Property owners, anglers stuck on lake weedkiller issue / LJWorld.com

Archive for Wednesday, May 16, 2007

May 16, 2007

Mike Martinez, left, and Lee Merrill, both of Lawrence, fish Monday for bass on Lone Star Lake. Members of the Lone Star Lake Property Owners Association want to continue to use herbicide at the lake to kill leafy pondweed, which forms in water near their cabins, making it difficult to drive boats through it. But some anglers are saying the herbicide is dangerous to the aquatic environment and that its use is unnecessary.

Area locals argue over weed killing chemical at Lone Star Lake

A chemical used last year to kill a troublesome weed at Lone Star Lake has area fisherman and property owners disagreeing about whether to use it again this year. Enlarge video

LoneStar Lake closes for chemical treatment (05-09-06)

A chemical used a year ago to kill a weed at Lone Star Lake is at the center of a disagreement between some fishing enthusiasts and property owners.

Members of the Lone Star Lake Property Owners Association say the chemical - Aquathol K - is needed to kill leafy pondweed, which forms in water near their cabins. The weed makes it difficult for boats to pass through.

But Lawrence fisherman Ned Kehde has argued that the herbicide is dangerous to the aquatic environment and that its use is unnecessary. He claims the weed will die in June when the weather gets warmer.

The use of Aquathol K was recommended by a wildlife biologist with the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, said Mike Perkins, public works operations manager.

Douglas County commissioners are scheduled to take up the issue at tonight's meeting.

"We thought, let's let the County Commission get involved with this and they can decide how they want to go," Perkins said.

Many of the 40 members of the Lone Star association plan to attend the meeting, said Clair Kuszmaul, association president.

Kuszmaul said pondweed is troublesome.

"There are some places small trolling motors can't get through," Kuszmaul said. "I've got a 40 horsepower motor and I've had to stop, raise the motor and take the (pondweed) off of it."

Kehde protested the use of chemical after the lake was treated last year. He is out of town and unavailable for comment, but his wife, Pat Kehde, will be speaking at tonight's county meeting.

Aquathol K is a poison and some states ban its use, Pat Kehde said.

"There are concerns about it in terms of what it adds to the chemical toxic stew that we all live in," she said. "We don't really know the long-term effects."

Aquathol K is not supposed to have any long-term effects and it is not known to kill fish, Perkins said. After the chemical was used in the southwestern corner of the lake, also known as "cabin corner," there were no signs that it killed or harmed fish, he said.

Richard Sanders, the KDWP biologist who recommended Aquathol K, said he depends on findings by the Environmental Protection Agency and other authorizing agencies to determine whether a chemical is safe. The chemical has been approved for aquatic use, he said.

Pat Kehde also claims that pondweed will die naturally as the weather gets hotter. But, Kuszmaul said, pondweed in areas that were not treated last year remained alive through the summer.

Pat Kehde also argues that pondweed makes good habitat for fish during spawning season.

"If you want Lone Star Lake to be a good fishery, you don't poison the very habitat that the fish usually spawn in," she said.

Only a small part of the lake - 4.64 acres - was treated with Aquathol K, Sanders said. The lake's surface covers 195 acres.

Curly leaf pondweed became especially prevalent in the cabin area of the lake during the past few years. It is not clear why, although there are theories ranging from human habitation to the lowering of the lake's spillway and dredging that took place at the lake several years ago.

Commissioners meet at 6:30 tonight in the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Mass. Other matters on the agenda are:

¢ Consideration of a conditional use permit for a child care center at First United Methodist Church, 867 U.S. Highway 40.

¢ Consideration of a conditional use permit for a Verizon Wireless cellular tower at 261 E. 1250 Road, Baldwin City.

¢ Commissioners will meet with the advisory committee for Hesper Charter Road Improvement District.

Discussion

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16 May 2007
at 7:34 a.m.

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merrill (Anonymous) says…

Do fish bodies absorb this herbicide? Eating fish from the Kansas River is not suggested as a good idea. So trolling motor neighbors you might well be digesting this carcinogenic compound
thus adding more cancer cells to your body. Better start eating more cruciferous veggies and berries with a few mushrooms. Aloe juice too. Stop fishing as well.
16 May 2007
at 8 a.m.

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blue73harley (Anonymous) says…

Let's see, we are bringing this before the county commissioners because…why? Evidently their expertise on the subject is greater than the wildlife biologist.
16 May 2007
at 8:38 a.m.

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aeroscout17 (Anonymous) says…

Oh no…did someone say herbicide?!?! Argh! Here's a better idea. Let the pondweed grow uncontrolled until it takes over the entire lake. Then when it dies off the resulting decomposers will use all of the available oxygen in the water, thus killing off the lake and the fish. End of problem.

C'mon folks, not all herbicides or pesticides are dangerous. Don't forget that everything we use and eat are made of “chemicals.”
16 May 2007
at 9:02 a.m.

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lounger (Anonymous) says…

Its too bad they use chemicals at this lake its really a beautiful little place! Go natural and dont let anyone tell you otherwise. Clean water is of most importance—what on earth do you think people did before the chemical companys? Lived clean thats what! The chemical companys were left with huge amounts of product after WW2 and turned thier horrible practices twards agriculture. Remember aquatic life needs help this day and age>mainly from mankind!
16 May 2007
at 9:04 a.m.

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deputyfife (Anonymous) says…

aeroscout — all herbicides and pesticides are dangerous. They are toxins and they don't just pick and choose what they will kill, but rather what is killed is limited by controlling the concentration that herbicides are applied.

I think there is real potential for damage to the fishing if there is wide scale application around the lake. There has to be a better way than poison.

I'm from SW Missouri and we had a similar issue with a small reservoir there. For years each spring they would treat the weeds until eventually enough of whatever poison they used built-up in the bottom sediments, which ultimately killed everything in the lake. I don't know if it was Aquathol K or not but it seems like the potential exists.

Why not try to find a real solution to the problem? How long has the pondweed been a problem? What is causing such high levels of blooms? My guess would be poorly maintained septic systems adding unnaturally high levels of nutrients, spurring weed growth since it is most prevalent around the cabins…
16 May 2007
at 9:25 a.m.

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crazyks (Anonymous) says…

If it hangs up on boats and such, then why wouldn't a simple solution just be to skim a certain amount of it off the surface of the water from time to time?
16 May 2007
at 9:26 a.m.

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Toto12 (Anonymous) says…

Well said Deputyfife. I would add that fertilizer the cabin owners dump on their yards would certainly contribute to this also. I am not at all sympathetic to the plight of the cabin owners and their trolling motors. Fishermen just use a “weed free” trolling motor.

16 May 2007
at 11:26 a.m.

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ebbenji (Eric Beightel) says…

Aquathol K is a selective contact herbicide whose active ingredient (dipotassium salt of endothall) is water soluble. As a result, treating an area with the herbicide will kill only those plants (with specific characteristics) with which it comes in contact with. The overspray or extra product that is applied to the waterway will breakdown in the water. Additionally, effective application rates are at 0.5 ppm to 5 ppm and some fish species are tolerant of concentrations of up to 100 ppm. (info from MSDS found at http://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/guide/aqua… )

I'm not saying that there shouldn't be some more investigation as to the cause of the excessive growth of the aquatic plants - but it would appear from the literature that for an immediate remedy (and one which appears to be pretty safe) aquathol is a decent alternative. From the literature - it does not appear to be a candidate for bioaccumulation as it readily breaks down in an aquatic environment and therefore would likely not be absorbed through fish skin or through fish respiration. If it did come in contact with fish and was absorbed, it would break down within the organism. The MSDS does warn that you should not eat fish from a treated area within 3 days of treatment (I think I'd wait a good couple weeks, personally).

Relying solely on chemicals is dangerous and most importantly expensive. Changes in the culture of those living near the lake would likely be a much more cost-effective solution. Such changes take time however and everyone is all about now, now, now.
16 May 2007
at 1:44 p.m.

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Kontum1972 (Anonymous) says…

hmmm….mb we should bring in the new “war czar' to mediate…or mb an airstike,,,nothing like a little carpet bombing with sum 52's to clean-out some pond scum..saw plenty of that south of the DMZ in SEA, it works miracles.
16 May 2007
at 1:49 p.m.

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Mark_Jakubauskas (Anonymous) says…

Here's a thought: The Kansas Biological Survey now has an acoustic echosounding system designed for, among other things, mapping submerged aquatic vegetation. Why not run a maaping survey over the lake to actually measure the area and volume of the aquatic plant problem so as to better target application of herbicide (other alternative control methods), and repeat the survey on a regular basis to monitor changes in aquatic plant volume and area, and assess whether control efforts are actually working or not. Get some actual numbers and maps on the aquatic plant problem, in other words.
16 May 2007
at 3:42 p.m.

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FatTony (Anonymous) says…

Hmm, whatever they do I hope they don't find all the things I've been hiding in that lake.
17 May 2007
at 12:24 p.m.

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aeroscout17 (Anonymous) says…

Good info ebbenji; basically the same thing I was trying to point out. Deputyfife, everything is toxic at some point. Don't succumb to the hysteria that all pesticides will kill you if you use them. Many herbicides are nothing more than synthesized plant hormones that make them grow out of control, at a rate that their energy reserves and photosynthesis can't support. End result = death. The same hormones have no effect on humans.

On the other hand, as many others have posted, we need to look at the big picture. Why is there a problem to begin with? How can we prevent it from happening again, and what do we do about it now?
17 May 2007
at 5:07 p.m.

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consumer1 (Anonymous) says…

All you liberals make sure you go and mind someone else's business. Tell everyone else how they should live.