Floating Wetlands Cuts Pollution

Forrest Walker of Hayden Lake Watershed Improvement District holds onto a floating wetland as it is towed to a bay in the northeast corner of Hayden Lake on Friday. Kootenai Environmental Alliance is launching eight floating wetlands in bays around Hayden Lake this year. (SR photo: Kathy Plonka)

Blue-green algae blooms can turn the bay near Tim and Betty Howell’s house from picturesque to yucky. When the water quality deteriorates, the blooms appear in the shallow bay at the north end of Hayden Lake, coating the water with scum. “It literally looks like somebody poured paint into the bay,” Tim Howell said. This summer, the Howells hope to see the bay remain algae-free. They’re one of eight Hayden Lake property owners who volunteered to have a man-made, floating wetland installed near their dock. The wetlands, made out of plastic membranes, are planted with flowers, sedges and rushes that grow hydroponically, sucking phosphorus and other nutrients out of the lake/ Becky Kramer , SR. More here.