William Mitsch, the director of the Olentangy River Wetlands Research Park, presents six years of research at the annual American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) meeting in Washington, D.C. The wetlands project came into existence in 1993. Mitsch, his colleagues and his students joined efforts to fill one of the kidney-shaped wetland with about a dozen plant species. The other was left unplanted. Mitsch says he’ll have to wait at least 14 more years before determining if man-made wetlands stack up to the real thing.

Now in its seventh year, the wetlands project, 352 Dodridge St., features two experimental wetlands, a seven-acre “billabong,” 13 acres of forest and a two-story pavilion where visitors can look across the landscape for plants and animals. The city also recently completed a bike path that wends around the park.

Plans are also moving along for the construction of a building dedicated specifically to wetland research and education. The Ohio Board of Regents awarded Mitsch a $1 million grant for the endeavor. Efforts are underway to raise the $1.8 million more needed to complete the project.

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Olentangy River Wetlands Research Park

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