chemical treatment – Aquarius-Systems

Homeowner Illegally Uses Chemical Treatment to Kill Aquatic Plants

Fri, 18 Aug 2023 21:22:55 +0000

Haven Lake located in the State of Washington is facing the same problem many lakes nationwide are facing. Well of course aquatic vegetation, but it is the controversy surrounding the vegetation that is causing problems.

A fierce battle is ongoing over the use of chemicals to kill the aquatic plants. Some argue that chemicals are the most practical solution to reduce the unwelcome growth of weeds. Others say that the weeds are natural and that any removal should involve only physical and mechanical activity.

Someone took the issue into their own hands however and illegally treated the lake with an unknown chemical. Rod Thysell of the Washington Department of Ecology checked out the lake and found that chemicals had been used in a random manner at inappropriate concentrations.

Michigan Investigates Animal Deaths After Chemical Treatment to Control Aquatic Plants

Fri, 18 Aug 2023 18:09:16 +0000

State officials say they’re investigating the chemical treatment of an Allegan County lake after the reported deaths of a dog and wildlife.

The state-issued permit allowed the contractor to use copper sulfate, flumioxazin and diquat dibromide along the shore of seven properties to control aquatic plants and algae on Dumont Lake, located about five miles north of Allegan.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy says it was alerted to several cases of sick dogs in the area of Dumont Lake Campground, including a dog that died.

EGLE said it also received reports of two dead turtles, a dead raccoon and approximately 20 dead birds at the lake. An Allegan County Health Department employee told WOOD TV-8 the department had no reported human illnesses tied to Dumont Lake.

Read More https://www.woodtv.com/news/allegan-county/state-investigating-dumont-lake-treatment-after-animal-deaths/

Delta Hyacinth Grows Despite Millions Spent on Chemicals

Wed, 09 Feb 2022 20:33:37 +0000

Water hyacinth has been on the Delta for decades, but really exploded in 2011 and 2012 as officials were not able to obtain a permit to spray chemicals in a timely fashion. Efforts to control hyacinth in the Deltas focuses primarily on the use of chemical herbicide applications.

Officials aggressively spray chemicals; a prepared document says the state has spent $5 million to $6 million a year applying thousands of pounds of chemicals in the Delta. Despite the aggressive treatments, for the second year in a row there is a bumper crop.

The Port of Stockton spent nearly $25,000 on a private contractor last year to harvest the hyacinth in the Stockton Deep Water Channel. The concern is that the enormous mats of vegetation would prevent oceangoing ships from traveling at night; therefore the Port is hiring the same contractor again this year.

Read More https://www.recordnet.com/story/news/2014/07/06/diverse-task-force-tackles-delta/36679868007/

Fish Found Dead after Chemical Treatment

Wed, 05 Jan 2022 22:15:31 +0000

A heat wave combined with a chemical treatment for weeds proved to be deadly to some fish in Bon Aire Lake, according to the executive director of Merrillville Stormwater Utility.

Matt Lake said about 100 fish died recently in an isolated incident in the 21-acre lake when the heat index rose to 110 degrees the day after the lake was treated for algae, duckweed and other noxious weeds.

“Some fish suffocated. It happens, primarily at the outlets of the lake,” Lake said.

Instead of Curbing Pollution State Lawmakers Consider Chemical Treatment

Tue, 04 Jan 2022 21:48:52 +0000

To clean up the pollution in Jordan Lake, North Carolina lawmakers have tried arguing. They’ve tried SolarBees. They’ve even tried ignoring the problem. All those tactics have failed. Now state officials are examining a potential chemical treatment for the lake — yet another experiment on a vital drinking water source for more than 350,000 people.

The lawmakers and lobbyists behind the chemical scheme are not publicly known. However, one of the state’s most powerful lobbyists, Harold Brubaker, who served 35 years in the House, including two terms as Speaker, represents SePro, a “life sciences” company that sells chemicals to kill aquatic plants in lakes and reservoirs.

SePro’s corporate headquarters are in Carmel, Ind., but it has a research and technology campus in Whitakers, N.C., and a distribution center in Rocky Mount. A review of this year’s registered lobbyists and their clients showed that SePro was the only company that specifically offered this service. Brubaker has represented them since 2016, according to state board of elections records.

Read More https://ncnewsline.com/briefs/instead-curbing-pollution-state-lawmakers-consider-funding-chemical-treatment-jordan-lake/#sthash.M7rsCxsF.dpbs

Lake Association Voices Opposition to Herbicide Use

Wed, 29 Dec 2021 22:13:49 +0000

The Chautauqua Lake Association (CLA) says it has filed objections to a permit applications that would allow for the application of two powerful herbicides to 1,200 acres of Chautauqua Lake this coming summer.

The CLA in New York is the organization that helps manage weeds on the lake by operating a number of harvesters to remove weeds throughout the summer season.

The 10 objections (printed below) from the CLA range from failure to notify all effected shoreline property owners, to the lack of scientific understanding of lake currents that could spread the chemical herbicides well beyond the areas being targeted for herbicide use. Because the permit calls for the use of both the chemicals Aquathol K and Navigate, the CLA also argues the effective coverage area is actually 2,400 acres under the current permitting request.

The 10 objections cited by the CLA to the DEC are:

1. Inappropriate herbicide use endangers fish, animals, birds, insects and plants.
The applications also do not fit within any invasive species or lake management plan ever written & the fully implemented aquatic plant harvesting can work to control nuisance plant growth in Chautauqua Lake – without resorting to herbicides.
2. Affected property owners were not appropriately notified.
3. Failure to comply with county plans.
4. Permit application defies DEC regulations.
5. Proper testing was not performed in 2018
6. “Need” for herbicide use based on flawed surveys.
7. Conflict of interest on who applies the herbicide.
8. Bottom cover should be determined by third-party divers, not guesswork.
9. Coverage area could reach 2,400 acres, without third-party, scientific evaluation of need or efficacy.
10. Lake current patterns – which could disperse the chemicals over a much wider area – are unknown.

Copper Sulfate Algae Treatment Leads to Fish Kill in Colorado Reservoir

Tue, 21 Dec 2021 19:30:44 +0000

Colorado Parks and Wildlife is investigating Johnstown officials after their attempt to treat an algae outbreak left nearly 1,000 fish dead.

The Greeley Tribune reports that Parks and Wildlife spokeswoman Jennifer Churchill says a worker put a copper sulfate into the town’s reservoir this summer to treat the algae. She says chemical ended up suffocating 972 fish.

The National Pesticide Information Center says copper sulfate can cause sudden plant death, causing fish to suffocate because of depleted oxygen and clogged gills.

Study Finds Herbicides for Eurasian Milfoil Can Harm Native Aquatic Plants

Tue, 30 Nov 2021 22:28:16 +0000

Lake managers might be hurting native aquatic plants – instead of helping them – when they use chemicals to control invasive plants on entire lakes.

New research by Wisconsin DNR Lakes and River Team Leader Dr. Alison Mikulyuk shows native plant communities can struggle when chemicals are used to target invasive Eurasian watermilfoil.

It appears the effects on native plants are worse than if there were no treatment at all.

Giant Salvinia Returned to Barnett Reservoir After Chemical Treatment and Removal

Fri, 05 Nov 2021 16:47:06 +0000

In July, the last known patches of Giant Salvinia, an invasive and aggressive aquatic plant at the Barnett Reservoir in Mississippi, were eliminated.

The vegetation was treated with multiple chemicals and then removed, but after six months of Giant Salvinia being absent from the lake, the cleanup team discovered the unwelcomed guest.

Apparently a stray piece survived the chemical treatments; and being a fern, a tiny piece can make a whole new plant and it can duplicate in size in just 48 hours. Over the course of six months, that piece can become the size of a cove.

USACE Uses GPS Tracking to Improve Transparency of Aquatic Herbicide Applications

Mon, 01 Nov 2021 18:01:13 +0000

In order to stop the destruction of infrastructure by aquatic invasive species, USACE and its partners are using three methods of management: biological, mechanical, and chemical. Each process varies in its effectiveness depending on the species of aquatic plant being treated – leaving the team to rely heavily on data to determine the best method in invasive aquatic plant reduction.

For years, our public has called for more transparency on the process and efficacy of invasive plant management. Public feedback on management practices yielded many responses such as “no one is overseeing the contractors, and they are out there spraying everything.”

The urgent appeal has increased with the awareness of how precious our water resources are and the fragility of the ecosystems that depends on them. A new device will provide more transparency on where and how much herbicide chemical contractors are applying by using a GPS tracker that will not only show the path of the boat, but the spray path as well.