Bedrock Removed to Create a Passing Lane for Fish on the Milwaukee River

05/05/26 09:43:am

(Milwaukee, WI) - Lake sturgeon, northern pike, walleye, suckers, and bass can now swim farther upstream on the Milwaukee River than they have in more than a century.

Estabrook Falls once blocked many native fish from moving upstream on the river.

“Through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, EPA is proud to work with local and state partners to remove barriers and reconnect vital habitat on the Milwaukee River,” said U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 Administrator Anne Vogel. “The Estabrook Falls project shows how collaboration can revive native fish populations and strengthen the ecological health of the region.”

“Together with several other fish passage projects, the Estabrook Falls project allows fish to travel from Lake Michigan to over 30 miles of the Milwaukee River. It also provides access to upstream tributaries and 2,400 acres of wetlands that provide spawning, nursery, and feeding habitat,” said the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WIDNR) Secretary Karen Hyun.

“Estabrook Falls is not a natural waterfall, but rather a relic left from early industrialists that mined bedrock from the riverbed to make cement in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The man-made waterfall prevented many native fish from moving upstream,” said Kevin Shafer, Executive Director of the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.

In 2025, crews removed bedrock in some locations to allow native fish to pass. This new pathway allows fish to safely move upstream past the falls, something that hadn’t been consistently possible for over 100 years.

Removing barriers is critical to restoring self-sustaining native fish populations and improving access to high-quality tributary habitat upstream.

Lake sturgeon disappeared from the Milwaukee River in the 1850s due to overfishing and habitat loss. They were reintroduced beginning in 2003. Recent monitoring shows a measurable increase in lake sturgeon returning to the river and attempting to move upstream.

It is illegal to fish for sturgeon in the Milwaukee River because they are a protected species that grow slowly and need time to recover, helping keep the river’s ecosystem healthy for the future.

Part of a Much Bigger Effort

The Milwaukee Estuary was designated an Area of Concern (AOC) in the 1980s due to historic pollution and habitat loss. Estabrook is one of many habitat restoration projects in the AOC. It builds on five dam removals (North Avenue, Estabrook, Lime Kiln, Chair Factory, Seminary Dam), fish bypass construction at Kletzsch and Mequon-Thiensville Dams, and culvert removals.

The Waterway Restoration Partnership is a group of long-standing, trusted partners in the community who have been working together for years to improve water quality in the area.

With a once-in-a-generation opportunity on the horizon, the organizations are formalizing their partnership and redoubling their commitment to work together to clean up the Milwaukee Estuary Area of Concern.

Thank You to our Fish Passage Project Partners: Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Funding for the project was provided by the USEPA through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, with support from Milwaukee Riverkeeper and Restoring Lands.

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