August 2010 - Parks & Recreation - 45

Hot Bright
and Electric * 47

Out of the Rough
in Ann Arbor * 16

Moss in the Pool Isn't
Such a Bad Thing
Saint Paul Parks and Recreation Embraces
Unique Pool Filtration System
By Mike Hahm

S

imilar to other parks and recreation professionals across the country, many concepts and ideas for
improving the way we do business come across my
desk every day. In 2009, a proposal crossed my desk
that couldn't be passed up. With cost savings, a reduction to our environmental impact, and an innovative transformation to the way we manage our municipal swimming pool's
filtration system, it was a no-brainer for us to embark on implementing an industry-transforming moss filtration technology.
Creative Water Solutions, a Minnesota based company led
by Dr. David Knighton, approached our parks and recreation
department with a program that could change the way our
municipal pools manage chemical usage and water filtration.
Their pitch was unique but straight-forward-install a system
comprised of sphagnum moss species to filter and naturally
clean our municipal pool water, thus reducing the need for expensive and non-environmentally friendly chemicals.
The filtration system has been in use at residential pools
and spas across the country for several years, but was never tested by the high bather-load and user turn-over that our

municipal pools deal with on a daily basis. Internally, we discussed the possible drawbacks of piloting the technology,
including the fact that the moss filtration process doesn't completely eliminate chemical usage. However, if the filtration process failed, we would still be able to keep the pools open by
returning our chemical levels to previously normal ranges.
We saw no other major drawbacks.
We demonstrated the technology to our department and
City of Saint Paul elected officials, including Mayor Chris Coleman, to garner their approval and support. We then piloted
the technology at our outdoor Highland Park Aquatic facility
that boasts several different amenities and a bather-load above
800. Following the installation of the system, results were immediate. PH-level testing indicated an immediate, positive improvement, even with the reduced chemical usage; and we
also saw significant improvements in water quality and clarity.
These results were surprising, because in the busy summer
season we typically saw extremely cloudy water and unhealthy
PH levels that fluctuated frequently, forcing us to release high
levels of chemicals that generally have irritating side effects.

	

www.NRPA .ORG

SEPTEMBER 2010

Parks & Recreation	 43



August 2010 - Parks & Recreation

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