Wasteland Transformed: From Mines to Wetlands

The Cardinal Valley Restoration Area, a nearly 1,000-acre expanse of grasslands, wetlands, and lakes, now stands where a contaminated gravel wasteland once existed. This significant transformation, achieved over more than a decade, is being celebrated in a documentary titled "Cardinal Valley: A Restoration Story."

The documentary premieres on June 4th at the Route 66 Movie Theater in Webb City. Before the screening, a guided walk of the area will be led by Webb City's habitat restoration manager. The rehabilitation effort began over twelve years ago when the city sought a productive use for waste materials.

After the EPA cleaned up the mining residue, the land remained less than ideal for development due to flood plains and buried mine waste. The city then ingeniously used compost created from wastewater treatment plant sludge and ground tree limbs to create a prairie wetland. This initiative has resulted in new trails, including a segment of a planned connector trail, and fishing lakes.

The city plans to enhance the area with more trail markers and collaborate with the Missouri Department of Conservation to stock the lakes. The documentary's premiere marks the beginning of its distribution phase, highlighting a remarkable success in environmental restoration.