The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted this week to approve a contract to maintain 13 filter marshes throughout the county that were created as part of the board’s ongoing commitment to water quality.
The Halfway Creek filter marsh is located at the power line between Fountain Lakes and Marsh Landing.
The contractor, North Fort Myers-based Woods & Wetlands Inc., will provide continued maintenance of previously constructed water-quality improvement projects. Maintenance includes the removal of exotic vegetation, overgrowth and sediment. Continual maintenance is a permit requirement and ensures the water quality improvements function as intended.
Filter marshes use plants and settling ponds to clean stormwater of pollutants and provide habitat for wildlife while beautifying the landscape. Filter marshes do not require the use of chemicals and need little, if any, energy to operate. They purify stormwater before it enters local waterways.
Other filter marshes included in the maintenance contract include Six Mile, 10 Mile Canal-D, Briarcliff, Fichter’s Creek, Gator Slough, Lakes Park Filter Marsh, Nalle Grade, Palmona Park, Popash Creek, Powell Creek, Prairie Pines and Yellow Fever Creek.
For more information about filter marshes and Lee County’s water quality initiative, visit www.leegov.com/water.