Furniture Maker Haworth Donating $12 Million Worth of Land for Wetlands
Haworth_butterfly_habitat.jpg
A butterfly habitat is part of the planned watershed restoration in west Michigan.

Photo By Joe Derek

HOLLAND, MI – Seventy acres of unused property in western Michigan will be transformed into wetlands, a butterfly habitat, a farm and a hands-on science classroom, officials said.
 
Holland-based office furniture maker Haworth Inc. is donating the land to the $12 million watershed restoration effort known as Project Clarity. A groundbreaking is set for next week and wetland vegetation will be planted by fall, The Holland Sentinel and The Grand Rapids Press reported.
 
Haworth bought the land in the 1980s with plans for a manufacturing expansion, but that didn't happen. It was estimated to be worth about $500,000 before Haworth donated it to Outdoor Discovery Center-Macatawa Greenway's Project Clarity.
 
"I'm a big fan of getting the whole system into the room to analyze problems," said Dick Haworth, chairman emeritus, told the Associated Press.
Wetlands will capture water from agricultural and industrial properties as well as overflow from the nearby north branch of the 1,700-acre Macatawa River when floodwaters rise. The wetlands will have the capacity to hold the equivalent of more than 86 acres covered by a foot of water.
 
The transaction also included a "very significant donation" of an undisclosed amount to Project Clarity for construction at the site and for other projects, said Haworth global sustainability manager Steve Kooy.
 
The 175-square-mile Macatawa Watershed includes 512 miles of tributaries that drain into Lake Macatawa. Project Clarity seeks to fix the popular lake's water quality issues by restoring wetlands to prevent runoff that contributes to sediment as well as nutrient and bacterial pollution.

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Mark Vruno