13 results for tag: lakespert

“Lakespert” – Pelicans in Colorado?

Steve Lundt, CLM Even I, the Lakespert, was surprised to see pelicans hanging out in Colorado when I first started sampling lakes. I mean, most of the Midwest and all of Texas come to Colorado in the summer to enjoy the mountains and cooler temperatures. So, I guess it makes sense for pelicans to do the same. One body of water that I have monitored over the past 22 years has a local nickname – Pelican Lake. This lake is a reservoir, but thousands of American White Pelicans come to it every spring to ground nest and enjoy the buffet of young carp. I have enjoyed their company while reservoir sampling and have recently pondered what their ...

“Lakespert” – Is continuous, in-lake monitoring a gadget or a backup camera?

Steve Lundt, CLM When it comes to lake management and lake rehabilitation projects, we like to be in the now. We gather water quality data to see if our efforts mattered. One way to do this is with continuous, in-lake sensors. Sonde companies have been developing and selling monitoring pieces of equipment that collect real-time data and load it to “the Cloud” for a few years now. My question, besides what really is “the Cloud,” is when is it appropriate, helpful, or worth the time and money to collect minute-by-minute water quality data for a lake? Is this a form of gadgetry that most lakes don’t need, or will it be like our car’s ...

“Lakespert” – Time for the Annual Snow Dance

Steve Lundt, CLM Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, I would periodically perform my snow dance in January to help support my ski habit. Little did I know I was also helping the water supply system throughout the Cascades and Rocky Mountains. Today, I still do my snow dance in January but for different reasons – to make sure our Colorado reservoirs fill in the spring. Many of our lakes and reservoirs are dependent on wintertime snowpack (Figure 1). Throughout the West, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) closely monitors and reports snowpack or Snow Water Equivalent (SWE). These statewide monthly reports, forecasts, and intera...

“Lakespert” – Seawalls are for Seas

Steve Lundt, CLM Natural lakes or reservoirs, they just don’t need walls at the shoreline. Here’s a great example. I look after Barr Lake (Colorado) that is just northeast of Denver. For many years, there was a seawall near the boat ramp that was intended to protect and stabilize the shoreline. It did the opposite (Figures 1 and 2). How many lakes are out there that are still dealing with “OG” hard engineering of shorelines? Seawalls are for seas. Bank stability at Barr Lake was being impacted by higher fill levels and a dysfunctional seawall. Removal and proper placement of larger rocks were the answer to crashing waves and higher ...

“Lakespert” – The Devil’s Element

Steve Lundt, CLM Did you know phosphorus has been called the devil’s element? I had no clue until I started my summer read. Most people enjoy an easy, soppy beach novel, but not this lakespert. I have settled nicely into a historical summary of how phosphorus has impacted the world – from world wars to harmful algal blooms. The book is titled The Devil’s Element, by Dan Egan. I’ve read most of this book from the comforts of my front porch during an unusually wet June here in Denver. Phosphorus has been on my mind since my early years in grad school. I now find myself enjoying a good read about phosphorus, learning new details about ...

“Lakespert” – It’s Not the Plant’s Fault

Steve Lundt, CLM When it comes to aquatic invasive species (AIS), I think we focus too much on the individual species, the actual infestation, and damage control, and not enough on the root cause – people making decisions. People’s actions, most of the time accidentally, lead to moving these species where they don’t belong. I constantly remind myself that it is not the species’ fault. The Brazilian elodea did not decide to travel up from South America. The common carp didn’t swim to the U.S. in the 1830s. The sticky zebra mussel was doing just fine in the Caspian Sea. People’s decisions and actions moved these species, and now we ...

“Lakespert” – Does it Matter What We Call It?

Steve Lundt, CLM It’s a puddle, a pound, a lake – no, it’s Superpond. It takes on all stormwater, provides bounds of recreation, and provides a great backdrop to any picnic. “Pond” – a universal word that is used for a human-made stormwater BMP, a small lake, a natural pool, a backyard water feature, a livestock pound, and even for the Atlantic Ocean, which dates to the 1640s. Does it matter what we call it? Yes, the word that we create to call a human-made body of water can be important. I help with a local lake called “Bluff Lake.” I often find it humorous how this name has an appropriate double meaning. Bluff Lake is ...

“Lakespert” – I Really Dig Lakes!

Steve Lundt, CLM In some ways, lake sediments can almost be as ambiguous as groundwater. It is hard to physically see it, feel it, or understand all the complexities throughout the water-to-sediment interface. There is so much going on in our lake sediments. That is why I like to dig a hole every once in a drawdown. You can’t fully understand your lake or reservoir without getting dirty. You can learn some key basics by collecting sediment. Over the years, I have done gravity cores, Ekman grabs, and even dug a hole to look for the pre-reservoir, buffalo wallow layer. I do know what my lake sediments smell, feel, and look like thanks to a ...

“Lakespert” – If Carp had a Newsletter

Steve Lundt, CLM I think they would have a “humanspert” giving advice on how to outsmart Seriously, I have spent the last eight years trying to remove as many common carp from a reservoir, and they seem to always find a way to outsmart me. When it comes to fisheries for our lakes and reservoirs, there seems to be a disconnect between the different camps –water quality scientists/CLMs and lake managers/fishery biologists. Water quality folks tend to focus on monitoring for nutrients, observing response parameters, and finding ways to overthink how to slow down cultural eutrophication with chemicals and pumps. The fisheries experts focus ...

“Lakespert” on Urban Lakes

Steve Lundt, CLM Urban lakes are overused and under-appreciated. Do something about it. There are urbanized lakes (Lake Washington and Lake Mendota) and then there are urban lakes (small, sometimes nameless lakes in city parks). Any “lakespert” will tell you that lakes in populated areas are important to the community and at the same time are neglected and underappreciated. Urban lakes dotting our cities and towns are typically small, shallow, murky, afterthoughts that are lined with seawalls, choked with overfertilized lawns, and lost to city politics and departments. My local urban lake near downtown Denver doesn’t even allow canoei...