Say you're out in the middle of a lake when nature calls.

What do you do?

State officials hope the answer is not that you will pollute the water with your, um, business but that you'll take advantage of an increasingly popular feature in Oregon waterways: floating restrooms.

The Oregon State Marine Board recently awarded federal grant money to purchase and install a floating restroom in popular Timothy Lake in the

. It will be the

but the first in the Mt. Hood area. Currently, only two floating restrooms are in the greater Portland area: on the Columbia River at Government Island and Sand Island at Rooster Rock State Park.

"It's extremely convenient to have them out in the waterway," said Ashley Massey, a spokeswoman for the marine board. "The occupants can do their business and then hop back out on the water."

Timothy Lake's floating restroom will likely be installed next spring, just in time for the summer boating season. It will likely be anchored near the center of the lake.

Floating restrooms are secured to the lakebed with "dead man anchors," large concrete-filled barrels with stakes sticking out to the ground. Depending on the depth of the water, either a chain or a bungee cord connects the anchors with the restroom.

The floating restrooms look like aluminum outhouses on floating decks. Most feature two unisex units. Bumpers on the sides allow boaters to easily tie up for a quick stop.

"Floating restrooms are really good because they're heavily used by boaters and it prevents that waste from entering the water body, which is better for fish and everybody who recreates on the water body," Massey said.

A 2008 random survey of registered boat owners indicated almost 8,000 boating trips to Timothy Lake, said Wayne Shuyler, the marine board's boating facilities section manager. That's not counting unregistered boat owners, such as those with small sailboats, canoes, kayaks and other vessels.

The floating restroom will cost $131,000. That will be paid for by $97,500 in federal

money, $1,000 in in-kind donations and a

contribution of a required match of $32,500.

PGE is contributing because its permit for the lake's dam requires the company to promote recreational opportunities, Shuyler said. The dam submerged hiking and camping opportunities along the Clackamas River when the lake was created in 1956 as a reservoir for hydroelectric power generation.

PGE will also maintain the floating restroom, Shuyler said. That will mean regular cleanings as well as occasionally hauling the restroom to land in order to empty its 1,200-gallon holding tank.

There are no spill issues with existing floating restrooms, Shuyler said. The restrooms are stable and fireproof and are designed to withstand 5-foot-high waves. The aluminum hull is a double hull.

"Even if the outer hull was punctured somehow, the floating restroom still wouldn't sink because there's an inner hull as well," Shuyler said. "There's never been any leakage. It's never tipped over."

That's good news for downstream residents along the Clackamas River. The river is the drinking water supplier for 200,000 residents, including ones in Estacada, Happy Valley, Damascus, Oregon City, West Linn, Lake Oswego and other areas.

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