For decades, the Willamette River running through Portland, Oregon, was a look-but-don’t-touch situation.
“When we moved here, there was no way you were going to be in the water,” said resident Matthew Mangus.
The river was contaminated by raw sewage and had been closed to swimming since 1924, but today things are very different. Willie Levenson, founder of the Human Access Project, helped transform the Willamette into a vibrant recreational space that officially became swimmable again in 2012.
“Step one: find a way to clean up the river. Step two: cultural change is about getting people to understand the value of this river,” Levenson said.
A $1.4 billion pipeline project to prevent sewage from flowing into the river has completed the first step. Then came the second stage: an annual parade of inner tubes called “The Great Float” brought thousands of people to the water, making the river festival central.
“I talk to people who say, ‘I feel differently about our city now.’ They feel more connected to the city,” Levenson said.
That’s exactly what Nick Wesley hopes to achieve in Chicago. His nonprofit, Urban Rivers, is leading the fight to transform the Chicago River. He thinks that within 10 years it will be much more common to see people swimming in the river.
“I think a lot of people see their waterways as untapped potential,” Wesley said.
Although the idea of an urban river renaissance gives hope to cities like Chicago and Portland, there is still much work to be done. Of the 3.5 million miles of rivers in the United States, 50% are too polluted for fishing, boating or swimming, according to American Rivers, a group focused on river protection and restoration.
Efforts to revitalize rivers began with the Clean Water Act of 1972 and now include river revival projects in Los Angeles, Boston, Atlanta and New York, among other cities, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
There is still much to be done, including a cultural shift in how people view urban rivers.
“The most powerful thing is a community of people who live on a river and love that river,” said Amy Souers Kober, a spokeswoman for American Rivers.
Chicago had hoped to hold its first Chicago River swim last month. When organizers encountered obstacles getting the proper permits quickly enough, they moved the project to Lake Michigan. But organizers and Levenson, who is from Portland, are determined to swim in the river next year.
“Once the Chicago River becomes part of the culture, Chicago will have a hidden level of joy that it will discover,” Levenson said.
That’s high praise from a man who once helped his own city discover theirs.
Jim Axelrod
