by John Sollows<\/p>\n
People in Forest Glen, Carleton, and Raynardton remember it well:\u00a0 In the summer of 2007, all the lakes on the main Carleton River, from Ogden down to the upper end of Vaughan turned green.\u00a0 The following year, the problem returned with a vengeance.\u00a0 Some of those folks contacted TREPA, and thus began our biggest single job over the past decade.<\/p>\n
Thanks to the efforts of many concerned citizens, the province began a series of water quality investigations in 2008.\u00a0 With the support of many actors, these investigations have continued in one form or another, ever since.<\/p>\n
So, what\u2019s going on out there?<\/p>\n
Like all plant life, those troublesome little green things fundamentally need two things to develop:\u00a0 sufficient nutrients and sufficient light.\u00a0 In our infertile part of the world, nutrient levels are usually too low for their populations to explode.\u00a0\u00a0 Also, the darker the water in a lake, the less the light penetration, so clear water lakes are more vulnerable.<\/p>\n
Click the following link:<\/p>\n
Trends<\/a><\/p>\n This complicated figure explains a lot.\u00a0 The nutrient which limits growth in our fresh water systems is usually phosphorus.\u00a0 Rivers run downhill, dissolving stuff as they go.\u00a0\u00a0 Unless something strange is going on, then, concentrations of dissolved solids (including phosphorus) should go up from upstream to down.<\/p>\n The reverse has been happening along the Carleton, so something unusual has been going on in the upper Carleton catchment.\u00a0\u00a0 Nutrients come from any sources, but various results, including this figure, have pointed convincingly to the crucial role of uncontrolled effluent from mink farms in enriching the Carleton.\u00a0 To deal with such problems, the Fur Industry Regulations were drafted in 2011, and after some changes, went into effect in January, 2013.<\/p>\n On the ground, summer surface phosphorus levels peaked in Placides in 2011, and after 2014, dropped in the affected Yarmouth County lakes.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It is too soon to conclude why, and the drop is probably due to a combination of things.\u00a0 Are the regulations working?\u00a0 Maybe, but the hot, dry summers of 2015 and 2016 would also have had some effect.\u00a0 Other factors, such as industry downsizing, may apply, as well.<\/p>\n We can expect to see the blooms again this June, probably as bad as ever.\u00a0 Based on the last two years, however, there is a good chance that they will be of shorter duration than in the bad old days.\u00a0 In the long run, though, it is too soon to predict if and when they will vanish completely. \u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s still plenty of phosphorus to get washed out of the system.<\/p>\n This saga has told us that our lakes are vulnerable to pollution.\u00a0 Mink farms are not the only problem, and we are concerned that green water could show up elsewhere.\u00a0 Trends in lakes on the lower Annis and Kegeshook Lake, near Quinan have us concerned.<\/p>\n Lawns, gardens, livestock and farm operations, and faulty septic systems can all contribute to the problem.\u00a0 \u00a0Leave as wide as possible a shoreline zone as wild as possible.\u00a0\u00a0 Don\u2019t use fertilizer near water bodies and watercourses.\u00a0 Locate gardens well away from the water.\u00a0 Check provincial regulations and municipal by-laws before<\/strong> you develop your land.\u00a0 In Yarmouth Municipality, for instance, only minimum development is allowed within forty feet of the shoreline. \u00a0That sets a good example both for other municipalities, and for property-owners.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by John Sollows People in Forest Glen, Carleton, and Raynardton remember it well:\u00a0 In the summer of 2007, all the lakes on the main Carleton River, from Ogden down to the upper end of Vaughan turned green.\u00a0 The following year, … Continue reading