Mushrooms used to clean up urban streams

A local group is attempting to clean the waters in Corvallis' Sequoia Creek — and potentially the Willamette River beyond it — using an unusual tool: mushrooms.

The process used by volunteers with the Ocean Blue Project, an ecological restoration nonprofit, is to place mushroom spawn and a mixture of coffee grounds and straw in burlap bags that mushrooms can grow in, and then place the bags so that water entering storm drains will filter through them. The technique is attempting to take advantage of the natural ability of mycelium — the underground part of fungi — to break down toxins like oil and pesticides and metabolize harmful bacteria like E. coli.

Ocean Blue Project volunteers placed their first test bag, containing yellow oyster mushroom spawn, in a drainage chute near the Ninth Street Coffee Culture on Sunday.

Richard Arterbury, president of the Ocean Blue Project, said he thinks the project has huge potential.

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• Water Reuse & Recycling
• Quality