Two Plymouth Lakes Removed from Impaired Waters List
Two Plymouth lakes have been removed from the state’s impaired waters list.
Bass Lake and Pomerleau Lake had been on the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s impaired list since 2002. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently approved the delisting for both lakes.
Each lake was considered impaired due to excess phosphorus and other pollutants that entered the lake from stormwater runoff. As a result, both lakes had harmful algae blooms, which not only limit water recreation activities but can also damage a lake’s ecosystem.
Plymouth officials credit two decades of work by lakeshore property owners, the Shingle Creek Watershed Management Commission and the city for both lakes getting removed from the list.
Ways To Improve Water Quality
Stormwater runoff is a common culprit for impaired lakes. Water from hard rainfalls or snow melting often flows directly from streets to wetlands and lakes. That runoff brings with it excess nutrients, such as phosphorus from fertilized lawns, that can damage waterways.
According to a release from the city of Plymouth, several steps were taken to mitigate stormwater contaminants.
Those efforts included sweeping streets multiple times per year to help keep leaves and other sediment away from stormwater drains. Native plantings were another strategy used.
“As streets near the lakes underwent road construction, rain gardens and other beneficial stormwater management practices were included in the plans to help filter runoff,” read a release from the city.
The city also said it prioritized shoreline restoration by using native plants to reduce erosion and filter out pollutants.
In addition, the city partnered with the Shingle Creek Watershed Management Commission to treat lakes with alum, or aluminum sulfate, a chemical that reduces algae growth by trapping phosphorus in lake sediment.
You can learn more about the city’s water quality improvements efforts by clicking here.
An alum treatment is applied to Pomerleau Lake/photo courtesy city of Plymouth
Schmidt Lake also was listed as impaired in 2002 under the federal Clean Water Act. It was delisted in 2016.
Also See: Maple Grove’s Fish Lake Coming Off Impaired Waters List
