Coeur d'Alene unveils "Sid," a dragon sculpture that interprets wastewater biogas

The City of Coeur d'Alene Arts Commission on an evening in October unveiled Sid, the Green Energy Dragon, a public sculpture by artist Melissa Cole installed along the Centennial Trail adjacent to the city's advanced wastewater treatment facility.

The sculpture was created to incorporate and visually explain the facility's biogas process while serving as public art and a community amenity. "This project was, quite rewarding as well as challenging, and, I was excited about it because I was able to blend science and art together," Melissa Cole said, describing the design and community elements of the piece.

Sid occupies the space around a biogas flume and was conceived after a call for public art that asked for imaginative, three-dimensional work. Cole said she designed the dragon to follow the visible flame and infrastructure at the site: a see-through body that allows maintenance access, a head that arcs over a continuously burning flume, and a surface that transitions from brown to green to blue to represent waste conversion into methane. Cole credited fabricator Brad McDonald of Northwest Sculpture and project manager Mike Becker for construction and installation support and said members of the Boys and Girls Club of Coeur d'Alene contributed mosaic elements on the sculpture's accessible side.

Coeur d'Alene Superintendent Mike Anderson described the technical process Sid represents. "Anaerobic digestion'we take the organic matter and we break it down into solids, liquids, and gas," Anderson said, adding that at the plant the intent is to make the material safe and to reuse byproducts when possible. He said much of the facility's gas is used for heating in winter, while some is flared off at times. Anderson also noted that the plant's flare can reach as high as 15 feet and temperatures up to about 1,200 degrees, which drove material and engineering choices for the sculpture's head.

Artist Cole said the sculpture took about six months to construct, including winter fabrication and on-site assembly, and that the exterior mosaic is made from recycled glass such as windshields and water bottles to withstand local weather. A sign placed next to the work will explain the chemical reaction and the artwork's connection to methane production.

Poet laureate Jennifer Pessaro read a poem written for the occasion, describing the sculpture as a "water spirit" and writing that "Our dragon might breathe fire, but she protects water," language that organizers said connects the artwork to both the facility's function and the community's relationship with local waterways.

Organizers conducted a brief ribbon-cutting with Mayor Lydia McEvers and Melissa Cole, and thanked Sid's family, the Arts Commission, wastewater plant staff, fabricators, and community partners for their roles in the project. The artist and plant staff said public tours of the facility are available and that the artwork is intended as a durable, educational element on the Centennial Trail for residents and trail users.

Details such as specific project funding sources were not specified at the event.