Left to right: Tom Gulbransen, Environmental Specialist, Battelle; Jon Dobney, Asst Chief Parks,ODNR; Glenn Cobb, Deputy Director, ODNR; John McArdle, Marketing Manager/Water Technologies Battelle
On February 13, 2011, a report was submitted to the Grand Lake St. Marys Restoration Commission members by scientists Henry Pate, Tom Gulbranson, and John McArdle from Battelle, a research and development organization. They reported on the findings taken from samples near the aeration unit installed within the Southmoor Embayment.
According to the Assessment of Restoration Alternatives at Grand Lake St. Marys, Ohio report written by Battelle, “The trend of higher DO (dissolved Oxygen) levels within the Southmoor bay was continued during sampling events in early to mid September 2010 by MAD (MAD Scientist and Associates), with DO levels reaching 2-3 times the values seen in the nearby control area”.
The aeration unit is called an Airy Gator and is a large, floating electric-powered aerator with a series of rotating discs. The unit infuses oxygen into the water, allowing beneficial micro-organisms to grow and consume nutrient-rich organic material in the sediment which naturally reduces the amount of organic material at the bottom of the lake. Therefore, a reduction in both algae and toxin is expected.
The report was presented to GLSMRC members, Glenn Cobb, Deputy Director of ODNR and John Dobney, Assistant Chief of Ohio State Parks. The report stated that while the West Bank sampling sites had DO levels that in some areas exceeded saturation, except for the Southmoor area, starting from WindyPoint the entire south and eastern shore was hypoxic (low oxygen levels), during the summer of 2010.
Batelle further recommends aeration devices should be installed at strategic locations around the southern and eastern margins of the lake where hypoxia was a common event during summer 2010. Battelle also recommends the commission consider other suggestions including alum treatment and biomanipulation and continue to measure each remedy’s effectiveness along with the lake’s resilience. These ideas and others were outlined in the recent ten year Strategic Plan presented to Governor Kasich by the Grand Lake St. Marys Restoration Commission.
To view the complete report log onto https://lakeimprovement.com/wp-content/uploads/files/battellegrandlakeassessment.pdf