Natural water purification
An alternative to septic tanks, leach fields and sewer system disposal, filtering or purifying marshes offer many advantages. They are affordable, need little maintenance, do not require any chemicals, provide habitats for local fauna, do not adversely affect the landscape and require little or no energy. What’s more, they are entirely natural systems, although the result of human intervention.
How filtering marshes work
Filtering marshes use the purifying properties of aquatic plants and the natural environment to produce clean water. Plant roots and the bacteria and microorganisms living on and around them break down harmful substances such as animal waste, pesticides and other chemicals and make them non-toxic before they enter bodies of water such as ponds, streams, rivers and lakes.
Did you know that...
The Jardin botanique’s scientists were the first to introduce filtering marshes in Québec in the 1990s. This phytotechnology is still in use at the Jean Doré beach and the Biosphère, filtering wastewater from the museum’s toilets and sinks.
The Aquatic Garden and its filtering marshes
The Aquatic Garden, designed over 80 years ago by Henry Teuscher, now features a new phytotechnology: filtering marshes. A collection of aquatic plants found in two filtering marshes purify the organic matter and fertilizers from the garden’s main water basin. This is a natural, high-performance alternative to traditional methods.
The Filtering Marshes station at the Jardin botanique has been made possible thanks to generous gifts from RBC and the Quebec Mining Association.