophytes (Steffeck 

and Striegl, 1989). In 1900, 

prior to the opening of the Chicago 

Sanitary and Shipping Canal, the 

economic value of the commercial 

fishery of the Illinois River was 

ranked third nationally behind the 

salmon fishery of the Pacific 

Coast and the Great Lakes fishery 

(Steffeck and Striegl, 1989). 

Between 1870 and 1900, at least 

38 mussel species were collected 

from the Illinois River (Starrett, 

1971). Smith (1979) recorded 

97 fish species that were captured 

before 1908 in the Illinois part of 

the UIRB.

Presettlement aquatic 

communities encompassed 

warm- to cool-water assemblages 

adapted to low- to moderategradient streams and rivers. 

Although level-3 ecoregion classification suggests a rather uniform 

environment, the glacial landforms 

provided diverse habitats and 

ecological niches. The Kankakee, 

upper Fox, and Des Plaines River 

Basins contained many small 

lakes, ponds, and wetlands. Some 

cool-water streams persist in the 

Little Kankakee River Basin in 

Indiana and in the northern Fox 

River Basin in Wisconsin, some 

of which are capable of supporting 

stocked trout (Fago, 1984; Robertson, 1979).

Recent Conditions and Trends

During the last 150 years, 

aquatic communities of the UIRB 

have been affected by human 

activities. In the State of Illinois, 

7 percent of the fish species have 

disappeared since the turn of the 

century, and many more species are 

in decline (Illinois Department of 

Energy and Natural Resources, 

1994). Smith (1971) listed eight 

conditions responsible for the 

extirpation or decimation of many 

fish populations in Illinois streams. 

Some of these conditions can be 

found in the UIRB, including: siltation; drainage of natural lakes, 

swamps, and prairie marshes; 

desiccation during drought; species 

interactions, including competition 

from nonindigenous fish; industrial, domestic, and agricultural 

pollution other than siltation; dams 

and impoundments; and increased 

water temperature.

One of the most notable 

human effects occurred between 

1900 and 1920 in the Illinois 

River downstream from Chicago, 

after the Chicago Sanitary and 

Shipping Canal opened. The 

biological repercussions of industrial and domestic wastes being 

diverted to the upper Illinois River 

peaked about 1920, when plants, 

benthic organisms, and fish were 
44 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

practically eliminated from the 

Illinois River for about 160 mi 

downstream from Chicago (Richardson, 1928). Since the 1920’s, 

there has been a gradual improvement in this reach of the Illinois 

River because of the improved 

wastewater-treatment practices 

upstream. Monitoring by the 

Illinois Natural History Survey 

(INHS) has documented partial 

recovery of fish communities. 

Between 1957 and 1992, common 

carp and goldfish dominated fish 

communities in the mainstem of 

the upper Illinois River. By 1993, 

however, native species had 

returned to the mainstem of the 

river and the relative abundance of 

common carp and goldfish had 

declined significantly (Sparks and 

Lerczak, 1993). In contrast, fish 

life in the bottomland lakes along 

the lower Illinois River has not 

increased to the degree anticipated 

from improvement in dissolved 

oxygen conditions (Mills and 

others, 1966; Sparks and Starrett, 

1975).

Urban streams in the UIRB 

tend to have degraded aquatic 

communities relative to streams 

in agricultural areas. Studies have 

consistently shown that fish 

communities in urbanized areas 

generally have low IBI scores and 

relatively low species richness, 

and are often dominated by tolerant 

fish species such as green sunfish 

(Lepomis cyanellus) and common 

carp (Smith, 1971; Bertrand, 1984; 

Illinois Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1987, 1988a, 1988b, Ruhl, 

1995). During the 1970’s, some 

streams in Chicago were so 

degraded that no fish could be 

captured despite repeated sampling 

attempts (Dennison and others, 

1997).

In contrast with urban 

streams, streams in predominantly 

agricultural areas generally have 

higher IBI scores and more diverse 

fish communities that often include 

several intolerant fish species 

(Smith, 1971; Bertrand, 1984; 

Illinois Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1987, 1988a, 1988b, Ruhl, 

1995). Ruhl (1995) analyzed IEPA 

fish, habitat, and water-chemistry 

data and found differences in fish 

community structure in the Fox, 

Des Plaines, and Du Page River 

Basins were strongly related to 

water-quality gradients associated 

with differences between 

agricultural and urban land uses. 

Differences were only moderately 

related to habitat structure. 

Bertrand (1984) also concluded 

that fish communities in the 

Calumet, Des Plaines, and Du Page 

River Basins probably were limited 

by water quality rather than by 

habitat.

The contrast between urban 

and agricultural streams also is 

reflected in the IEPA’s Biological 

Stream Characterization (BSC) 

of UIRB streams (Bertrand and 

others, 1996). The BSC is a system 

for classifying streams according 

to the status of the their aquatic 

biota (table 8). The BSC is based 

primarily on IBI scores but also is 

based on game fish and macroinvertebrate information as needed. 

In the primarily agricultural 

Kankakee River Basin, 74 percent 

of the total stream miles were 

classified as highly valued aquatic 

resources, and none were classified 

as limited aquatic resources. In 

contrast, in the more heavily 

urbanized Des Plaines River 

Basin (including the Chicago 

Waterways and Calumet Basins) 

only 7 percent of the river miles 

was classified as highly valued 

resources and 56 percent was 

classified as limited aquatic 

resources (table 9).

There is some evidence 

that aquatic communities in 

the Chicago Waterways have 

improved recently in response to 

changes in wastewater treatment 

and implementation of the TARP. 

Dennison and others (1997) have 

documented increased fish abundance (from an average of 43 fish 

per unit effort to 111 per unit 

effort) and fish species richness 

(from 41 species to 61 species) 

at sampling stations downstream 

from affected areas. They also 

documented an increase in the 

proportion of game fish (from 

16 percent to 36 percent) found 

in the MWRDGC monitoring 

collections.

Nonindigenous Species

Most nonindigenous 

(also known as exotic, alien, or 

nonnative) species are regarded as 

negative indicators of water quality 

(Karr, 1995) because they often 

have direct negative effects on the 

landscape. Many nonindigenous 

species are able to colonize and 

become abundant only where water 

quality has already been negatively 

affected. Nonindigenous species 

may alter habitat, prey on native 

species, compete with native 

species for food and habitat, or 

transmit diseases or parasites 

(Florida Caribbean Science Center, 

1998). Nonindigenous species may 

be introduced by intentional and 

accidental stocking, release from 

bait buckets, release of unwanted 

aquarium fish, escape from aquaculture facilities, and discharge of 

ballast water.

Nonindigenous fish species 

in the UIRB include the common 

carp (Cyprinus carpio), goldfish 
Hydrologic Characteristics 45

Table 8. Biological Stream Characterization (BSC) categories

[Adapted from Bertrand and others (1996), table 1]

Stream class BSC category Biotic resource quality description

A Unique aquatic resource Excellent. Comparable with the best situations without human disturbance.

B Highly valued aquatic resource Good. Good fishery for important gamefish species; species richness 

may be below expectations for stream size or geographic region.

C Moderate aquatic resource Fair. Fishery consists predominantly of bullheads (Ictalurus spp.), 

sunfish (Lepomis spp.), and carp (Cyprinus carpio). Species diversity 

and number of intolerant fish reduced. Trophic structure skewed with 

increased frequency of omnivores, green sunfish, or tolerant species.

D Limited aquatic resource Poor. Fishery predominantly for carp; fish community dominated by 

omnivores and tolerant species. Intolerant macroinvertebrates rare or 

absent; moderate, facultative and tolerant organisms dominate benthic 

community. Species richness may be notably lower than expected for 

geographic area, stream size, or available habitat.

E Restricted aquatic resource Very Poor. Few fish of any species present; no sport fishery exists. 

Intolerant macronivertebrates absent; benthic community consists of 

essentially tolerant species or no aquatic life may be present. Species 

richness may be restricted to a few oligochaete or chironomid taxa.

Table 9. Summary of Biological Stream Characterization (BSC) of the Des Plaines, Fox, and 

Kankakee River Basins in Illinois

[Stream miles are shown outside the parentheses, numbers within the parentheses are percentages of the 

total miles in the basin]

River basin Stream class Total miles A B C DE

Des Plaines 10.2 (1.3) 53.8 (6.7) 254.2 (32) 444 (56) 35.5(4) 797.7

Fox 16.4 (2.4) 221.9 (32.9) 381.6 (56.6) 54.9(8.1) 0 (0) 674.8

Kankakee 0 (0) 362.2 (74) 127.5 (26) 0 (0) 0 (0) 489.7

(Carassius auratus), rainbow 

trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), 

brown trout (Salmo trutta), white 

perch (Morone americana), rudd 

(Scardinius erythrophthalmus), 

oriental weatherfish (Misgurnus 

anguillicaudatus), and round goby 

(Smith, 1979; Fago, 1984; Page 

and others, 1992; Sparks and Lerczak, 1993; Steingraeber and others, 

1997). The common carp was 

introduced into the United States 

over 100 years ago. Today, 

common carp is one of the most 

abundant fish in many streams. 

Common carp is considered a 

pest because it disturbs habitat by 

stirring up the stream bottom, 

which uproots aquatic vegetation 

and increases turbidity. Goldfish, 

similar to common carp, are 

extremely tolerant and can be 

the most abundant fish species 

where habitat and water-chemistry 

conditions are severely degraded.

Rainbow trout and brown 

trout are intentionally stocked in 

streams in the upper Fox River 

Basin in Wisconsin and in the 

Little Kankakee River Basin in 

Indiana (Robertson, 1979; Fago, 

1984). These basins contain 

streams that are able to support 

stocked trout because water 

temperatures remain relatively 

cool during summer.

Several additional nonindigenous fish have either recently 

arrived in the UIRB or have the 

potential to enter the basin. The 

round goby (Neogobius

melanostomus), tubenose goby 

(Proterorhinus marmoratus), 

and the ruffe (Gymnocephalus 

cernuus) have become established 

in the Great Lakes and have access 

to the UIRB through the Chicago 

Waterways. The round goby, a 

native of Eurasia, was collected 

from the Little Calumet River in 

1996 (Steingraeber and others, 

1997). The round goby has decimated populations of mottled 

sculpin (Cottus bairdi) in the 
46 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

St. Clair River near Detroit, Michigan (Jude and Crawford, 1995). 

Breeding populations of the grass 

carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) 

and bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) are found downstream from the UIRB but may 

invade UIRB rivers and eventually 

the Great Lakes (Florida Caribbean 

Science Center, 1998).

The zebra mussel (Dreissena 

polymorpha) invaded the UIRB 

from Lake Michigan in 1991 and 

has spread throughout the Mississippi River Basin (Neves and 

others, 1996). Zebra mussels can 

attach to almost any hard surface, 

and populations can reach densities 

of greater than 2,000,000 per acre, 

threatening native mussel species 

and fouling water pipes.

Other nonindigenous 

species are of concern in the 

UIRB. The zooplankter (Daphnia 

lumholtzi), a type of water flea, 

moved upriver from the Mississippi Basin and has become 

established in the Illinois River. 

The behaviorally aggressive rusty 

crayfish (Orconectes rusticus), 

which first appeared in Illinois in 

1973, is now found in all UIRB 

drainages and has displaced native 

crayfish species (Taylor and Redmer, 1996). In many UIRB wetlands, purple loosestrife and 

glossy buckthorn, two plant 

species originally from northern 

Europe, have spread rapidly and 

also have displaced native plants 

(Illinois Department of Energy 

and Natural Resources, 1994).

Threatened and Endangered Species

A number of aquatic species 

of the UIRB are listed by the individual States or by the Federal 

government as endangered, threatened, of special concern, or 

extirpated. These species include 

fish such as the river redhorse 

(Moxostoma carinatum) and 

greater redhorse (Moxostoma 

valenciennesi), mollusks such as 

the snuffbox (Epioblasma triquetra) and sheepnose (Plethobasus 

cyphyus), and a Federally endangered insect—the Hine’s emerald 

dragonfly (Somatochlora hineana) 

(Illinois Department of Energy and 

Natural Resources, 1994). Nineteen fish species that historically 

were found in the UIRB are listed 

as threatened or endangered by 

Illinois, Indiana, or Wisconsin 

(table 10). The river redhorse 

and greater redhorse are listed 

by all three States as threatened, 

endangered, or of special concern 

Table 10. Historically recorded fish species found in the upper Illinois River Basin that are 

listed as threatened, endangered, or of special concern by the States of Illinois, Indiana, or Wisconsin 

[Upper Illinois River Basin distribution records from Smith (1979), Becker (1983), Lee and others (1980) 

and Kwak (1991); E, endangered; --, not applicable T, threatened; SC, special concern]

Scientific name Common name Listed by

Illinois1 Indiana2 Wisconsin3

Acipenser fulvescens Lake sturgeon E E --

Etheostoma exile Iowa darter E -- --

Fundulus diaphanus Banded killifish -- T --

Fundulus dispar Starhead topminnow -- -- E

Ichthyomyzon fossor Northern brook lamprey E -- --

Lepomis megalotis Longear sunfish -- -- T

Lepomis punctatus Spotted sunfish T -- --

Luxilus chrysocephalus Striped shiner -- -- E

Lythrurus umbratilis Redfin shiner -- -- T

Moxostoma carinatum River redhorse T SC T

Moxostoma valenciennesi

Greater redhorse E E T

Notropis amblops Bigeye chub E -- --

Notropis amnis Pallid shiner E -- E

Notropis anogenus Pugnose shiner E -- T

Notropis boops Bigeye shiner E -- --

Notropis chalybaeus Ironcolor shiner T -- --

Notropis heterodon Blackchin shiner T -- --

Notropis heterolepis Blacknose shiner E -- --

Notropis texanus Weed shiner E -- --

1Illinois listings from http://www.inhs.uiuc.edu/cbd/main/TnE/fishte.html
Hydrologic Characteristics 47

(table 10). Lists of threatened 

and endangered species can 

change as a result of new distributional and life history information. 

The most up-to-date information 

can be accessed using the Internet 

(Illinois Natural History Survey, 

1998; Indiana Department of 

Natural Resources, 1998; 

Wisconsin Department of Natural 

Resources, 1998; U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, 1998).

Ground Water

Aquifers in the UIRB are 

associated with the Quaternary, 

Silurian-Devonian, and CambrianOrdovician stratigraphic systems. 

Surficial or unconsolidated 

aquifers are in the Quaternary 

system, whereas bedrock or 

consolidated aquifers are in the 

Silurian-Devonian or CambrianOrdovician systems (Friedel, 

1998). Regional ground-water 

flow is affected by geology and, 

in the UIRB, is generally from west 

to east; intermediate and local flow 

is spatially variable throughout the 

basin (Friedel, 1998). 

Surficial Aquifers

Surficial aquifers are 

composed of the unconsolidated 

Quaternary glacial deposits that 

overlie the bedrock in the basin 

(fig. 8). These deposits form one of 

the most productive aquifers in the 

UIRB and mainly consist of sand, 

and sand and gravel. Before water 

suppliers began using Lake Michigan water, the surficial aquifers 

supplied approximately 10 percent 

of the water for the urban Chicago 

area and almost 85 percent of the 

water for the rural areas in the 

southeastern part of the basin. 

Since that time, the importance of 

the surficial aquifers has increased. 

Some Chicago suburbs are growing into areas that are too far away 

to efficiently utilize Lake Michigan 

water; therefore, the ground water 

in surficial aquifers is under ever 

increasing demand (Fitzpatrick 

and others, 1992). Trilinear 

plots of water-chemistry data 

from Illinois indicate that the 

chemical composition of water 

from the unconsolidated aquifers 

is predominately calcium bicarbonate. Where unconsolidated 

material may be in contact with 

underlying shale, the chemical 

composition is predominately 

calcium sulfate.

Bedrock Aquifers

 The Cambrian-Ordovician 

aquifer is the oldest and deepest 

aquifer underlying the UIRB 

(fig. 22). This aquifer consists 

of numerous alternating layers 

of sandstone, limestone, and dolomite. On a regional scale, each 

of the layers of Cambrian and 

Ordovician strata are hydraulically 

interconnected and act as a single 

aquifer (Visocky and others, 1985).

The Mount Simon Sandstone, Elmhurst Sandstone 

Member of the Eau Claire Formation, and Ironton and Galesville 

Sandstones (Willman and others, 

1975) of the Cambrian system are 

important sources of freshwater 

north of the Kankakee River. The 

Mount Simon aquifer is composed 

of the Mount Simon Sandstone 

and the Elmhurst Member of the 

Eau Claire Formation. Ground 

water in this aquifer occurs under 

leaky artesian conditions because 

of the overlying relatively confining siltstone and shale beds of the 

Eau Claire Formation (Walton and 

Csallany, 1962).

 The Prairie du Chien 

Series and Galena-Platteville 

Group of Ordovician age overlie 

the Cambrian system and yield 

small to moderate quantities of 

water. Where directly underlying 

drift, solution activity of water has 

enlarged openings in the dolomite 

of the Galena-Platteville Group, 

allowing water to flow more freely 

(Walton and Csallany, 1962).

The Maquoketa Shale is a 

confining unit of the CambrianOrdovician aquifer. Localized 

areas of recharge from the shallow, 

surficial aquifers to the deeper 

bedrock aquifers suggest that 

the Maquoketa Shale may not 

completely confine the CambrianOrdovician aquifer (Michael 

Friedel, U.S. Geological Survey, 

written, commun., 1998).

 Dolomites and limestones 

of Silurian and Devonian age 

constitute one of the principal 

shallow-bedrock aquifers in the 

UIRB (fig. 22). The SilurianDevonian aquifer is the uppermost 

bedrock aquifer and is primarily 

overlain by unconsolidated 

glacial deposits. Although the 

Devonian is absent throughout 

most of Illinois and Wisconsin, 

the name “Silurian-Devonian” 

will be used for comparisons and 

consistency. 

Historically, the SilurianDevonian aquifer has been heavily 

pumped in the basin. Pumping of 

the aquifer has resulted in slowly 

degrading water quality because 

heavily mineralized water has 

migrated upward from the deeper 

parts of the Elmhurst and Mount 

Simon sandstones (Visocky, 

1997), and water has locally 

migrated downward from unconsolidated aquifers (Mike Friedel, 

U.S. Geological Survey, written 

commun., 1998). Trilinear plots 

of water chemistry data from 

Illinois indicate that the chemical 
48 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 22. Uppermost bedrock aquifers in the upper Illinois River Basin (from U.S. Geological Survey, 1998).
Hydrologic Characteristics 49

composition of water from the 

Silurian-Devonian aquifers is variable and ranges from calcium 

bicarbonate to sodium chloride.

Over 35 percent of the 

ground water pumped in the 

Chicago area is from the SilurianDevonian aquifer (Kirk, 1987). In 

1986, western suburban Chicago 

heavily pumped the SilurianDevonian aquifer for domestic, 

municipal, and industrial use, but a 

recent trend in suburban Chicago 

has been to switch to other water 

supplies including the surficial 

aquifers and Lake Michigan. Some 

of the decline in pumpage from the 

deep aquifer is due to communities 

complying with the Safe Drinking 

Water Standards (Visocky, 1997).

Surface-Water and Ground-Water 

Interactions

 As precipitation infiltrates 

the soil and subsoil, the surficial 

aquifers are recharged. In areas 

where sand and gravel surficial 

aquifers directly overlie principal 

shallow-bedrock aquifers, water 

can flow downward through 

fissures and solution channels to 

recharge the bedrock aquifers. In 

these areas, there is good hydraulic 

connection between the surficial 

and shallow-bedrock aquifers, and 

recharge is local and rapid (Hughes 

and others, 1966). Downward leakage of water through the shallow 

bedrock system also can recharge 

deeper bedrock aquifers. The 

permeability of the soil and surficial deposits partially determines 

the rate at which infiltration occurs. 

If precipitation is too heavy and 

falls too quickly for the soil to 

absorb the water, runoff results. In 

this case, runoff directly recharges 

streams by overland flow.

Streams can recharge 

aquifers, particularly in areas 

where ground water is heavily 

pumped from wells nearby the 

stream. Heavy pumping can cause 

a decrease in hydraulic head in 

and near the well. In these areas, 

surface water can slowly flow 

through aquifers toward the 

pumping source to equalize the 

difference in hydraulic head 

(Friedel, 1998). In areas such 

as the lower Fox River Basin where 

streams are incised into the productive shallow Galena-Platteville and 

Ancell bedrock aquifers, ground 

water discharges to the stream and 

provides base flow to the river 

(Visocky and others, 1985). Additional withdrawals from these aquifers near the Fox River may reduce 

ground-water discharges and base 

flow (Fitzpatrick and others, 1992).

Water Use

During 1995, an estimated 

1,375 Mgal/d was used for publicwater supply in the upper Illinois 

River Basin. Of this total 

1,375 Mgal/d used for publicwater supply, 196 Mgal/d was 

supplied by sources of water other 

than Lake Michigan (table 11). 

Many communities in the UIRB 

supplement their water supply 

with Lake Michigan water, which 

is a source outside of the basin. In 

1995, there were 1,179 Mgal/d 

withdrawn from Lake Michigan 

for public supply (13 percent of 

the total water used), up from an 

average of 1,070 Mgal/d percent 

during 1978–86. Excluding withdrawals from Lake Michigan, 

ground water supplies about 

82 percent and surface water 

supplies about 18 percent of the 

total public-water supply for the 

UIRB. Increasing restrictions on 

the use of Lake Michigan water 

Table 11. History of water use in the upper Illinois River Basin

[Mgal/d, million gallons per day]

Water-use category1

1Mining and livestock water use not considered.

Source of water Total for use category without

Lake Michigan diversions

(Mgal/d)

Ground water

(Mgal/d)

Surface water other than

Lake Michigan

(Mgal/d)

Average2

1978–86

2From Schmidt and Blanchard, U.S. Geological Survey, written commun., 1998.

3

1990

3From U.S. Geological Survey, 1995.

3

1995 Average2

1978–86

3

1990 31995 Average2

1978–86

3

1990 31995

Cooling/thermoelectric 0 3 3 4,060 7,698 7,668 4,060 7,701 7,671

Public-water supply 270 201 161 60 35 35 330 236 196

Rural (domestic) supply 80 65 48 0 0 0 80 65 48

Industrial and commercial 40 70 58 140 107 100 180 177 158

Irrigation 33 58 52 7 46 33 40 104 85

Total 423 397 322 4,267 7,886 7,836 4,690 8,283 8,158
50 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

indicate that more ground water 

may be utilized in the future.

Thermoelectric power 

generation is the single largest 

use of water in the basin. In 1995, 

water used to cool electric power 

generating equipment accounted 

for 94 percent of the water withdrawn from all sources inside 

the UIRB. Surface water from 

inside the UIRB provided almost 

100 percent of the water used 

for this purpose in 1995; less 

than 1 percent of the water 

was supplied by ground-water 

resources (U.S. Geological 

Survey, 1995).

When all water-supply 

sources, including Lake Michigan, 

are considered, ground water 

accounted for 19 percent and 

surface water accounted for 

81 percent of all water used in 

1995 for public and domestic 

supply, commercial, industrial, 

mining, livestock, and irrigation in 

the UIRB. Excluding Lake Michigan water, the percentages increase 

to 64 percent for ground water and 

decrease to 36 percent for surface 

water (U.S. Geological Survey, 

1995). 

In 1995, an estimated total 

of 329 Mgal/d, including water 

used for thermoelectric, was withdrawn from ground-water sources 

inside the basin (53 percent from 

surficial aquifers and 47 percent 

from bedrock aquifers). These 

percentages indicate that the 

amount of ground water used from 

these two aquifer types is similar 

and substantiates the decrease in 

water used from bedrock aquifers 

and the consequent increase in 

water used from the surficial 

aquifers. McHenry County, west 

of Chicago, relies totally on the 

surficial sand and gravel aquifer 

for its water supply. Continued 

urban expansion of Chicago is 

likely to increase the total urban 

use of the surficial aquifer in the 

near future. In general, there has 

been a major decline in water use 

from bedrock aquifers in the UIRB 

since 1986, but there has been an 

increase in withdrawals from surficial aquifers.

Forty-one percent of the 

surface water supplied from 

within the basin is used for industry; in contrast, only 14 percent of 

ground water is used for industry. 

Forty-nine percent of ground water 

supplied from within the basin is 

used for public drinking water; in 

contrast, only 19 percent of the 

surface water is used for this 

purpose. A large proportion of 

surface- and ground-water supply 

is used for irrigation, 18 percent 

and 16 percent, respectively 

(fig. 23).

IMPLICATIONS OF 

ENVIRONMENTAL

SETTING FOR WATER QUALITY

Study Area Stratification by 

Natural and Human Factors

The quantity and quality of 

surface waters in the UIRB prior to 

settlement were undoubtedly much 

different than at present. Vast areas 

of wetlands have been drained for 

agriculture and urban development; Chicago, one of the Nation’s 

largest metropolitan areas, has 

developed and continues to grow 

rapidly; the flow of the Chicago 

River has been reversed; and water 

diversions from Lake Michigan 

have been added.

The effect of natural and 

human factors on surface- and 

ground-water quantity and quality 

is one of the many topics studied by 

scientists in the NAWQA program 

(Hirsch and others, 1988). Previous 

sections of this report describe the 

natural and human factors that 

make up the general environmental 

setting of the upper Illinois River 

Basin. Important natural factors 

in the UIRB include bedrock geology, physiography and surficial 

geology, soils, vegetation, and 

climate. Important human factors 

in the UIRB include land use, 

urbanization, and hydrologic 

modifications.

In an attempt to isolate the 

effects of the natural and human 

factors that are thought to be most 

important in affecting water quantity and quality, an environmental 

framework called “stratification” 

was established for the UIRB. 

This stratification was accomplished by overlaying thematic 

maps of human and natural environmental factors. A similar 

approach has been used by 

other NAWQA study units. Two 

stratification schemes were 

developed—one for surface-water 

and one for ground-water sampling 

designs. Using the resulting stratification schemes, the study area 

can be divided into subunits with 

similar natural characteristics and 

land use.

Surface-water stratification 

for the UIRB was based primarily 

on physiography (fig. 10), with 

further subdivisions based on surficial geology (fig. 8) and associated 

soil permeability (fig. 13), and 

land use/land cover (fig. 16) and 

associated population density. 

This stratification, termed level-3 

because of the three basic factors 

used, resulted in 13 subunits of 

the UIRB: four in the Wheaton 

Morainal Plain; one in the 

Chicago Lake Plain; three in the 
Implications of Environmental Setting for Water Quality 51

PUBLIC, 19%

COMMERCIAL, 14%

DOMESTIC, 0%

INDUSTRIAL, 41%

MINING, 7%

LIVESTOCK, 1%

Surfacewater

use

Estimated total without 

thermoelectric and

Lake Michigan is

181 million gallons per 

day IRRIGATION, 18%

PUBLIC, 49%

COMMERCIAL, 4%

DOMESTIC, 15%

INDUSTRIAL, 14%

MINING, LESS THAN 0.2%

LIVESTOCK, 2%

Groundwater

use

Estimated total without 

thermoelectric and

Lake Michigan is 

327 million gallons per 

IRRIGATION, 16% day

Figure 23. Surface- and ground-water use in the upper Illinois River Basin, 1995 

(U.S. Geological Survey, 1995).
52 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Bloomington Ridged Plain; four in 

the Kankakee Till Plain; and one 

in the Steuben Morainal Lake Area 

(fig. 24). Major surface-water 

issues, mainly related to differences in urban and agricultural 

land use, in the UIRB will be 

examined within the stratification 

scheme. Surface-water issues 

related to urbanization include 

point and nonpoint sources of 

sediment, nutrients, trace elements, 

and organic compounds; streamflow alterations; and the health 

and community structure of aquatic 

biota. Surface-water issues 

related to agriculture include 

nonpoint sources of sediment, 

nutrients, trace elements, and 

pesticides; drainage modifications; 

and the health and community 

structure of aquatic biota.

Ground-water stratification 

was similar to the surface-water 

stratification but also included 

bedrock geology (fig. 4A). The 

ground-water stratification, termed 

level-4 because of the four basic 

factors used, was preliminary and 

resulted in 23 subunits: six in the 

Wheaton Morainal Plain, one in the 

Chicago Lake Plain, eight in the 

Bloomington Ridged Plain, seven 

in the Kankakee Till Plain; and 

one in the Steuben Morainal Lake 

Area. Major ground-water issues in 

the UIRB will be examined within 

the stratification scheme (fig. 25). 

Ground-water-quality assessments 

will be conducted where surficial 

sand, and sand and gravel aquifers 

overlie principal bedrock aquifers. 

The surficial aquifers being 

assessed are those aquifers that 

underlie areas transitioning from 

agricultural to urban land use and 

that overlie the carbonate SilurianDevonian aquifer in the Great 

Lakes physiographic section 

(Wheaton Morainal Plain), and 

those aquifers that underlie 

agricultural land use and overlie 

the carbonate Silurian-Devonian 

aquifer in the Till Plains physiographic section (Kankakee Till 

Plain) (fig. 25).

Surface Water and Aquatic 

Biota

Historical and ongoing 

urban land-use practices have 

resulted in a continuing problem of 

nonpoint and point source contamination of streambed sediment and 

aquatic biota. In addition to point 

sources, constituents from urban 

nonpoint runoff may be derived 

from residues from gasoline, motor 

oil, tires, brake linings, galvanized 

metal, nails, building materials, 

painted surfaces, pesticides, and 

fertilizers (Moore and Ramamoorthy, 1984; Striegl and Cowan, 

1987; Leed and Belanger, 1981; 

Kelly and Hite, 1981, 1984). For 

example, streambed sediments 

from several urban streams of the 

UIRB exceeded USEPA National 

Sediment Inventory reference 

levels for trace elements (Cd, Cr, 

Hg, Ni, Pb, Zn) and synthetic 

organic compounds (heptachlor 

epoxide, polychlorinated byphenols (PCB’s), chlordane, 

dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane 

(p,p’-DDT), dichloro-diphenyldichloroethane (p,p’-DDD), and 

dichloro-diphenyl-dichloroethylene (p,p’-DDE) (Fitzpatrick and 

others, 1995; Sullivan and others, 

1998; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1994). These reference levels were selected to 

represent concentrations above 

which might be an appreciable 

threat to either aquatic life or 

human health. The USEPA also 

identified four urban subbasins in 

the UIRB (out of 96 nationwide) as 

Areas of Probable Concern 

(APC’s), on the basis of the 

National Sediment Inventory 

data (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1997a). The UIRB 

subbasins identified as APC’s 

are the Little Calumet, Chicago, 

Des Plaines, and upper Fox 

Rivers. Synergistic effects of 

these constituents on aquatic biota 

also are of concern because correlations were found among trace 

organic compounds and Cr, Cu, 

Hg, and Zn in streambed sediment. 

Concentrations of p,p’-DDE, 

chlordane, and dieldrin in whole 

fish from some sites in the UIRB 

exceeded various guidelines for 

protection of fish and fishconsuming wildlife and humans 

(Sullivan and others, 1998). 

Concentrations in whole fish 

from sites on the Des Plaines 

and Illinois Rivers in and downstream from Chicago exceeded 

U.S. Food and Drug Administration fish flesh consumption 

advisory levels for PCB’s 

(Sullivan and others, 1998).

The effects of the continued 

expansion of Chicago suburbs 

into the Fox and upper Des Plaines 

River Basins (fig. 17) has raised 

several issues, including the potential for accelerated erosion and 

channel instability, increased 

flooding, increased nonpoint 

sources of contaminants, and 

further loss of aquatic habitat 

and biological integrity. Physical 

changes in streamflow and channel 

characteristics are primarily the 

result of increases in the amount 

of impervious surface in the 

drainage basin, which also has a 

direct effect on biological communities (Schueler, 1995).

Large navigational and 

hydroelectric dams are located on 

the Illinois, Fox, Des Plaines, and 
Implications of Environmental Setting for Water Quality 53

Figure 24. Level-3 surface-water stratification of the upper Illinois River Basin.
54 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

Figure 25. Level-4 ground-water stratification of the upper Illinois River Basin.
Implications of Environmental Setting for Water Quality 55

Kankakee Rivers. These dams 

cause unnatural variations in 

streamflow characteristics and 

accumulations of fine-grained 

sediment upstream from the dam

(U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 

Chicago District, 1987). In addition, fish migrations are restricted 

by dams, and mussels are affected 

by sedimentation and by decreases 

in fish hosts critical to their reproduction.

The effects of agricultural 

activities on water quality in the 

UIRB has included changes to 

hydrologic conditions caused 

by drainage of wetlands, channelization of streams, and reduction of 

riparian vegetation. These changes 

have resulted in increased loads 

of suspended sediment to streams 

and associated turbidity caused by 

runoff from farm fields (fig. 21). 

Increased sedimentation and water 

turbidity reduces the food supply 

for fish (Bellrose and others, 

1977), decreases the visibility 

needed by sight predators to find 

food, and interferes with reproductive activities (Sparks and Lerczak, 

1993). In addition, disruption of 

the natural hydrologic regime 

may exacerbate these problems by 

affecting spawning and rearing 

habitats associated with backwater 

lakes along the lower Illinois River. 

The INHS is currently conducting 

research that focuses on characterizing relations between hydrologic 

regime and fish-community 

composition in the UIRB (Sparks, 

1984; Illinois Natural History 

Survey, oral commun., 1998).

Elevated arsenic concentrations in sediment, fish, and clams 

in the Kankakee River Basin above 

the confluence of the Iroquois 

River (Coleman and Sanzolone, 

1991; Fitzpatrick and others, 1995)

may be related to multiple and 

interacting natural and human 

factors. Agricultural use of 

arsenical-based chemicals (for 

example, cacodylic acid) is a 

potential source; however, 

elevated arsenic concentrations 

were not found in the Iroquois 

River Basin, which is more intensively farmed than the Kankakee 

River Basin. Highly permeable 

soils (fig. 13) in the Kankakee 

River Basin generally require more 

irrigation than the fine-grained 

soils of the Iroquois River Basin. 

Shallow ground water used for 

irrigation in the Kankakee River 

Basin generally is enriched in 

arsenic and may contribute arsenic 

to streams in that basin (John 

Winters, Indiana Department of 

Environmental Management, oral 

commun., 1992). Weathering of 

shale bedrock in the region is a 

potential source of arsenic to 

ground water (Yarling, 1992; 

Fenelon and others, 1995).

The effect of channelization 

on aquatic ecosystems was 

discussed earlier in this report. 

Loss of habitat because of channelization, drainage of wetlands, and 

clearance of riparian vegetation has 

altered the characteristics of the 

streams in agricultural areas. 

The extent of these changes is 

unknown because agricultural 

activities began before waterquality conditions were documented.

Ground Water

Ground-water issues in the 

UIRB include water levels and 

water quality. Heavy withdrawals 

in the Chicago area beginning 

about 1950 caused water levels in 

the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer 

to decline by more than 1,000 ft 

(Sasman and others, 1982). The 

effect of water-level declines were 

noticed as far away as Wisconsin. 

In 1980, the western Chicago 

suburbs began switching their 

water source to Lake Michigan or 

more shallow bedrock and surficial 

aquifers, which reduced groundwater withdrawals closer to natural 

recharge rates (Visocky, 1997). At 

the current pumpage rate, water 

levels are expected to recover as 

much as 650 ft by 2010 (Illinois 

Department of Energy and 

Natural Resources and the Nature 

of Illinois Foundation, 1994).

The water quality of the 

Silurian-Devonian aquifer is more 

likely to be affected by increased 

urbanization than the CambrianOrdovician aquifer. The CambrianOrdovician aquifer is confined by 

the Maquoketa Shale and is deeper 

than the Silurian-Devonian aquifer. 

Because of this relation, urbanization probably would not affect 

the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer 

as much as it might affect the 

Silurian-Devonian aquifer. Volatile 

organic compounds (VOC’s) have 

been detected in water supplies of 

communities that pump water from 

the Silurian-Devonian aquifer. In 

1994, there was an increase in 

the amount of VOC and other 

synthetic organics detected, 

although the number of wells 

with VOC detections did not 

increase (Illinois Environmental 

Protection Agency, 1994). In 

addition, water-quality data indicate that the Cambrian-Ordovician 

aquifer contains concentrations of 

naturally occurring radium and 

barium in excess of standards set 

by USEPA (U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, 1975).

 Arsenic in ground water 

in the UIRB may be considered a 

problem at a regional scale. 

Yarling (1992) found arsenic 
56 Environmental Setting of the Upper Illinois River Basin and Implications for Water Quality

concentrations in ground water 

near Wakarusa, Indiana (Elkhart 

County), that were above the 

USEPA maximum contaminant 

level (50 ug/L). These high 

arsenic concentrations were 

detected in ground water from 

the deep lower Mahomet aquifer, 

which is composed of unconsolidated quaternary deposits. Yarling 

(1992) concluded that the high 

arsenic concentrations were 

probably related to chemical 

weathering of black shales in the 

area. Extensive areas of these same 

shale bedrock types are present in 

parts of the Kankakee River Basin 

and in east-central Illinois. These 

shales include the Antrim, New 

Albany, and Ellsworth Shales 

(fig. 4B), and they are generally 

black, enriched in metal content, 

and were deposited in strongly 

reducing conditions. Glaciers 

deposited black shale fragments in 

proglacial outwash and tills in 

northern Indiana. A study of aquifers in the St. Joseph River Basin 

near South Bend, Indiana (immediately adjacent to the headwaters 

of the Kankakee Basin), showed 

that arsenic concentrations in the 

deep aquifer were significantly 

higher than in the shallow aquifer 

(Fenelon and others,1995). These 

higher concentrations were attributed to chemical weathering of 

shale in the aquifer. In Illinois, 

Holm and Curtiss (1988) also 

found high arsenic concentrations 

in ground water. A study conducted 

by Warner (U.S. Geological Survey, written commun.,1998) in the 

LIRB NAWQA study unit found 

arsenic concentrations above the 

USEPA maximum contaminant 

level in some wells in the deep 

Mahomet aquifer, a major water 

resource in east-central Illinois. 

Elevated arsenic concentrations are 

present in streambed sediment and 

ground-water discharge areas.

SUMMARY

The U.S. Geological 

Survey’s National Water-Quality 

Assessment (NAWQA) program 

was established, in part, to assess 

the status and trends of the Nation’s 

water quality. The program objectives are accomplished through 

study units that encompass areas 

that represent a large part of 

the Nation’s surface- and groundwater resources. The upper Illinois 

River Basin (UIRB) study of the 

NAWQA program that began in 

1996 is an assessment of surfaceand ground-water quality and 

biology. An environmental framework of human and natural factors 

is used to describe the similarities 

and differences in the hydrologic 

characteristics of the UIRB.

The UIRB drains a 

10,949 mi2

 area upstream from 

Ottawa, Illinois, in northeastern 

Illinois, northwestern Indiana, and 

southeastern Wisconsin. The 

following major subbasins are 

within the UIRB: Kankakee 

River, Iroquois River, Fox River, 

Des Plaines River, Chicago River, 

and Illinois River.

The Silurian-Devonian 

limestones and dolomites form 

the principal shallow bedrock 

aquifer. The underlying CambrianOrdovician sandstone forms the 

dominant deep bedrock aquifer. 

Ground-water levels in the deep 

bedrock aquifer have changed over 

time. In 1986, western suburban 

Chicago heavily pumped the aquifer for domestic, municipal and 

industrial use, but a recent trend 

of suburban Chicago has been to 

switch to other water supplies such 

as those of shallow aquifers and 

Lake Michigan.

The UIRB lies in the 

Central Lowlands physiographic 

province which is subdivided into 

two physiographic sections: the 

Great Lake Section and the Till 

Plains Section. The subdivisions of 

these two sections are based on the 

geomorphology of the landforms in 

the basin, which are mostly a result 

of Wisconsinan glaciation. The 

surficial unconsolidated sand and 

gravel deposits form the major 

surficial aquifers in the UIRB. 

Surficial deposits are the parent 

material of most of the soils in the 

basin.

The climate of the UIRB is 

humid continental and large daily 

fluctuations in temperature and 

precipitation can result throughout 

the basin. The normalized average 

annual temperature for the UIRB 

(1961–90) ranged from 46° F in the 

northern part of the basin to 51° F 

in the southern part of the basin. 

Average annual precipitation for 

the period 1961–90 ranged from 

32 in. to 38 in. 

Most of the UIRB is in the 

Central Corn Belt Plains ecoregion. Parts of the upper Fox and 

upper reaches of the Des Plaines 

River Basins are classified in the 

Southeastern Wisconsin Till Plains 

ecoregion. The upper reaches of 

the Kankakee River Basin are 

classified as Southern Michigan/

Northern Indiana Till Plains 

ecoregion.

The UIRB contains Chicago, 

Illinois, one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United States. 

Urban areas around Chicago have 

been expanding into previously 

agricultural and forested areas. 

Subbasins within the UIRB that are 

mainly affected by urban expansion from the Chicago area include 
References Cited 57

the Des Plaines, Du Page, and Fox 

River Basins. The primary crops 

grown in the agricultural areas of 

the basin are corn and soybeans.

Five major changes in the 

upper Illinois River Basin have 

altered the quality of surface 

waters. These changes are 

construction of navigable waterways, diversion of Lake Michigan 

water, construction of wastewatertreatment plants, drainage of 

wetlands, and agricultural 

activities. Results of historical 

water-quality data analysis indicate 

that the primary factor affecting 

water quality in the UIRB is land 

use. Distinct chemical signatures 

are found in streams that drain 

urban land compared with streams 

that drain agricultural land.

Aquatic biota is affected by 

the glacial history of the UIRB, 

land use, manmade modifications 

to water bodies and streams, and 

invasion of nonidigenous species. 

One of the consequences of past 

glaciation is that aquatic fauna of 

the UIRB has relatively few 

endemic species. The original 

aquatic communities of the UIRB 

were diverse and productive. 

During the last 150 years, aquatic 

communities of the UIRB have 

been significantly affected by 

human activities.

In an attempt to isolate the 

effects of the natural and human 

factors that are thought to have the 

most effect on water quantity and 

quality, an environmental framework called “stratification” was 

established for the UIRB. The 

stratification scheme divides the 

study area into subunits with similar natural characteristics and land 

use, and will be used during the 

UIRB study to design a framework 

for where to collect water and 

biology samples.

Surface-water issues related 

to urbanization include point and 

nonpoint sources of sediment, 

nutrients, trace elements, and 

organic compounds; streamflow 

alterations; and the health and 

community structure of aquatic 

biota. Surface-water issues related 

to agriculture include nonpoint 

sources of sediment, nutrients, 

trace elements, and pesticides; 

drainage modifications; and the 

health and community structure 

of aquatic biota. Ground-water 

issues include declining water 

levels and degraded water quality, 

and elevated arsenic concentrations in ground water.

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APPENDIX

Appendix 1. 67

APPENDIX 1. BIBLIOGRAPHY OF U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY REPORTS FROM THE UPPER ILLINOIS 

RIVER BASIN PILOT STUDY OF THE NATIONAL WATER-QUALITY ASSESSMENT PROGRAM

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Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 94–4094, 

50 p.

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assessment of the upper Illinois River Basin in Illinois, 

Indiana, and Wisconsin—Results of investigations through 

April 1992: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources 

Investigations Report 96–4223, 63 p.

Steffeck, D.W., and Striegl, R.G., 1989, An inventory and evaluation of biological investigations that relate to stream-water 

quality in the upper Illinois River Basin of Illinois, Indiana, 

and Wisconsin: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources 

Investigations Report 89–4041, 54 p.

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Indiana, and Wisconsin: Data on agricultural organic 

compounds, nutrients, and sediment in water, 1988–90: 

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Sullivan, D.J., Stinson, T.W., Crawford, J.K., and Schmidt, A.R., 

1998, Surface-water-quality assessment of the upper Illinois 

River Basin in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin—Pesticides 

and other synthetic organic compounds in water, sediment, 

and biota, 1975–90 with a section on Historical conditions by 

John A. Colman: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources 

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Terrio, P.J., 1994, Relations of changes in wastewater-treatment 

practices to changes in stream-water quality during 1978–88 

in the Chicago area, Illinois, and implications for regional 

and national water-quality assessments: U.S. Geological 

Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 93–4188, 

56 p.

Terrio, P.J., 1995, Water-quality assessment of the upper Illinois 

River Basin in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin: Nutrients, 

dissolved oxygen, and fecal-indicator bacteria in surface 

water, April 1987 through August 1990: U.S. Geological 

Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 95–4005, 

79 p.

Zogorski, J.S., Blanchard, S.F., Romack, R.D., and 

Fitzpatrick, F.A., 1990, Availability and suitability of 

municipal wastewater information for use in a national 

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U.S. Geological Survey, WRD

221 Broadway Ave.

Urbana, Illinois 61801

Arnold and others—ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING OF THE UPPER ILLINOIS RIVER BASIN AND IMPLICATIONS FOR WATER QUALITY—

U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 98–4268