Lower East Fork RestorationClermont SWCD is working with local partners to restore ~1 mile along the lower East Fork Little Miami River (EFLMR) in Milford, Ohio. This site is included on Ohio EPA’s list of impaired streams due to the severe stream bank erosion and sedimentation occurring along this river stretch. The failing stream banks have caused significant property loss and the high loads of sediment are degrading stream habitat and water quality. Over the years, the abundance and diversity of native fish, mussels and other species has declined.
In 2018, the Village of Williamsburg, Clermont Soil & Water and other project partners removed a low-head dam on the East Fork Little Miami River, restoring its natural system.
Williamsburg Off-Channel WetlandIn 2023, Clermont Soil & Water, in partnership with the Clermont County Office of Environmental Quality (OEQ), and the Village of Williamsburg, completed construction of an off-channel wetland along the East Fork Little Miami River (EFLMR) utilizing a 3-acre reservoir that was formerly connected to the Williamsburg low-head dam. The existing reservoir was converted into an attenuating wetland. The project team and Ohio State University have established five monitoring locations with flow meters and automated samplers to measure and quantify the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment removed by the wetland.
In 2019, the segment of the East Fork Little Miami River that flows through the heart of Batavia has been restored to a more natural state following the removal of a low-head dam which has impeded the river since the 1940s. Similar to other Depression-era dams built across the nation, the Batavia dam was constructed to provide a local water source. Batavia ceased utilizing the dam for such purposes years ago and the defunct structure remained imbedded in the river, degrading habitat and posing a significant threat to the public. Clermont County residents can now enjoy safer recreation along the river, and the East Fork will flow freely for 20 miles to its confluence with the Little Miami River near Milford.
In May 2024 and September 2025, Clermont Soil & Water partnered with the OKI Regional Council of Governments and Taking Root to distribute 575 free trees to landowners in the Bethel area.
As many know, Bethel and Tate Township have experienced significant tree loss due to the Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALB), and our goal with this project was to begin to help the community re-establish the tree canopy.
Check back in Spring 2026 for information about the next distribution!
In 2024, Clermont Soil & Water and the Clinton County Park District celebrated the completion of a stream and wetland restoration project at the East Fork Riparian Reserve. Approximately 850 feet of stream channel was realigned and restored with a natural meandering riffle-pool sequence and the stream banks were gently graded to reconnect the floodplain. Six pocket wetlands were constructed in the floodplain to absorb high flows and filter pollutants. This area was also restored by removing invasive species and constructing an ephemeral prairie wetland.
During the winter of 2017-18, the Clermont County Water Resources Department partnered with the Clermont Soil & Water to restore an unstable, 620-foot stretch of a tributary to O’Bannon Creek using natural channel design techniques. Restoration efforts included the creation of a new channel with the appropriate width and depth, construction of riffles, creation of a floodplain, bank stabilization structures, and native plants.
In 2014, Clermont Soil & Water and the Clermont County Park District restored Shor Parks natural wetland habitats. This was expanded on in 2022 through the completion of a stream restoration and wetland enhancement project. The project involved replacing the existing storm sewer with 120 feet of natural stream channel, followed by a boulder cascade and plunge pool. Three small pocket wetlands surround the new stream channel. In addition to creating new habitat, the stream and wetland complex help to dissipate high flows during heavy rains, and treat storm water runoff.
In 2011, the East Fork Watershed Collaborative was awarded a Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) from the US Department of Agriculture to develop and study a new conservation approach to protecting surface runoff in an agricultural setting. Using ideas from the collaborative, a retrofitted urban stormwater basin was installed in Jackson Township, Clermont County, to collect and treat runoff from agricultural fields by removing sediment, phosphorus, nitrogen and other pollutants.
This is an ongoing research project to determine the removal efficiency, cost effectiveness, and overall applicability of this project in the agricultural landscape. Results have showed that this system results in decreased nutrient loadings to our streams and lakes and decreased hazardous algae blooms that are plaguing our waters.
