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Project Feature: Maumee Bay Wetland Restoration

4Maumee Bay State Park is a 1,336-acre public recreation area on the shores of Lake Erie. In 2022, construction got underway and completed on a wildlife habitat management action project focused on enhancing the park’s wetlands.

This project enhances about 130 acres of critical wildlife habitat around the shores of Lake Erie, an area that has been dramatically altered by industry and agriculture. In particular, the Maumee Bay State Park wetland has been degraded by the invasive reed, phragmites. This project enables water level control for invasive species management, which will facilitate the return of native marsh vegetation and high-quality fish and wildlife habitat.

Project objectives included improving 4,362 linear feet of a rock dike wall originally constructed in 1982 and installing a fish-friendly water control structure to enable water level control and allow fish passage to and from the wetland.

Maumee Bay State Park’s wetland restoration project was led by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) – Division of Parks and Watercraft, in partnership with The Nature Conservancy. It was funded by a grant from Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) with additional funds from H2Ohio.

A more robust project feature will be up on maumeeaoc.org later this year.

The Maumee AOC Committee works toward fishable and swimmable waters in the Maumee Area of Concern and delisting the beneficial use impairments. The Committee is working towards all major restoration projects being completed by 2025, through collaboration of partners and volunteer opportunities by its facilitating organization, Partners for Clean Streams. The committee is made up of representatives from various organizations, citizens, businesses and non-government agencies to build long term solutions to the area’s water quality issues.