Time to Embrace The Sludge?

[Bill Call]

In the past sludge from the dredging of the Cuyahoga River was used to construct artificial islands that are now wildlife habitats. Because the sludge included toxic chemicals the sludge had to be contained but the containment was successful and the areas are now wildlife refuges.

The Army Corps of Engineers thinks that most of the sludge from dredging is clean enough to dump directly into Lake Erie.

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ss ... ays_c.html

I agree with Mayor Summers that it's probably a bad idea to dump the sludge directly into the Lake without a containment wall:

http://www.cleveland.com/lakewood/index ... ers_9.html

But it has to go somewhere. Why not use the sludge to construct an inner coastal water way from Rocky River West to Edgewater? The inner coastal would protect the land from erosion, offer an opportunity to extend the beaches of Edgewater to the Rocky River and provide protected space for a waterfront bike path/walkway. Or even an artificial harbor off Lakewood Park.