A team of divers tasked with scouring the Grand River riverbed in search of mussels cost the city $1.26 million, a figure that is only expected to grow as more mussels are unearthed during river reconstruction.
The project was part of the city’s Grand Rapids WhiteWater initiative, an extension of the sustainability program Green Grand Rapids. WhiteWater organizers hope to restore the river’s powerful rapids, which were calmed by dams in the late 1800s.
“Grand Rapids is a city with a legend written into its name,” the WhiteWater project site reads. “But the rapids in the Grand River haven’t been seen for generations.”
“Although Grand Rapids is thriving and a tourist destination, its namesake feature is absent — the rapids are a lost legend,” it continues. “We can change that.”
In preparation for the return of the Grand River rapids, project organizers laid out a plan to relocate some 9,000 mussels living in the river due to the potential for negative impact caused by the dam removal.
The mussel relocation project is reportedly required by federal and state regulation protecting threatened freshwater mussel species in order to acquire river construction permits.
Mussels consume algae, bacteria, and other particles in water. An adult mussel can filter up to 15 gallons of water per day, making them an important part of the river ecosystem.
For this reason, project leaders charged a team of 20 divers with combing 45,000 square meters of riverbed to extract the mussels living there, according to the project’s frequently asked questions page.
The divers worked in 8-hour shifts for two weeks throughout September 2024 and managed to locate 9,040 mussels, including 6,933 common mussel species, 2,069 state listed species, and 38 federally endangered species. The total cost for the contract was $1.26 million, or $139.38 per mussel.
That money was paid out of the city’s Capital Improvement Fund, suggesting that it may have been sourced from Grand Rapids taxpayer money.
The next stage of the project, some of which is expected to be grant-funded, is projected to cost $14.56 million, according to a city press release from last month.
The divers, however, were not able to extract all of the mussels living in the riverbed, meaning the project may require further funding to meet the mandates.
“It is not feasible to remove every single mussel within the project area due to high velocities and dangerous hydraulics created by the existing dams,” project organizers wrote. “Therefore, a mussel mitigation fund will be established to mitigate the loss of state and federally listed species. The purpose of the fund will be to support monitoring and conservation measures that significantly benefit state and federally listed mussels species after completion of the Lower Reach Project.”
After restoring the rapids, however, the river is expected to become an even more favorable environment for mussels, project organizers added. Restoring the rapids is expected to improve “passage and habitat diversity for fish and mussel species.”
The WhiteWater project has raised over $49.8 million in funding federal, state and local backers.
Leading the WhiteWater project was Steve Heacock, who formerly served as Kent County Commissioner and chief administrative officer for the Van Andel Institute.