Corps releases Feasibility Report, Environmental Assessment for Proctor Creek Ecosystem Restoration study.

Proctor Creek Ecosystem Restoration Feasibility Study

Over the course of several decades, urban development has detrimentally impacted the ecosystem of the Proctor Creek watershed in Atlanta, Ga. The creek is a tributary to the Chattahoochee River which is part of the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River Basin, a major resource for water supply in the southeast.

In an effort to restore the health of the aquatic ecosystem in Proctor Creek, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the City of Atlanta signed a cost-sharing agreement in October 2015 to conduct a feasibility study for a proposed ecosystem restoration project. The final study was completed in 2018.

The study was conducted using an Integrated Water Resource Management approach to promote the coordinated development and management of the watershed’s resources to maximize economic and social welfare in an equitable manner without compromising the sustainability of the ecosystem.

Specifically, the study investigated the feasibility of repairing accelerated bank erosion, improving in-channel conditions suitable for a diversity of aquatic organisms, improving riparian conditions supportive of a diverse aquatic and riparian community, restoring flow regimes to the best attainable conditions in an altered urban environment, promoting an interconnected system resilient to foreseen and unforeseen disturbances, reconnecting residents to aquatic and historic landscapes, maintaining or decreasing existing levels of flood risk, and reducing health risks to neighboring communities.

 As determined by the feasibility study, the costs for the project will be shared by the federal government (65%) and the City of Atlanta, the non-federal sponsor (35%).