Humans turned it into a toxic dump. Then humans turned it back into a spot of great beauty and biodiversity.

The sign at the entrance to Restoration Park tells its story. For 50 years, it was the site of a sand and gravel mining operation. When it was “mined out” in the early 1970s, many people used it illegally as a dumping ground for all manner of refuse: trash, tires, dead appliances, nasty furniture.

The City of West Monroe purchased the site in 1989 and the restoration began. It is now an urban wetland park and floodwater detention basin.

Ouachita Green, our local non-profit leader in educating and encouraging re-cycling, has its offices there. There’s a wonderful perimeter trail and a boardwalk across the area that often holds standing water.

We humans are a mixed bag, to be sure. We inflict great damage on our planet home. But we are also capable of and sometimes DO the right thing. In restoring our environment, we #restore our very souls.