GARY, IN – Through the NiSource Charitable Foundation, NIPSCO and its parent company NiSource Inc. has awarded The Wetlands Initiative (TWI) a $50,000 grant in support of a major new ecological restoration project in the City of Gary in the Calumet region of Northwest Indiana.
Known as the Chase Street Complex, nearly 800 acres of natural space along an urban flood control corridor is set to undergo enhancements that will restore natural habitats and make the land accessible for community use. The project is led by the Little Calumet River Conservation Collaborative, and will include TWI, NiSource, NIPSCO, and various local organizations as active partners. The Little Calumet River flows through the Chase Street parcel, located in Gary south of Interstate 80 and containing a NIPSCO Right of Way.
The NiSource Charitable Foundation grant provides critical private match funding toward a $269,000 National Coastal Resilience Fund (NCRF) award for the Chase Street project recently secured by TWI on behalf of the larger Collaborative. The NCRF award is administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“NiSource’s leadership support of this exciting new project will be instrumental in helping the Little Calumet River Conservation Collaborative take the next steps in bringing back healthy wetlands and vibrant, publicly accessible natural areas throughout the West Branch of the Little Calumet floodplain corridor,” said Paul Botts, TWI’s President and Executive Director. “Kicking off the Chase Street Complex’s design and planning, which we expect to include the first-ever stream re-meandering in Northwest Indiana, will truly elevate this work to the next level of community benefit and conservation impact.”
A view of the Chase Street Complex.
For NiSource, the project fits within the company’s biodiversity commitment for conserving and enhancing lands under its responsibility and its support for pollution prevention and reduction programs to protect natural habitats.
“Leveraging the NiSource Charitable Foundation to support this project aligns perfectly with NiSource’s objective for being an environmental steward in our communities, which includes enhancing sustainable natural resources, biodiversity, climate resiliency, and environmental equity and justice,” said Kelly Carmichael, Vice President of Environmental Policy and Sustainability at NiSource. “As evidenced by our partnership with TWI to support this restoration project, we are making significant investments to ensure we are delivering energy to our customers in ways that are innovative and enriching our environment.”
Along with NiSource and NIPSCO, other Collaborative partners include Audubon Great Lakes, the City of Gary, Lake County Parks & Recreation Department, The Nature Conservancy of Indiana, and the Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission, which is the landowner charged with managing much of the West Branch corridor. Since 2017, the Collaborative has been pursuing high-potential conservation opportunities along the corridor and has taken the first steps of habitat restoration on three other parcels to date, together with expanding community engagement.
“NiSource has proven to be a vital partner in the Collaborative’s efforts, both through funding and through collaboration on the ground,” said TWI’s Senior Ecologist Dr. Gary Sullivan, who worked with Collaborative members to develop the Chase Street project idea. “NiSource’s commitment to restoring habitat and removing invasive species on their Rights of Way will have important connectivity benefits, not only linking up parcels within the West Branch corridor but connecting them with other natural areas and conservation projects across Northwest Indiana.”
The Chase Street project, formally entitled Community-driven Assessment and Design for Wetland Restoration in the Little Calumet, will be conducted over two years, beginning in spring 2024. Following a detailed assessment of the parcel’s conditions, Collaborative members will develop initial designs for reestablishing a more natural hydrology and restoring the riparian corridor within the Chase Street Complex. This process will involve collaborating with an engineering firm and collaborating closely with local community-based organizations, neighboring residents and other stakeholders.
By 2026, the project will yield a 60% design for transforming the Chase Street parcel informed by community input, enabling the partners to take the next steps on final design and implementation. This revitalization effort at Chase Street will provide a major benefit to the surrounding environmental justice communities through increased biodiversity, improved access to natural areas and increasing climate resilience.
NIPSCO, with support from the NiSource Charitable Foundation, has previously awarded TWI three grants supporting the Collaborative’s efforts through the NIPSCO Environmental Action Grant program. NIPSCO employees have also volunteered to help with native planting on other tracts the Collaborative is restoring within the West Branch corridor.
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About NiSource
NiSource Inc. (NYSE: NI) is one of the largest fully-regulated utility companies in the United States, serving approximately 3.3 million natural gas customers and 500,000 electric customers across six states through its local Columbia Gas and NIPSCO brands. The mission of our approximately 7,400 employees is to deliver safe, reliable energy that drives value to our customers. NiSource is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability - North America Index and is on Forbes lists of America’s Best Employers for Women and Diversity. Learn more about NiSource’s record of leadership in sustainability, investments in the communities it serves and how we live our vision to be an innovative and trusted energy partner at www.NiSource.com. NI-F
About the Wetlands Initiative
The Wetlands Initiative (TWI) designs, restores, and creates wetlands in Illinois and Northwest Indiana. We innovate, collaborate, and employ sound science in pursuit of our vision of a world with plentiful healthy wetlands improving water quality, climate resilience, biodiversity, and human well-being. As a founding member of the Little Calumet Conservation Collaborative, TWI has worked with NiSource and other regional partners on conservation action planning, habitat restoration, and community engagement along the West Branch of the Little Calumet River floodplain corridor in Northwest Indiana since 2017. Visit www.wetlands-initiative.org for more information.