IMAGE OF THE DAY: Viera Wetlands Nature Festival Set April 21-22, Free Community Event

Located between the Moccasin Island Tract of the River Lakes Conservation Area and the Brevard Zoo, the Viera Wetlands are a popular site for birders, photographers and eco-tourists.

Both the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands at Viera and nearby Supplemental Ponds are accessible by automobile, making the sites popular among those who find the rigors of hiking trails and summer temperatures daunting.

Even better, viewing from the comfort and safety of an automobile screens visitors from the view of birds and wildlife, enhancing the experience.

The Board of County Commissioners designated the South Central Regional Water Reclamation Facility’s constructed treatment wetlands as the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands at Viera in 2007, in memory of Ritch Grissom, a longtime employee of Brevard County who worked at the adjacent treatment facility.

In 2008, the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands were included in the East Section of the Great Florida Birding Trail. In 2014, the access road leading to the entrance of the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands was named in honor of the late Charlie Corbeil, a long-time volunteer at the site.

Approximately 210,000 visitors per year pass through the main entrance to the constructed treatment wetland system, many drawn by the site’s breathtaking views and stunning abundance of wildlife.

The treatment wetlands are an integral component of Brevard County’s water reuse system. Providing increased water quality and savings over traditional water treatment methods, the constructed wetland system polishes reclaimed water for irrigation or overflow into the adjacent Four-mile Canal.

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The treatment wetlands consist of 200 acres divided into four cells of approximately 35 acres each, plus a central lake. The cells were designed to maintain differing depths of water, reflecting diverse wetland conditions.

A special mitigation littoral zone along the lake’s shoreline is carefully monitored to assess wetland health and wildlife utilization.

While functioning as a healthy, productive, and effective polishing system for water reuse, the wetlands further provide for a biologically diverse ecosystem — affording visitors a wonderful, close-up opportunity to view Brevard County’s native wildlife and vegetation.

The Viera Wetlands Nature Festival is a free community event.

CLICK HERE for more information call 321-637-5521.

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