05-08-2000 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES FOR APRIL 24, 2<I0I) (Lake Minnetonka Water Quality Study, Continued) Stations at various spots in the lakes, with measurements being taken four times a da.v to detennine the phosphorus level. Barten stated the water quality of the local lakes has remained fairly normal over the past few years, w ith clarity of the lakes being reduced over the years. 0\ cr the summer months the clarity of the lake tends to be reduced somewhat. Barten commented the water quality of some of the lakes, unless preventative steps arc taken, has the potential to decrease due to increased water fiows from developments Long-tenn water management of the lakes is c.xtrcmcly critical in order to preserve and improve the w ater qualitx in this area. Mayor Jabbour comjiicnted that the levels of phosphorus go up and dow n and never is completely eliminated. Eric Evinson, Administrator of the MCVVD. stated he is available for an> questions the City Council may have regarding the efforts being taken to monitor the water qualit> of the local lakes. Kelley inquired how the MCWD aetualK monitored the actual le\ els of phosphorus runoff. Evinson stated it is vcr>' difficult to actualK' monitor along the lakeshore. but that the MCWD has identified the major drainage points into the lake and those areas are monitored. Sanscvcrc inquired whether any of the lakes were unsafe for swimming at this point. Barten commented that algae is not a desirable thing for a beach and usually will not pose any health threat. Barten stated efforts should be taken in order to address the issue of recycling the phosphorus in the lakes, which can be accomplished in a couple of different wa\ s and costs in the neighborhood of $400 to $500 an acre. Mavor Jabbour stated the chemical treatment process is only permitted once on a lake and another permanent solution needs to be found Barten stated the chemical treatment process can be effcctixe for up to IS years and has proven to be fairly effective at treating the algae Barten stated Hennepin Parks plans to reduce the amount of monitoring done on some of the lakes in the future due to the costs Barten stated in his opinion monitoring of some lakes will continue to occur into the future Mav or Jabbour stated the citizens of the area need to become aware of the reasons why the Cit> C ouncil requires limits on hardcover and stresses good water management Barten stated he has spoken with the LMCD on a couple of occasions and has suggested that thev do a shoreline invcntorv to see how much natural shoreline exists and complete a comprehensive • • plan assessment Barten stated to his knowledge the> will be completing some ivpe of plant assessment and shoreline assessment in the near future Barten stronglv recommended the Citv consider adopting an ordinance regulating phosphoms. which would be a good step towards