The new drain, at Staten and Bellevue avenues, will trap trash smaller than cigarette butts and prevent it from going into the lake. Water runoff will be filtered, removing up to 80 percent of oil and grease mixed into rainwater.

The $70,000 filter is being paid for by money raised from Measure DD, the Clean Water/Safe Parks Bond Measure passed by 80 percent of Oakland voters in November 2002.

Members of the Lake Merritt Institute, a nonprofit organization charged with restoring and enhancing the lake, recommended the filter be placed at this site. A similar storm drain filter was installed near Grand Avenue in 2001, and another will be installed near the Rotary Nature Center.

The Oakland Tribune: Cityside
Leanne McLaughlin, Managing Editor
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