To Mander...

Is this what you were telling me about a while back? I think your project made the news!!


$5M Project Aims To Clear Carter Lake Water
Chemical Will Starve Algae, Officials Say

OMAHA, Neb. --
A $5 million project to be conducted during the next two weeks will starve algae in Carter Lake and clear up the water, officials said.

A chemical called alum will be added. It has never been used before at Carter Lake, but the Carter Lake Preservation Society said the chemical is entirely safe. Fishers can even fish from the shore during the process.

The project is five years in the making.

"We had to get together, the two cities, two counties, two states, because everybody was pointing fingers -- well, it's an Iowa lake, no, it's a Nebraska lake, no it's all of this," said Carter Lake resident Jeanne Eibes.

As the alum is added, the algae will starve. The results should be clear relatively quickly, a different story than now.

"When you stand in the lake waist-deep, you can't see your feet. When you put your hands in the water, you can't even see your hand if you bend over. So what this tells us is it's not a fun lake to be in," Eibes said.

The improvement should be dramatic and fast, she said.

The next phase begins in September, when fish will be removed and new fish will be added.

"You can take as many fish as you want, and they're safe to eat," said Tetra Tech's John Holz. "There's not a chance that it could get caught up in fish tissue, in the filets or muscle tissue, for example. The fish in the lake are safe to eat before and after the treatment."

Water clarity should improve to about eight feet within a matter of days, Eibes said.

The lake's treatment should be done by Memorial Day. The project is funded by the cities of Omaha and Carter Lake, and the states of Nebraska and Iowa.