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Bacteria blamed for thousands of dead carp
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Jul 11, 2007 04:30 AM
Carola Vyhnak
Staff reporter
A deadly, fast-moving bacteria that thrives in warm water is partially to blame for the thousands of rotting carp that have washed up on the shores of Lake Scugog.
That's bad news for cottagers on other lakes in the Trent-Severn Waterway where smelly fish are starting to appear.
The bacteria, called columnaris, are triggered by water temperatures between 13 and 18C, and with the recent heat wave, "you'd expect it to spread," said Barry Radford, spokesperson for the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Dead carp have been surfacing in Cameron, Sturgeon and Pigeon Lakes northeast of Scugog. Only carp have been affected, causing waterfront residents to gag over the stench of rotting remains.
The water is safe for recreational use, according to authorities. But residents remain concerned about water quality and the environmental health of the lake they've watched deteriorate over years.
"The lake looks terrible," said Jim Adam, who helped fill 30 garbage bags with fish bones after he and neighbours burned carp they netted along half a kilometre of shoreline.
He thinks residents aren't being told the truth about what's really wrong.
"Everything coming into the lake is runoff and it carries all the dirt with it. They're going to have to do something major to solve all the problems."
The main problem is high levels of nitrogen and phosphorous that, compounded by the shallow water, cause excessive weed growth, according to Mark Majchrowski, director of watershed management for Kawartha Conservation.
There's no quick fix, but educating the public is a start, he said. The provincial government agency, which started an environmental management plan for the lake three years ago, is working on a long-term solution to reduce nutrients.
More immediately, the Township of Scugog plans to harvest weeds in the lake's south basin next month.
Email story
Choose text size
Report typo or correction Tag and save
Jul 11, 2007 04:30 AM
Carola Vyhnak
Staff reporter
A deadly, fast-moving bacteria that thrives in warm water is partially to blame for the thousands of rotting carp that have washed up on the shores of Lake Scugog.
That's bad news for cottagers on other lakes in the Trent-Severn Waterway where smelly fish are starting to appear.
The bacteria, called columnaris, are triggered by water temperatures between 13 and 18C, and with the recent heat wave, "you'd expect it to spread," said Barry Radford, spokesperson for the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Dead carp have been surfacing in Cameron, Sturgeon and Pigeon Lakes northeast of Scugog. Only carp have been affected, causing waterfront residents to gag over the stench of rotting remains.
The water is safe for recreational use, according to authorities. But residents remain concerned about water quality and the environmental health of the lake they've watched deteriorate over years.
"The lake looks terrible," said Jim Adam, who helped fill 30 garbage bags with fish bones after he and neighbours burned carp they netted along half a kilometre of shoreline.
He thinks residents aren't being told the truth about what's really wrong.
"Everything coming into the lake is runoff and it carries all the dirt with it. They're going to have to do something major to solve all the problems."
The main problem is high levels of nitrogen and phosphorous that, compounded by the shallow water, cause excessive weed growth, according to Mark Majchrowski, director of watershed management for Kawartha Conservation.
There's no quick fix, but educating the public is a start, he said. The provincial government agency, which started an environmental management plan for the lake three years ago, is working on a long-term solution to reduce nutrients.
More immediately, the Township of Scugog plans to harvest weeds in the lake's south basin next month.
