Wetlands project completed

MARGARETTA TWP. — As she dedicated a new wetlands restoration project in Erie County, the director of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources vowed to continue the wetlands program despite state budget cuts. Director Mary Mertz helped dedicate the renovated Moxley Wildlife Area in a Tuesday ceremony. Located 3 miles northwest of Sandusky between Ohio 2 and Sandusky Bay, Moxley Wildlife Area, owned by the state, consists of about 400 acres. The just-completed project reconnects 57 acres of wetlands in the Western Lake Erie Basin to Sandusky Bay. Projects to rebuild or create wetlands in Ohio, including along the Lake Erie shore, are a major part of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine's H2Ohio clean water program. State lawmakers chopped funding for the wetlands portion of the program in the new two-year state budget that went into effect on July 1. Cleaning up the lake Mertz said the state will do its best to keep the wetlands program going by relying heavily on federal and private funding and other state dollars. The wetlands program is a useful part of the effort to reduce harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie because wetlands serve as a natural filter to remove phosphorus from water that flows into the lake. State experts described the Moxley project as unique for two reasons. A new water control structure in the wetlands can hold water pushed into Moxley by waves and wind, filtering out the nutrients before the water flows back into the lake. In addition, when there is heavy rain, the water control structure can hold the water and filter it. Moxley is expected to remove nearly 300 pounds of phosphorus every year. The water control structure allows native fish to swim in and out of the wetland, but it keeps adult common carp out. The carp eat native plants and stir up sediment, so it is best to keep them out of the wetland. "H2Ohio is specifically designed to identify and complete high-quality wetland projects like this one," DeWine said. "Improving the water flowing through Sandusky Bay will ultimately improve water quality in Lake Erie, which is exactly what we set out to do when creating H2Ohio nearly six years ago." Dealing with cuts State lawmakers cut funding for H2O Ohio in the new state budget that took effect on July 1, slashing funding from the $270 million that DeWine requested to $165 million. Funding for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which runs the wetlands program, was especially hard hit. "It was more than a 50% cut," Mertz said. Mertz said the state will work harder than ever to access funds from other sources, including the federal government's Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, state water development funds, and private partners. "We are 100% committed to being successful with expanding wetlands in Ohio, so we will turn over every stone and do the very best we can," she said.