2010: A Good Year for Water Quality in the Sebago Lakes Region of Maine

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July 13, 2011
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July 20, 2011

2010: A Good Year for Water Quality in the Sebago Lakes Region of Maine


The calm before the storm on Highland Lake in Bridgton
We’re always thrilled when we receive good reports about water quality in the Sebago Lakes Region of Maine. Such was the case today when the LEA Lake News arrived in the mail. Executive Director of LEA, Peter Lowell, gave us his blessing to share this news with you.

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from LEA Lake News, Summer 2011:
Overall, 2010 was a fairly good year for most of the lakes within LEA’s [Lakes Environmental Association] service area. More than two-thirds of our waters showed better than average clarity and more than two-thirds showed lower than average phosphorus levels. The majority also showed lower than average chlorophyll levels. This makes sense as, in general, lower phosphorus levels result in less algae growth and the result is clearer lakes.
However, ice-out and open water came very early in 2010, and this corresponded with stronger dissolved oxygen depletion in the bottom waters of some of the deeper lakes in the region. This is due to thermal stratification setting in earlier than usual, thus oxygen in the bottom waters is used up sooner in the season. This can be hard on cold-water fish species like salmon and trout as they rely on deep, cold and well-oxygenated water to survive and grow in the summer months.
Years with more pronounced dissolved oxygen depletion can also result in more phosphorus coming into our lakes from the bottom sediments. When there is no oxygen in the water at the bottom of the lake, a chemical process can occur that releases bound-up phosphorus from the sediments. This process, called phosphorus recycling, adds another source of this potent nutrient to lake ecosystems. Fortunately, this new phosphorus is usually trapped beneath the thermocline in the summer and does not make it to the upper sunlit waters where it could trigger an algae bloom.
When the lake does turn over in the fall, much of this phosphorus combines with ferrous iron and precipitates back into the sediment layer. However, in shallower lakes and basins that turn over early or where sunlight reaches the bottom, phosphorus recycling is a serious concern as it can cause mid-summer algae blooms.
Let’s hope that at the end of the 2011 season, we’ll see similar, if not better, results for the water quality in the Sebago Lakes Region of western Maine.
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