wetland restoration – Aquarius-Systems

Aquatic Vegetation Shredder Restores Minnesota Wetlands

Mon, 11 Sep 2023 17:35:52 +0000

Restoration Of Wetlands Can Be The Best Purification Strategy For Nitrate-Laden Water

Fri, 04 Feb 2022 21:31:40 +0000

A new study maps the potential of wetlands – an ecosystem flooded with water and supporting a vegetation of aquatic plants – to improve water quality. Through the study, the researchers claim that regrowing wetlands can act as a key strategy for improving water that is laden with contaminants like nitrate.

Nitrates reach groundwater, rivers, and coastal areas through runoff from fertilizer and manure application in agricultural regions. High nitrate levels can ultimately threaten the supply of drinking water and also lead to “problems with algal blooms and degradation of aquatic ecosystems.

The scientists now imagine wetlands as a solution. This is because when nitrate-laden water enters the boundaries of wetlands, a chemical reaction takes place that has a purifying effect on the water. The reaction releases harmless nitrogen gas into the atmosphere and thus results in cleaner water to flow downstream.

Cleaning up Muskegon Lake

Tue, 25 Aug 2020 15:56:56 +0000

In 1985, Muskegon Lake in Michigan was declared a Great Lakes Area of Concern by the EPA. The West Michigan Shoreline Regional Development Commission will utilize $3.1 million to clean up the lake and undo years of environment abuse.

The abuse began in the 1800’s during the lumber era when sawmill debris was tossed into the lake waters and continued in the 1900’s as foundries and factories further contaminated the waters by dumping countless tons of wood, foundry slag and wastewater into the lake.

Muskegon Lake has been contaminated with heavy metals, petrochemicals, pesticides, and polychlorinated biphenyls from municipal and industrial discharges. The lake was an open sewer for industry up until 1973 when a massive wastewater management system began treating industrial sewage.

Over the past several decades, cleanup efforts have transformed Muskegon Lake into a one of Michigan’s best inland fishing and recreational lakes. A new project will help toward removing the lake from an area of concern by removing large debris such as tires, metal and chunks of concrete from the lake bottom. The project also includes restoring 10.3 acres of wetlands and 325 feet of shoreline.

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Invasive Carp Are Destroying Malheur Lake’s Bird Habitat

Fri, 05 Jun 2015 14:14:39 +0000

Introduced to Malheur Lake as early as the 1920s, likely as a food source for people living in the arid region, the invasive carp have now taken over the lake.

Historically, Malheur Lake was utilized by up to 35% of the Pacific Flyway’s canvasback population, was the second most important redhead production site in the West, and at its peak produced, over 100,000 ducklings annually. Currently the refuge has only 5-10 percent of the productive bird habitat it provided before carp were introduced.

The estimated carp population in the refuge has grown into the millions. The carp sift through the mud searching for insects and aquatic plants to eat; uprooting plants and creating silt plumes in the process. Malheur Lake is void of the plants that provide food, shelter, and nesting grounds for waterfowl and other migratory birds.

Chemical treatments, barriers and traps, and water management have been used in an attempt to eradicate the carp. Unfortunately they only resulted in very short term habitat improvements, and the carp continue to return.

Malheur National Wildlife Refuge has entered into an agreement with Silver Sage Fisheries and Nutrient Company to catch and process invasive carp. The company would eventually like to use the carp as a food product or fish oil, but it currently has its sights set on turning them into fertilizer.

During a trial using fishing nets, fishermen caught more than 40,000 pounds of carp. The test project is expected to cost $500,000 the first year. The carp removed from the Lake will be processed into organic fertilizer for application on nearby organic croplands.

Managing Phragmites in Wetlands and Lakes with Mechanical Removal

Mon, 02 Jul 2012 17:49:00 +0000

A fairly dry winter with very little snowfall plus near drought like conditions this summer has lead to even more aquatic plants. Another invasive species is quickly filling in exposed lake beds which are occurring due to historic low water levels. Phragmites, the Common Reed, is a large perennial grass that can grow up to 20 feet tall, not only blocking shoreline views, but it reduces habitats for a variety of animals and competes with native plants for limited resources including habitat, food, and light.

Phragmites is found on every continent except Antarctica. This colonial plant is capable of forming large stands or colonies arising from one or a few seeds or plant pieces. These colonies form along the margins of streams and in marshes and ditches. They form in brackish water and in mucky moist soil of exposed lakebed and coastal wetlands. It will grow in damp ground, in standing water up to three feet deep, and even as a floating mat.

The extensive reed beds can spread at sixteen feet or more per year by horizontal runners, which put down strong, deep roots at regular intervals. The stems grow from six feet to twenty feet tall, with thick feathery plumes of seeds. The tallest Phragmites plants are common in areas with hot summers and fertile growing conditions. Eradication of Phragmites is not likely once it successfully invades an area, but with proper control methods and annual maintenance, native plant populations can be reestablished, wildlife and wetland habitat improved, and recreational opportunities restored.

Phragmites is a very aggressive plant and outcompetes nearby vegetation for limited resources including habitat, food, and light. It grows so tall and the thick feathery plumes shade out native vegetation and makes coastal shorelines and wetlands unfit for wildlife. One study has determined that the plants growth have reduced suitable nesting habitat for several species of turtles by affecting nest temperature.

Control of Phragmites is more easily achieved in areas where growing seasons are short and plant growth is less vigorous. Control methods include spraying herbicides, mowing, discing, bulldozing, crushing, shading, dredging, flooding, draining, burning, and grazing; although a combination of treatments is most effective. After successful treatment, native plants will once again become established in these areas.

The Aquarius Systems Swamp Devil can easily chop through the thick Phragmites. This heavy duty shredder effortlessly plows through the stubborn growth while carving through the subsoil creating an open water channel up to three feet deep and eight feet wide. An aquatic weed harvester can then follow behind collecting the chopped vegetation for disposal. The Swamp Devil easily maneuvers in shallow environments such as wetlands and marshy aquatic areas.