Lakeshore Owners - Please Read

[Lowe]

Please do not dump ANYTHING in the lake to kill the weeds unless it is an approved aquatic herbicide available over the counter and legal to use in the state of Minnesota.

I was talking to a friend of mine a week or so ago, and his neighbors on a small northern Minnesota lake have been using a certain wholesale chemical to kill the weeds in front of their cabin. He was concerned and asked me if the chemical they were using was safe. I knew immediately it was not, and when I calculated the dose and checked the toxicity of the chemical, they had put enough chemical in to affect (kill or impair certain critters) over 20 million gallons of water, or roughly 50 acres of water ten feet deep. The actual effect will probably be much less because the chemical will not be distrubuted evenly, but it is still a terrible thing to happen to the lake. And, considering how cheap it was and how easy it is to get, they really didn't put that much in there.

The proper people have been notified and it is under investigation. I had my hesitations about posting this, but if it prevents somebody from doing the same thing it's worth it.

[Finlander]

That probobly is Roundup and that chemical kills brine shrimp that panfish and small young of the year feed on!
And just think about the fish you have ate from that fertilized lake. And also think about the times you have gone swimming in that lake with all those chemicals in there.
Ever burp after swimming alot?

[This message has been edited by Finlander (edited 06-25-2004).]

[IFallsRon]

The DNR monitors this from above and deals with it with no sense of humor.

[Mark Christianson]

Excellent topic.
Legal or not, I am no fan of aquatic herbicides at all.
Just last weekend I was headed out to do some fishing, and there is a billboard along Hwy10 east of St Cloud advertising aquatic herbicides.
The last I heard, weeds oxygenate the water, they reduce erosion, fish need cover to hide in, etc....

Its a shame whether people are doing it legally or not.
People buy marginal lake shore, and then start dumping in chemicals or physically removing the vegetation to make a nice beach or better looking shore.
Major bummer.

[Lowe]

It's not Roundup. It's a chemical I've used in the lab when I need to kill wild rice and cattails. In addition to being a very effective herbicide it is also very toxic to water fleas, midges, and minnows, which make up a huge portion of the lower food chain. It also kills bigger fish at higher doses.

I agree (legal) aquatic herbicide use should be more closely regulated. These are natural lakes, not swimming areas. As a lakeshore owner myself I know sometime it might be neccesary to remove some weeds for navigational purposes, but it is all too often used for aesthetic reasons at the expense of the lake's health.

[Ufatz]

As owner of a mile or so of lake front let me tell you this. For the first two seasons I used some of the approved stuff that I got from the state(with reluctance) it had so little effect that I thought it was a total waste of my time and money.Besides, I hate using chemicals in ANY water system. I even refuse to use poison for mice. (traps I will use).
We have a 50' wide path to our beach and all the rest is as natural as it has been for the last thousand years or so.
In my experience, even the proper chemicals aren't that effective.