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Indy's Destination Vision Logo
  • About
  • Purpose
  • Process
  • Principles
  • Plan
  • Partners
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Plan
Cultivate + Connect Our Places
8: Waterways
8C: Water Quality + Resiliency

8C: Water Quality + Resiliency

Foundational to all efforts to enhance regional waterways is improving water quality, and water quality is primarily determined by stormwater runoff throughout the watershed. With state climate scientists projecting increasing precipitation volatility, including more intense storm events, the health and beauty of our streams will be even more strongly tied to public policies that reduce, slow, and clean stormwater runoff. Support local, community, and watershed-level efforts to protect water quality, promote green infrastructure, and sustain water resources.

Value to the Community

Water quality is essential for safe water-based recreation like boating and swimming. Improvement of stream banks and introduction of green infrastructure can improve the aesthetics of communities while improving stream health and wildlife habitat and helping mitigate flooding and erosion.

Value to the Hospitality Industry

Without improved water quality, efforts to activate the White River and its tributaries into defining elements of the Indy experience will not realize their full potential. It would reduce the contributions of such efforts to define the Indy brand and mitigate Indy's deficit in outdoor experiences, which reduces destination appeal.

Updates

  • June 2022. White River Rock ramp Opens. The rock ramp, an innovative type of dam that is safer for people and allows aquatic species to migrate, opened. The rock ramp replaces the failed Emrichsville Dam and provides for Indy's emergency water intake pumps.
  • June 2023. White River Dig Indy Tunnel Opens. The entire White River deep rock tunnel opened, eliminating direct combined sewer overflows into the White River. Work is also complete on two tributaries--Eagle Creek and Pogues Run--and continues on two more: Fall Creek and Pleasant Run. When complete, the system will eliminate more than 95% of overflows into Indy's streams.
  • February 2022. White River Report Card process launches. As a follow-up to the White River Vision Plan, a watershed-scale report card is underdevelopment, measuring indicators of land, water, and community health.
  • January 2021. Central Indiana Water Study Completed. The Indiana Finance Authority has completed a water supply and demand study for central Indiana, projecting a significant increase in water demand and tightening of current water surpluses, both concentrated in growing Hamilton County.

Key Partners

Confirmed Partners

  • Partnerships Under Development

Recommended Partners

  • White River Alliance
  • City of Indianapolis
  • Marion County Soil and Water Conversation District
  • Hoosier Environmental Council
  • Indiana Department of Environmental Management

Priority + Progress

Monitoring
10%
Monitoring priorities are the middle 60% or so of actions that TTI is keeping its eye on and supporting as needed.

TTI Role

Encourage
Support
Primary
Encourage
The encourage role means TTI is offering encouragement to partners pursuing this action. This is the least-involved type of role and typically applicable when partners don't need much help.

Related Destination Vision Actions

8A: White River
8B: Regional Blueways
8E: Daylight Pogues Run

Related Community Projects

Cover Crop Insurance Program Incentive. This incentive program encourages farmers in the Upper White River watershed for planting cover crops that help prevent soil erosion and improve water quality.
DigIndy Tunnel System. A 28 mile network of underground tunnels will capture up to 97% of combined sewer overflows that pollute Indy's streams and rivers.
Partners for the White River. Funded by the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust, dozens of nonprofit partners are working to address the ecological health and human engagement of White River.
Central Indiana Water Study. The study examines future supply and demand for water resources in the Central Indiana region.

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Tourism Tomorrow Indy
200 South Capitol Avenue, Suite 300
Indianapolis, IN 46225-1063

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