View source for St. Clair River

{{Short description|River in North America}}
{{Infobox river
| name              = Saint Clair River
| name_other       =
| image             = Lake St Clair by Sentinel-2.jpg
| image_alt         =
| image_caption     = Sentinel-2 satellite photo, showing [[Lake Saint Clair]] (center), as well as St. Clair River connecting it to Lake Huron (to the North) and [[Detroit River]] connecting it to [[Lake Erie]] (to the South)
| map               =
| map_alt           =
| map_caption       =
| mapframe-stroke-width = 1.5
| subdivision_type1 = Countries
| subdivision_name1 = Canada, United States
| source1_location  = [[Lake Huron]]
| mouth_location    = [[Lake St. Clair]]
| progression       =
| length_mi = 40.5
| source1_elevation =
| mouth_elevation   =
| discharge1_avg    = {{convert|182,000|cuft/s|m3/s|abbr=on}}
| basin_size_mi2 = 223600
| river_system      =
| tributaries_left  =
| tributaries_right =
}}
[[Image:Navigation on St Clair River.jpg|thumb|Great Lakes [[Cargo ship|freighters]] navigating the lower St. Clair River. View is from the U.S. side, looking across to Canada.]]

The '''St. Clair River''' is a {{convert|40.5|mi|km|adj=mid|-long}}<ref name=NHD>U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. [http://viewer.nationalmap.gov/viewer/ The National Map], accessed November 7, 2011</ref> river in central North America which flows from [[Lake Huron]] into [[Lake St. Clair]], forming part of the [[Canada–United States border|international boundary]] between Canada and the United States and between the [[Provinces and territories of Canada|Canadian province]] of [[Ontario]] and the [[U.S. state]] of [[Michigan]].  The river is a significant component in the [[Great Lakes Waterway]], whose shipping channels permit cargo vessels to travel between the upper and lower [[Great Lakes]]. The St. Clair [[River delta|Delta]], also called the St. Clair Flats, is the largest freshwater delta in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Our River – Friends of the St. Clair River |url=https://friendsofstclair.ca/our-river/ |access-date=2025-01-13 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=St. Clair Delta |url=https://project.geo.msu.edu/geogmich/St.Clair-delta.html |access-date=2025-01-13 |website=project.geo.msu.edu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-23 |title=Priority Region: Detroit River & the St. Clair Flats |url=https://gl.audubon.org/coastal-wetlands/priority-region-detroit-river-st-clair-flats |access-date=2025-01-13 |website=Audubon Great Lakes |language=en}}</ref>

==Location==
The river, which some consider a [[strait]],<ref name=straitdefined>{{cite web |first= Patricia M. |last= Eckel |date= May 4, 2005 |url= http://www.mobot.org/plantscience/resbot/Niag/LakeLevels/isostatic.htm |title= Some Thoughts on Isostatic Rebound as a Hypothetical Factor in Lake and Strait Characteristics in the Great Lakes |work= Niagara Issues |publisher= Missouri Botanical Garden |access-date= April 9, 2015}}</ref><ref name=strait>{{cite web|url=https://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC5JX78_st-clair-river |title=GC5JX78 St. Clair River (Earthcache) in Michigan, United States created by alona-spiegel |publisher=Geocaching.com |date= |accessdate=2022-05-05}}</ref> flows in a southerly direction, connecting the southern end of [[Lake Huron]] to the northern end of [[Lake St. Clair]]. It branches into several [[channel (geography)|channels]] near its mouth at Lake St. Clair, creating a broad [[river delta|delta]] region known as the [[St. Clair Flats]].<ref>{{cite web|author=US Army Corps of Engineers |url=https://www.lre.usace.army.mil/Missions/Great-Lakes-Information/Outflows/Discharge-Measurements/St-Clair-River/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171218143959/http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/Missions/Great-Lakes-Information/Outflows/Discharge-Measurements/St-Clair-River/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 18, 2017 |title=Discharge Measurements on the St. Clair River |publisher=Lre.usace.army.mil |date= |accessdate=2022-05-05}}</ref> Like a strait, the river serves as a narrow strip of water which connects two larger bodies of water.<ref name=straitdefined /><ref name=strait />

==Size==
The river is {{convert|40.5|mi}} long<ref name=NHD/> and drops {{convert|5|ft|0}} in elevation from Lake Huron to Lake St. Clair.  The flow rate averages around {{convert|182,000|cuft/s|m3/s}}, and the [[drainage]] area is {{convert|223600|sqmi|km2}}.<ref>{{cite web|title=Great Lakes Factsheet No. 1|url=http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/atlas/gl-fact1.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970805041644/http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/atlas/gl-fact1.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 5, 1997|publisher=United States EPA|access-date=30 May 2013}}</ref> This takes into account the combined drainage areas of [[Lake Huron|Lakes Huron]], [[Lake Michigan|Michigan]], and [[Lake Superior|Superior]].

==History==
Generations of indigenous cultures traveled by canoe on the lakes and rivers in this area, carrying on trade across the region and continent.

In the 18th century, [[France|French]] ''[[voyageurs]]'' and ''[[Coureur des bois|coureurs des bois]]'' traveled on the river to trade with the [[Ojibwa]] and other regional Native Americans and transport furs in [[canoe]]s to major posts of French and British traders, including [[Fort Detroit]], built in 1701 downriver from  Lake St. Clair on the Detroit River. European demand for American furs, especially [[beaver]], was high until the 1830s.

During the mid-19th century and later, [[Port Huron, Michigan|Port Huron]] and [[Marine City, Michigan]], became major shipbuilding centers, especially the latter. Lumber harvested on [[The Thumb]] of Michigan was shipped downriver as log rafts to [[Detroit]] for processing and export both domestically and internationally. The wooden ships built along the river carried migrants and immigrants up the river and west through the upper Great Lakes on their way to new homes in the American West. Their farms later shipped out grain to eastern markets as part of the developing area.

Beginning in the late 19th century, iron ore mined in the Mesabi Range, copper and grain were carried east through the lakes by [[Cargo ship|lake freighters]], increasingly made of steel in the 20th century, traveled throughout the Great Lakes, transporting commodities such as [[iron ore]] from the [[Mesabi Range]], [[copper]], and [[cereal|grain]], all products of settlers' labor. Iron was taken to [[Ashtabula, Ohio]] and other industrial cities for processing and [[steel]] manufacture, and grain was often shipped through to major eastern markets such as [[Cleveland]] and [[New York City]].

From the late 19th century, lake steamers carried passengers and traveled among the small towns along the St. Clair and [[Detroit River|Detroit]] rivers, and around the Great Lakes. At one time 31 lines operated, but with the rise of automobile use in the 20th century, they gradually declined.

==Watersheds==
[[Image:Blue Water Bridge.jpg|thumb|right|Head of river looking into [[Lake Huron]], showing the twin [[Blue Water Bridge]]]]
The St. Clair River and its [[Lambton County, Ontario|Lambton County]] tributaries in Ontario contribute {{convert|103210|acre|ha}} to the [[drainage basin|watershed]]. This figure does not include the [[Sydenham River]] watershed. In Michigan, the [[Black River (St. Clair River tributary)|Black]], [[Pine River (Michigan)|Pine]], and [[Belle River (Michigan)|Belle]] rivers drain {{convert|780600|acre|ha}} in [[Lapeer County, Michigan|Lapeer]], [[Macomb County, Michigan|Macomb]], [[Sanilac County, Michigan|Sanilac]], and [[St. Clair County, Michigan|St. Clair]] counties; the watersheds around [[Bunce Creek]] and [[Marine City, Michigan|Marine City]] are relatively small.

==Islands==
{{Redirect|St. Anne Island|the island in Seychelles|Ste. Anne Island}}
* [[Stag Island]] lies between [[Corunna, Ontario]] and [[Marysville, Michigan]].
* [[Fawn Island]] is near [[Port Lambton, Ontario]] and [[Marine City, Michigan]].
* [[Walpole Island|Walpole]], Seaway, Bassett, Squirrel, Pottowatamie, St. Anne, Dickinson, [[Russell Island (Michigan)|Russell]] and [[Harsens Island|Harsens]] islands are located in the delta where the St. Clair River flows into Lake St. Clair near [[Algonac, Michigan]]. These islands are part of the "[[St. Clair Flats]]", the only major [[river delta]] in the Great Lakes. Six of the islands in this delta are [[unceded territory]] that are part of the [[Walpole Island Indian Reserve No. 46|Walpole Island First Nations]], whose members include [[Ojibwe]] (Anishinaabe), [[Potowatomi]], and [[Odawa people]]s. They call this delta area ''Bkejwanong'', meaning "where the waters divide".<ref>[http://www.bkejwanong.com/about.html "About nin.da.waab.jig"], Walpole Island Heritage Centre, accessed 8 August 2014</ref>

==Land usage==
Most of the watershed away from the river in Ontario and Michigan is used for [[agriculture]]. There were numerous [[sugar beet]] farms in the flatlands, and an annual beet market was held in [[Marine City, Michigan]], for years at harvest time. Many of the 19th-century English immigrants to this area came from [[Lincolnshire]], England, where sugar beets were a major [[commodity crop]] in the 19th and 20th centuries.

A few [[forest]] and [[wetland]] areas have survived. Their area has declined significantly since European-American  settlement, clearing, and development of cultivated fields for various agricultural crops.

Much of the shoreline on both sides of the St. Clair River is [[urbanization|urbanized]] and extensively [[industrialisation|industrialized]]. Intensive development has occurred in and near the adjacent cities of [[Port Huron, Michigan]] and [[Sarnia]], [[Ontario]], at the northern end of the river. The most dense concentration of industry, including a large [[petrochemical]] complex, lies along the Ontario shore south of [[Sarnia]]. Historically Sarnia was founded as a fur trading post.

Several communities along the St. Clair rely on the river as their primary source of [[drinking water]]. About one-third to one-half of the residents of Michigan receive their water from the St. Clair/Detroit River waterway.{{Citation needed|date=November 2011}}  Industries including [[oil refinery|petroleum refineries]], chemical manufacturers, [[paper mill]]s, [[edible salt|salt]] producers, and electric [[power plants]] also need high-quality water for their operations. Since the late 20th century and passage of environmental laws to protect air and water quality, there have been occasional incidents when some of these industries have illegally contaminated river waters after discharging [[pollutants]]. Major clean-up activities were required.

==Land habitat==

Land areas of the St. Clair River [[shore]]line and [[Mudflat|flats]] consist of two biological zones: upland and transitional, both of which are normally above the [[water table]], but which may be [[flood]]ed periodically.

The upland forests consist of [[deciduous]] species, many of which are near their northern climatic limit. Most pre-European settlement trees have been cleared for agriculture, industry, or urbanization. Remaining forest stands, such as [[oak]] savannas as well as lakeplain prairies, are found along the southern reaches of the river, particularly on the islands of the St. Clair River Delta and on the Michigan shore in [[Algonac State Park]].

Transitional species are abundant in the low-lying regions, categorized as [[shrub]] [[ecotone]]s, wet [[meadow]]s, [[poor fen|sedge marshes]], and island shorelines and [[beach]]es. This [[habitat]] is home to water and land [[mammal]]s, including humans, as well as [[songbird]]s, [[waterfowl]], [[insect]]s, [[pollinator]]s, [[reptile]]s, and [[amphibian]]s.

==Water habitat==

The [[freshwater biology|aquatic habitat]] of the St. Clair River ranges from deep and fast near the [[Blue Water Bridge]] to shallow and slow in the lower river near its discharge point into Lake St. Clair.

Each area provides a unique habitat for aquatic life:
* [[macrophyte]]s (visible marine [[plant]]s),
* [[benthic]] [[macroinvertebrates]] ([[organism]]s that live at the bottom of a lake or stream),
* [[phytoplankton]] and [[zooplankton]] (floating plants and animals),
* emergent [[vegetation]] (plants seen above the water surface),
* [[fish]] (from minnows to large sport fish).

==Area of concern==
[[Image:Algorail in (St Clair River Mich).jpg|thumb|right|Canadian freighter ''Algorail'' downbound in the St. Clair River]]

The St. Clair River is a binational [[Great Lakes Areas of Concern|Area of Concern]] (AOC)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.epa.gov/great-lakes-aocs/list-great-lakes-aocs|title=Great Lakes Areas of Concern|last=US EPA|first=REG 05|date=2013-06-17|website=US EPA|language=en|access-date=2019-10-08}}</ref> that borders both the United States and Canada. An AOC is an area within the Great Lakes, that has suffered from environmental destruction. The St. Clair River has been considered an AOC because conventional pollutants such as [[bacteria]], [[heavy metals]], [[Persistent organic pollutant|toxic organics]], contaminated [[sediment]], fish consumption advisories, impacted animal and plant life, and beach closings.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://www.epa.gov/great-lakes-aocs/st-clair-river-aoc|title=St. Clair River AOC|last=US EPA|first=REG 05|date=2019-05-29|website=US EPA|language=en|access-date=2019-10-08}}</ref>

The United States found that 10 out of 14 of the [https://www.epa.gov/great-lakes-aocs/beneficial-use-impairments-great-lakes-aocs beneficial use impairments] (BUI) were impaired, which would lead to a $21 million investment from the [https://www.glri.us/index.php Great Lakes Restoration Initiative].<ref name=":0" /> After several habitat projects, only two impairments exists: the Restrictions on Fish and Wildlife Consumption and the Restrictions on Drinking Water Consumption or Taste and Odor Problems.

=== Beneficial use impairments ===
A beneficial use impairment is a change within the physical, biological, and chemical consistency that causes significant [[environmental degradation]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.epa.gov/great-lakes-aocs/beneficial-use-impairments-great-lakes-aocs|title=Beneficial Use Impairments for the Great Lakes AOCs|last=US EPA|first=REG 05|date=2015-03-11|website=US EPA|language=en|access-date=2019-10-08}}</ref> The St. Clair River has undergone several projects and clean up to remove the BUIs that affected the area. There are currently only 2 BUIs left on the St. Clair River, and once those 2 are removed, the river might go through the delisting process.

==== List of beneficial use impairments that has impacted the St. Clair River ====
Source:<ref name=":0" />
* Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption
* Restrictions on drinking water consumption, or taste and odor
* Tainting of fish and wildlife flavor '''– REMOVED 2010'''
* Restriction on dredging activities '''– REMOVED 2011'''
* Added costs to agriculture or industry '''– REMOVED 2012'''
* Degradation of aesthetics '''– REMOVED 2012'''
* Degradation of benthos '''– REMOVED 2015'''
* Beach closings '''– REMOVED 2016'''
* Bird or animal deformities or reproduction problems '''– REMOVED 2017'''
* Loss of fish and wildlife habitat – '''REMOVED 2017'''

=== Remedial action plan ===

==== Remediation and restoration work ====
The St. Clair River AOC includes the entire river, from the Blue Water Bridge at the north end, to the southern tip of Seaway Island, west to [[St. Johns Marsh]] and east to include the north shore of [[Mitchells Bay]] on Lake St. Clair. [[Anchor Bay (Michigan)|Anchor Bay]] is not included.

Through the Great Lakes Agreement, a [[Remedial Action Plan]] (RAP) was created to initiate cleanup measures. Its background report noted the adverse effects of pollution in the river and lakes:

* Restrictions on fish consumption
* Bird and animal deformities
* Degradation of [[benthos]]
* Restrictions on [[dredging]] activities
* Restrictions on drinking water consumption
* Beach closings
* Degradation of [[aesthetics]]
* Added cost to agriculture and industry
* Loss of fish and wildlife habitat

According to the Stage 1 Remedial Action Plan (RAP), the reasons for the Loss of Fish and Wildlife Habitat beneficial use impairment (BUI) in the St. Clair River were general loss of the aquatic plant community due to industrial, agricultural, recreational, and urban developments. A large blob of [[perchloroethylene]] was found at the bottom of the St Clair River due to runoff from Dow Chemical Corp in 1985. It remains there, slowly mixing with the water.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sustreport.org/lakes/lakes_timeline.htm#seventies |title=14 |website=www.sustreport.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020918122554/http://www.sustreport.org/lakes/lakes_timeline.htm |archive-date=2002-09-18}}</ref>

The RAP for the St. Clair River AOC was initiated in 1985. A bi-national group called the RAP Team, which included representatives from federal, state, and provincial governments of both Canada and the United States was established in 1987 to develop the plan and to ensure adequate and appropriate public involvement.

==Erosion and Great Lakes drainage==
Federal officials have long acknowledged that dredging and riverbed mining in the St. Clair dropped the long-term average of Great Lakes Huron and Michigan by about 16 inches. A bi-national Great Lakes water-level study concluded in 2013 that unexpected erosion since the last major St. Clair dredging project in the early 1960s has dropped the lakes' long-term average by an additional 3 to 5 inches. Today, these lakes are nearly 2 feet lower than before human modifications to the riverbed of the St. Clair River. This record low has raised concerns about the long-term health of the lakes. Activists urge remediation to slow the flow of waters through the St. Clair River and out of the lake system, to restore former water levels.<ref>[http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/lakes-michigan-huron-hit-record-low-level-dq8loc2-189903561.html Dan Egan, "Lakes Michigan, Huron hit record low water level"], ''Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel'' Online,  3 February 2013</ref> However, as of October 2020, the Lake Huron water is averaging 581.5 feet above sea level,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/gldatums.html |title=Great Lakes Low Water Datums - NOAA Tides & Currents |publisher=Tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov |date= |accessdate=2022-05-05}}</ref> which is considerably above the Datum of 577.5 feet, and above the Mean Long-Term Water Level of 578.8 feet.<ref>{{Cite web| title=Water level - Lake Michigan-Huron | url=https://www.glerl.noaa.gov/data/wlevels/lowlevels/plot/MichHuron.jpg | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161213192533/https://www.glerl.noaa.gov//data/wlevels/lowlevels/plot/MichHuron.jpg | archive-date=2016-12-13}}</ref>

==Crossings==
This is a list of [[bridge]]s and other crossings of the St. Clair River from [[Lake St. Clair]] upstream to [[Lake Huron]].
{| class=wikitable
|-
! Crossing
! Carries
! Location
! Coordinates
|-
|Walpole Island Bridge
| {{jcon|CK|32}}
|[[Chatham-Kent|Chatham-Kent Municipality]] and [[Walpole Island]], [[Ontario]] (Crosses the Chenal Ecarte of the St. Clair)
|{{Coord|42|35|34.4|N|82|28|27.7|W|}}
|-
|Harsens Island Ferry
| Cars and passengers<!--M-154 terminates on the island and does not continue on the ferry to the mainland.-->
|[[Algonac, Michigan]] and [[Harsens Island]], [[Michigan]] (crosses the North Channel of the St. Clair)
|{{Coord|42|36|57.4|N|82|33|38.9|W|}}
|-
|[[Russell Island Ferry]]
| Passengers only
|[[Algonac, Michigan]] and [[Russell Island (Michigan)|Russell Island]], [[Michigan]]
|{{Coord|42|37|07.2|N|82|31|47.9|W|}}
|-
|[[Walpole–Algonac Ferry]]
|  Cars and passengers
|[[Algonac, Michigan]] and [[Walpole Island]], [[Ontario]]
|{{Coord|42|37|01.6|N|82|31|17.6|W|}}
|-
|[[Sombra–Marine City (Bluewater) Ferry]] - Closed 2018 
| Cars and passengers<!--The ferry has no highway designations.-->
|[[Marine City, Michigan]] and [[Sombra, Ontario]]
|{{Coord|42|42|46.4|N|82|29|13.3|W|}}
|-
|[[St. Clair Tunnel]]
|[[Canadian National Railway]]
|rowspan=2|[[Port Huron, Michigan]] and [[Sarnia]], [[Ontario]]
|{{Coord|42|57|34.2|N|82|25|19.0|W|}}
|-
|[[Blue Water Bridge]]
|{{jct|state=MI|I|94|I|69}}<br />{{jct|province=ON|ON|402}}
|{{Coord|42|59|55.1|N|82|25|23.9|W|}}
|}

==See also==
*[[List of rivers of Ontario]]
*[[List of rivers of Michigan]]
*[[Blue Water River Walk]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Further reading== 
* Scott, I.D. (1921) [https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=D10MAAAAYAAJ&pg=GBS.PR22&hl=en Inland Lakes of Michigan] Michigan Geological Society.

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{GNIS|1624885|St. Clair River}}

{{Greatlakes}}
{{Metro Detroit}}
{{Central Michigan}}
{{Parks in metropolitan Detroit}}

{{coord|42|31|59|N|82|40|29|W|display=title}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:St. Clair River| ]]
[[Category:Great Lakes Waterway]]
[[Category:Border rivers]]
[[Category:Canada–United States border]]
[[Category:International rivers of North America]]
[[Category:Lake Huron]]
[[Category:Lake St. Clair]]
[[Category:Rivers of Chatham-Kent]]
[[Category:Rivers of Lambton County]]
[[Category:Rivers of Macomb County, Michigan]]
[[Category:Rivers of St. Clair County, Michigan]]
[[Category:Michigan State Historic Sites in St. Clair County]]