GARY | Plans for the improved health of the Little Calumet River were pushed a little further ahead at Wednesday's meeting of the Little Calumet River Watershed Management Plan Steering Committee.

The group is working on ways to reduce the levels of E. coli bacteria, other pollutants and sediments in the river.

The committee had identified a number of locations along the river and its levees as being "critical areas."

At Wednesday's meeting, committee members decided to look into expanding the size of the locations determined to be "critical areas" for the purpose of creating detention ponds, constructed wetlands and other Best Management Practices, or BMPs, along the levees.

These BMPs would trap water carrying E. coli before it could enter the river.

The committee also agreed to set long-term goals for the reduction of total suspended solids, particulates found in water that cannot be filtered out, and the nutrients nitrogen and phosphorous in the river.

The committee agreed to a long-term goal of reducing the solids load in the water by 30 percent within the next 20 years. The phosphorous and nitrogen goal was also set at a reduction of 30 percent within the next 20 years.

Methods to accomplish these goals include the creation of Best Management Practices that will trap the pollutants and allow them to settle to the bottom of the pond or basin before going into the river, the planting of vegetation along the river and educating the public on how to reduce the amount of pollution for which they are responsible that is going into the river.

According to committee member and director of Gary's Department of Environmental Affairs, a public meeting will be held soon on the committee's goals and implementation strategies.