FOSTORIA, Ohio —
The city of Fostoria and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources in February began converting reservoir four into a recreational wetlands area to help alleviate flooding.
"We are under a consent order with the (Environmental Protection Agency) to separate our stormwater and our sanitary water, and this is part of that process," said Fostoria Mayor Don Mennel.
Heavy rains can lead to sanitary sewer lines flooding into bodies of water, so this will allow for more drainage to try and reduce the chances of this happening.
The reservoir was permanently disconnected from the water supply system. Mennel said the reservoir had not been providing water to the city. The water drainage process began, which will now allow surveyors to get on the property to survey it.
"The design of the wetlands will be completed following that," Mennel said. "Ultimately, we'll end up with several ponds in the wetlands area and convert it to a recreational area."
As plans moved forward, the city asked ODNR about the fish living in the water.
"The department has stated it would be in the best interest of the city to leave the fish for several reasons, including the possibility of disease transfer to other bodies of water," Mennel said. "We've had a lot of fishing at the reservoir, and most of the fish left are the junk fish people don't want to eat anyways."
Mike Wilkerson, ODNR fish management supervisor, said the fish will not go to waste.
"(The fish will) be used for food for other scavengers and other predators that are out there, so most of those fish will get picked up and used by other animals in a pretty short amount of time," Wilkerson said.
Regulations prevent moving fish from one body of water or area to another, so people should avoid trying to save the fish themselves. Moving them could also disrupt other ecosystems by bringing different diseases, Wilkerson said.
The plan also includes turning reservoir one into a recreational reservoir. Reservoir one was also disconnected. The project is being funded by a grant from ODNR, according to the city.