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By Deb Patterson
InkFreeNews

SYRACUSE — “We are building on the shoulders of those people that have preceded us,” was the theme of ecology presentations Saturday, July 26 at the Wawasee Area Conservancy Foundation’s Lakes Celebration.

Brief reports were heard from Dr. Jerry Sweeten, Ecosystems Connections Institute; Dr. Nate Bosch, Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams; and Beth Morris, Wawasee Area Conservancy ecology committee chairman.

Sweeten noted work by David Fry, an Indiana University limnology professor who, in 1966, predicted phosphorus would need to be dealt with coming into streams and lakes. He noted Bill Eberly, a Manchester University professor, who was responsible for legislation in removing phosphates from detergents and Gene Likens, another limnologist, who had done work on lakes and streams.

Dr. Jerry Sweeten

He also referenced the saying, “you don’t know what you got until it’s gone.” He stated this is one of the penalties of understanding what’s going on and building all this information from previous people. “Guess whose shoulders we’re building on now? We’re setting the stage for what’s going forward as it relates to Lake Wawasee and decisions that are going to be made are going to be moved forward to the next generation…”

While specific figures were not presented by Sweeten, he touched on the three approaches the Wawasee Inlet Nutrient Study took when it began: assessment, prescription and implementation. Following a six-year W.I.N.S. study, Sweeten stated they know pretty well and they have patterns and trends. “We’re beginning to see some patterns begin to emerge that are pretty interesting and exciting, so we have answered most of the questions. … We know phosphorous is really our problem molecule … something we have to deal with to help make some corrections on the lake.”

Sweeten stated the amount of phosphorous, sediment and nitrogens coming and leaving the lake are known, and it’s known which tributaries are responsible for most of it — Dillon Creek and Turkey Creek. Calculations have been made on how much reduction of phosphorous is needed to protect the lake and bring it back to ecological compliance. But he also noted the studies have seen a pattern in Dillon Creek and where there has been a decrease in phosphorous loads. He attributed this to Russell Anderson and the use of regenerative agriculture. “Regenerative agriculture is going to be the future in how we grow food and fiber … If a farmer can increase organic matter in soil by 1%, it increases the water holding capcity by 27,000 gallons of water. That’s a huge amount that is now staying put in the fields and not running off and going onto the lake.” He also noted the best sediment trap is the Lake Wawasee watershed. “You couldn’t build it better.”

He stressed it doesn’t matter where a person resides in the watershed, all residents are part of the community and on the same team.

Looking forward to the long game, is building relationships. He announced a soil health academy this fall for farmers to introduce regenerative agriculture with a national group. This, according to Sweeten, is the implementation phase of the study.

The prescription aspect is looking at what’s in the lake. He noted new technology being discussed on how to sequester or grab a hold of phosphorous in the lake and take it out of the system. He also noted work with the Art Nature Consortium in publishing a book with artwork on glacial lakes, looking at the challenges everybody is facing. A PBS documentary is also in the works with local interviews.

“Will this cure all ills? It’s another step in the right direction,” he stated, stressing the need to “be aware of the shoulders upon which we built and realize that what we do today will have a long lasting effect.”

Morris reiterated some of what Sweeten had stated, noting a new project through a grant from the Midwest Glacial Lakes Partners through the EPA. This grant will be used on bank stabilization on the Dillon Creek branch, allowing an estimate of how much nitrogen, phosphorous and sediment savings there are. The project will take place over the fall/winter.

Additionally, she noted the Department of Natural Resources has been asked for a grant to look at the Turkey Creek Wetlands where the most phosphorous and sediment are being seen. The W.I.N.S. study has shown the wetlands at Turkey Creek are saturated with phosphorous and the water is channelizing through, instead of spreading out and letting the sediment settle into the wetlands and slow down the water. The grant would be used for an engineering study to possibly either restore or remediate the stream. “Stay tuned for that,” she said.

Another area WACF is investigating is evaluation of a product line to tie up the legacy phosphorous in the sediment seen in streams. She noted the ecology committee is looking at what a number of other states have done and actively looking at the eco-toxicology data, seeing how the compound reacts with the flora and fauna in the lake, if it is toxic or safe.

Lilly Center Expanding Research

Bosch provided updates from their vantage point on what the Lilly Center has been doing on Syracuse and Wawasee lakes regarding research, education and collaboration. He noted the center has extended its sampling window to 15 weeks, going from Memorial Day to Labor Day and has added a new algae toxin test. He reported the toxins are identified in the center’s lab and all samples are done in triplicate for a better insight into the data.

Dr. Nate Bosch

He provided some data on the two lakes, noting there was half as much rainfall in April and May than last year and the two lakes were eight degrees cooler at the beginning of the season, with less algae, and clearer lakes. Since the Fourth of July, clarity is at 8 feet on Wawasee and Syracuse is at 10 feet. He noted in the sampling of 16 lakes weekly across the county for algae toxins, Wawasee has the highest toxin levels at 2.6 parts per billion.

This was narrowed down by Bosch, stating of the eight sampling sites around the lake, Conklin Bay has the lowest at .03 ppb and Crow Bay is at 3.6 ppb. He reported Syracuse has no toxin detection. “We are tracking several species of algae that we know can produce toxins. We are going to keep an eye on that as the water gets more stagnant, more warm, and notice more of these algae.”

He talked about the E. coli testing the center has been doing at public swimming beaches and 14 stream locations over the past several years. He noted recently WACF included four locations, one being a small stream coming from the former South Shore golf course. “That has been really high since May, six to seven times what the EPA limit is,” Bosch stated.

He noted they look at five streams on Syracuse and Wawasee as well and Dillon Creek has also been above EPA levels every time it’s sampled. “We want to look next at sources,” he said. This would entail looking up stream and doing some genetic testing to see where it is coming from. “So stay tuned for that.”

He expressed he is most proud of the partnership between the center and WACF. He noted the start of Lake in the Library program at Syracuse Elementary which has started and continuation of the Lake Doctor podcast. Also a member of his team, Rusty Martinez, is a member of the WACF marketing team.

It was noted the center has finished with an EPA study and is starting the second round of collaboration with Purdue looking at satellite imagery and looking at algae toxins, utilizing AI to prevent algae toxin in the future. He also stated the center is “shifting toward more to fixing problems around the lakes. So as we allocate more research we can come along WACF more in the future to solve the problems that have been identified.”