Advocates for revitalizing Sudbury's Simon Lake continue search for funds for skimmer - Action News
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Sudbury

Advocates for revitalizing Sudbury's Simon Lake continue search for funds for skimmer

Advocates from the Lively Recreation Advisory Panel and Tri-Lakes Community Stewardship both say they want to see Simon Lake free from overgrown algae.

A new petition calls for funding for equipment that could help make Simon Lake useable for recreation

Phosphorus at the bottom of Simon Lake has fertilized algae growth for decades, leading advocates to say it's a problem that can't be solved with money. This snapshot taken by resident David Pearson shows the green bed of algae over the surface of Simon Lake on July 30, 2023.
Phosphorus at the bottom of Simon Lake has fertilized algae growth for decades, leading advocates to say it's a problem that can't be solved with money. This snapshot taken by resident David Pearson shows the green bed of algae over the surface of Simon Lake on July 30, 2023. (Submitted by David Pearson)

Advocates for revitalizing Simon Lake in Sudbury all say they want to see it made useable again, but some say its ongoing algae problemhas become too big for money to solve.

"We will constantly be chasing the finish line," said Krishnan Venkataraman, president of the Tri-Lakes Community Stewardship that aims to conserve Simon Lake, Mud Lake and McCharles Lake.

The City of Greater Sudbury sold Meatbird Lake Park, a former swimming and recreation spot, to mining company Vale in April 2021.

$4-million dollars weregained from the sale and the money wasallocated by the city for recreational development in that area.

'A steep mountain to climb'

Venkataramansaid their latest petition launched earlier this month would ask the City of Greater Sudbury to give them$200,000 of the $4-million dollar recreation fund to purchase an algae skimmer.

A man in a checkered shirt.
Krishnan Venkataraman, president of the Tri-Lakes Community Stewardship, said the organization has renewed efforts by crowdfunding online and asking the city to support funds for an algae skimmer. (Submitted by Krishnan Venkataraman)

Since last year, the group has also been attempting to crowdfund$120,000 online with donations from the community.

"It's a steep mountain to climb.Simon Lake itself is a beautiful lake with a wonderful park and beach access,"Venkataramansaid.

The new petition isn't the first asking for an algae skimmer with city funds - there was one back in 2016, started by theSimon Lake Stewardship committee.

The skimmer is a large piece ofequipment that removes surface algae and has to be used regularlyto keep water clean.

Simon Lake residents hope that the city will set aside money to help them purchase this aqua skimmer to control the buildup of floating algae.
Simon Lake residents hope that the city will set aside money to help them purchase this type of lake skimmer to control the buildup of floating algae. (http://www.aquamarine.ca/)

David Pearson, a professor emeritus at Laurentian University, said he has lived by Simon Lake for almost 40 years.

Despite enjoying its wildlife and summer weather, he added people should accept the way it looks with a layer of algae.

"They're going to have to live with what's there and find a way to live with it," he said.

Phosphorus fuellinggrowth of algae

The lake is high in phosphorus, a mineral accumulated fromsewage dumping and human waste, Pearson added.

While the algae that comes from it is not always toxic to humans, advocates said it adds an unpleasant look and smell to Simon Lake.

A large bed of phosphorus at the bottom of Simon Lake has also been a fertilizer for algae to rapidly grow each year and make it unusable for outdoor recreation.

A satellite image of Simon Lake shows the development of algae along the shoreline on September 25, 2015. Algae can be seen as light shades of green.
A satellite image of Simon Lake shows the development of algae along the shoreline on September 25, 2015. Algae can be seen as light shades of green. (Courtesy of Google Earth)

"It was like a bathtub with fertiliser made for growing algae. That's what it will continue to do forthe foreseeable future," he said.

According to Pearson, much of the pollution also came from the nearby Kelly Lake and traveled downstream to Mud Lake, Simon Lake and McCharles Lake.

'Not a one and done deal'

But both Venkataraman and Pearson said investing in a skimmer isn't the definitive answer to Simon Lake's rapid algae growth.

"It's not a one and done deal. You can remove the algae, but more will grow simply because there is an abundant amount of phosphate,"Venkataramansaid.

David Pearson was the director of Science North when Queen Elizabeth II attended the facility's launch.
Laurentian University professor emeritus and Simon Lake resident David Pearson said the amount of phosphorus in the water would continue fertilizing algae for years to come. (Markus Schwabe/CBC)

"The skimmer would certainly remove it for a day or two. But it would grow just as fast as the skimmer has left," Pearson said.

Richard Eberhardt, a member of the Lively Recreational Advisory Panel, said he also wants to see Simon Lake restored, but doesn't believe this should be a priority for funding.

"I think the problem is much bigger than skimming the algae and much more expensive than the $4 million that we have," he said.

"Butby all means, I would support some city money going to finding out if this process would work. Maybe testing it out, so that we know whether or not we can have a swimableSimon Lake."

Pearson, who previously attempted to counteract the algae with rotting barley straw a decade ago, said a long term solution would be covering the bed of phosphorus to slow growth.

"It would be a monster project," he said.

"That goesbeyond simply covering up the human waste. It's not a problem that will be solved with any reasonable amount of money."