Face-lift will make Liberty Park pond better for birds, humans

Liberty Park's popular pond is undergoing an environmental face-lift, courtesy of mitigation funds from an oil spill that scarred the Salt Lake City water feature four years ago.

Crews are constructing a wetland this summer around the lake's edge, according to a city news release, that will be better not only for birds but also for bird-watchers. They will grade banks, plant native wetland species and install floating islands.

Money for the project is flowing from a settlement agreement in the wake of the Red Butte Creek oil spill in 2010, when Liberty Lake became a catch basin for the crude.

In the end, the city says, the pond will boast improved wildlife habitat, enhanced bird-watching, cleaner water, more educational opportunities and softer, safer banks.