In honor of Earth Day, Chattahoochee Riverkeeper partnered with the City of Chamblee and Cox Enterprises to install a “floating wetland trash trap” designed to capture litter, host native wetland plants, and improve water quality in the stream at Huntley Hills Park.
Since 2019, Chattahoochee Riverkeeper has used devices called “trash traps” to remove floating litter from tributaries of the Chattahoochee River. The devices are designed to capture the trash that flows from roadways into nearby creeks every time it rains so that they can be removed before floating downstream and breaking into harmful microplastics.
In addition to catching trash, the floating wetland will remove nutrients from stormwater runoff and provide habitat for native animals. Manufactured by Australian company Atlan Stormwater, the device consists of interconnected pods that float on top of the creek. They are anchored in place on both sides of the stream bank to rise and fall with the changing water level, allowing aquatic life to pass under but preventing floating garbage from drifting downstream.
Each pod is planted with a variety of locally sourced native plants whose root systems provide habitat and act as natural filters to remove pollutants that wash into the creek every time it rains.
The system will improve water quality in this unnamed tributary to Nancy Creek before it flows into the Chattahoochee River, the source of drinking water for millions of people.
CRK staff will maintain the floating wetland and remove the trapped litter on a weekly basis. The device itself is made of durable, UV-resistant black HDPE; as the plants grow, they will shade the plastic, further protecting it from UV rays and increasing its lifespan.
The Huntley Hills Park installation is CRK’s 18th trash trap and second floating wetland trash trap in the Chattahoochee River basin, following an installation in Columbus at Cooper Creek Park. In 2025, CRK trash traps removed 4,925 pounds of trash from our waterways.
This latest project seeks to remove trash from our waterways, beautify our community spaces, create educational opportunities, and engage locals in efforts to protect our natural resources. Learn more about our in-stream trash removal program here and opportunities to volunteer here.
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