How does the author describe the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal in Chapter One of the nonfiction book, Under a White Sky?

In Chapter One, Kolbert takes a ride on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The canal is the result of a river diversion project, in which, the Chicago River was initially diverted in order to redirect the city's sewage away from the urban center. The canal's waters are now filled with trash and litter. The canal is also used as a thruway for barges that haul "sand, gravel, and petrochemicals" (4).