07-28-2016, 01:59 PM
[#0000FF]TubeBabe and I showed up. I took a lot of notes. The bottom line I came away with was that Utah Lake has had algae blooms before...none as massive and none as toxic. Also, because of the current circumstances (low water - high nutrients) there is every possibility of this bloom lasting much longer...or even if it subsides there could be other blooms before the cold sets in later in the year.
The other thing evident from the deluge of rhetoric was that even though the causes of the problem are well identified...there are no suitable short term fixes. Long term fixes might take "decades". Just what we wanted to hear.
I have attached a longer written synopsis of the meeting. For those who want more detailed info on the nature of the beast...and past history...you can go to the [url "http://deq.utah.gov/locations/U/utahlake/algal-bloom.htm"]DEQ WEBSITE [/url]
If you visit that site you will find a lot of buttons to click on both current and past algae blooms. These include the last big one in 2014. One of the interesting statements about our current one is that the concentrations are 10 times greater than the yearly average.
As Therapist mentioned, there was absolutely no discussion on exactly HOW it is that Utah Lake is so %&$@# low while the upstream ponds are so high. Whenever asked, "officials" use the silly excuse that it was a bad water year...again. But the extra water held by Jordanelle this year (over 40 feet higher than last year) would have helped Utah Lake a bit if it had been released at a normal flow.
Although nobody seems to want to seriously discuss any potential oversights, I am hoping that those in charge have taken note of the adverse effects created by their decisions this year...and that they remedy them in future years. Yeah, right.
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The other thing evident from the deluge of rhetoric was that even though the causes of the problem are well identified...there are no suitable short term fixes. Long term fixes might take "decades". Just what we wanted to hear.
I have attached a longer written synopsis of the meeting. For those who want more detailed info on the nature of the beast...and past history...you can go to the [url "http://deq.utah.gov/locations/U/utahlake/algal-bloom.htm"]DEQ WEBSITE [/url]
If you visit that site you will find a lot of buttons to click on both current and past algae blooms. These include the last big one in 2014. One of the interesting statements about our current one is that the concentrations are 10 times greater than the yearly average.
As Therapist mentioned, there was absolutely no discussion on exactly HOW it is that Utah Lake is so %&$@# low while the upstream ponds are so high. Whenever asked, "officials" use the silly excuse that it was a bad water year...again. But the extra water held by Jordanelle this year (over 40 feet higher than last year) would have helped Utah Lake a bit if it had been released at a normal flow.
Although nobody seems to want to seriously discuss any potential oversights, I am hoping that those in charge have taken note of the adverse effects created by their decisions this year...and that they remedy them in future years. Yeah, right.
[/#0000FF]
[signature]