Finding a balance between wetlands and water treatment Mar 7, 2021

Finding a balance between wetlands and water treatment

Take a stroll through the Wakodahatchee Wetlands and you"ll likely spot great blue herons, like the fluffed-up pair we"re featuring today. Located in Delray Beach, Florida, and created on 50 acres of wastewater utility property, the park first opened to the public back in 1996. A three-quarter-mile boardwalk takes visitors over ponds and through marshes, offering the chance to see more than 150 bird species, plus turtles, fish, frogs, alligators, and other Floridian fauna. Every day, the Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department pumps about 2 million gallons of highly treated wastewater into the wetlands. Then algae and other plants naturally finish the purification process before the water seeps back into the water table. Quite an upgrade from a yucky wastewater pond.

© Marie Hickman/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Mar 7, 2018Chapel of St. Michel on Lake Serre-Ponçon, Hautes-Alpes, France
Mar 7, 2019March of the flowers
Mar 7, 2020Summer winds down in the Southern Hemisphere
Mar 7, 2020Summer winds down in the Southern Hemisphere
Mar 7, 2022Lake Tekapo, New Zealand
Mar 7, 2023Terraced rice fields, Yuanyang County, China
Mar 7, 2024Roques de Benet, Els Ports Natural Park, Catalonia, Spain
Mar 7, 2025Plum blossoms in China
Mar 7, 2026The Brocken, Harz National Park, Germany

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Mar 9, 2022Flower of Life symbol drawn in snow
Oct 16, 2021Unearthing a queen s lost tale
Nov 7, 2024Vancouver Coastal Sea wolves, Great Bear Rainforest, Canada
Nov 21, 2018A showcase for future fame
Dec 27, 2024Lake Bled, Slovenia
Jul 25, 2025Colorful houses of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
Jul 1, 2020Canada s $20 view
May 22, 2018Happy birthday to Crater Lake National Park
Jul 30, 2025International Day of Friendship
May 10, 2022Gifford Pinchot National Forest
May 28, 2025World Otter Day
Sep 27, 2023Via Krupp, Capri, Italy
Jan 26, 2023Heavens Gate Cave, Tianmen Mountain National Park, China
Jun 17, 2025Maritime forest in Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia
Apr 24, 2022Dark Sky Week
Jun 11, 2020A midsummer twilight s dream
May 26, 2024Methow Valley, North Cascades, Washington
Sep 13, 2025Point Reyes National Seashore in California
Nov 15, 2019Mesmerizing murmuration
Jul 29, 2025International Tiger Day
Dec 19, 2021Aurora borealis
Nov 24, 2020Feel the spray in Monterey
Dec 7, 2022National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
Jul 17, 2019Nomads of the Gobi
Oct 4, 2021Hey neighbor, it s World Space Week!
Aug 16, 2024International Roller Coaster Day
Oct 24, 2025Night view of the RMS Queen Mary, Long Beach, California
Jul 19, 2019A place fit for the gods
May 29, 2018The first ascent
Feb 22, 2018Roman theater of Cartagena, Spain