Water quality is everyone’s responsibility

Take a walk down to Lake St. Louis sometimes, and think about how this once-majestic body of water was a summertime playground. When beaches dotted the shores and children frolicked, minutes away from thousands of homes.

Then think of how that splendour was gradually replaced by millions of litres of industrial waste that is now sitting, like sediment, on the bottom of the lake. The upper levels of water are less toxic today, but any form of disturbance - like people swimming - would cause the toxins to be disturbed and come to the surface to inflict all manner of dire consequences.

No, thanks. The fact is, Quebecers have long prided themselves on their joie de vivre, their summer festivals, and their love of nature and the environment. If that’s really the case, why are the province’s bucolic lakes teeming with toxic blue-green algae? Can it be the same cottage owners who profess their love for the environment by putting out a recycling bin every week are to blame for draining their cottage washing machines directly into the lakes? Blue-green algae scum, which often looks like a green milkshake, is caused by phosphates, which are found in high concentration in laundry and dishwasher detergents.

The scum makes the lake basically unusable, and blue-green algae has already been found in Lake of Two Mountains.

It’s a stinky issue that should have everyone concerned, but there seems to be little outrage; probably because the people that are suffering the most from the blue-green algae scum had the most to do with its arrival.

Children are particularly vulnerable, because they tend to spend more time in the water than adults and tend to ingest more water when swimming. Exposure to blue-green algae can result in stomach cramps, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, headache and sever joint and muscle pain.

It’s not pretty, and getting rid of it will be even harder. Once blue-green algae is present, it will take a substantial reduction in the amount of phosphates and nitrogen released into the lake over a long period of time. Even then, the problem can persist for years because of the amount of phosphorous and nitrogen contained in the muck at the bottom of the lake. Quebecers must wake up and smell the coffee - which actually has a gross hint of algae odour in it - and put their string words into action. Water quality is something we should all have a hand in maintaining.

Lake St. Louis was once an example of how not to treat a body of water. It’s disheartening to realize the once-beautiful lake now sullied by pollution is quickly becoming the rule and no longer the exception.ꆱ