INDIANAPOLIS | Gov. Mitch Daniels will join state and federal environmental officials today in Hammond to announce a new effort to restore the pollution-plagued Grand Calumet River.

Representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Indiana Department of Natural Resources are expected to accompany the governor. The event is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Columbia Park in Hammond.

"State, local and federal agencies have collaborated and dedicated countless hours to help improve the Grand Calumet River and improve the quality of life for residents and visitors alike," IDEM Commissioner Thomas Easterly said Monday in a statement,

IDEM and EPA officials would not provide further details Monday about the announcement. State and federal agencies have been partnering to restore the environmentally impaired waterway in an attempt to restore the health of its aquatic ecosystem and boost recreational opportunities.

In August 2004, nine companies, including BP and U.S. Steel, agreed to a $56 million settlement designed to remediate more than a century of industrial pollution. At the time, state officials touted the agreement as one of the largest natural-resource damage settlements in the nation.

The Grand Calumet River originates on the east side of Gary and flows 13 miles through heavily industrialized areas of East Chicago and Hammond before draining into Lake Michigan.