Our early summer testing took place July 7th after the holiday. Maybe you saw our video on Facebook. You may also remember we had just gotten 6 inches of rain. Because of that rain our E.Coli numbers were way off. We decided to retest and the numbers, while still up from last year, all the sites, except Grass Lake Rd., are within normal range. Just a reminder the arrows indicate where the numbers are from last year. Please review the definitions below to help you understand the results.

Thank you,

Environmental Committee

pH is an indication of our lake's acid level. Neutral water, like distilled water, has a 7 pH level. Any measurement below 7 is considered acidic. Low pH levels affect fish spawning to the point of extinction. For humans, low pH levels increase the concentration of heavy metals like aluminum, zinc, and mercury.

When there are high E. coli counts there are three indicators in a lake to consider rain, large presence of waterfowl, and many people. Rain produces ground water that runs into the lake and carries with it E. coli. Bird feces contribute disease causing bacteria to the water. And, beach areas with many people swimming tend to have higher levels of E. coli.

Dissolved Oxygen Oxygen (O2) is undoubtedly the most important of the gases, since most aquatic organisms need it to survive. The solubility of oxygen and other gases depends on water temperature. The colder the water, the more gases it can hold. Boiling water removes all gases. Oxygen is produced whenever green plants grow. Plants use carbon dioxide and water to produce simple sugars and oxygen, using sunlight as the energy source.

Phosphorus promotes excessive aquatic plant growth. Phosphorus originates from a variety of sources, many of which are related to human activities. Major sources include human and animal wastes, soil erosion, detergents, septic systems and runoff from farmlands or lawns.

The Total Suspended Solids numbers relate to water clarity, especially the amount of algae present.

Nitrogen is second only to phosphorus as an important nutrient for plant and algae growth. Precipitation is usually the main nitrogen source for seepage and some drainage lakes. In most cases, however, the amount of nitrogen in lake water corresponds to local land use. Nitrogen may come from fertilizer and animal wastes on agricultural lands, human waste from sewage treatment plants or septic systems, and lawn fertilizers used on lakeshore property. Nitrogen may enter a lake from surface runoff or groundwater sources.