SolarBees have mixed effect on water quality at Blue Lake

By Matthew Preusch, The Oregonian

May 14, 2010, 7:33PM

Water clarity has improved at Blue Lake three years after Metro spent tens of thousands of dollars on algae-combating machines, but the devices may be abetting the spread of troublesome weeds.

“What we’ve found is that the pH has been a little bit worse, the water clarity has been a little bit better, and the toxic-algae problem has been about the same,” said Metro biologist Elaine Stewart.

The regional government and the solar-powered devices’ manufacturer say, however, that it’s still too early to render a verdict on whether the money was well spent.

Matthew Preusch/The OregonianIn 2007, Metro and homeowners on Blue Lake invested in three SolarBee water mixers to try to combat blooms of blue-green algae at the lake east of Portland. The solar-powered machines churn the lake water to limit algae growth.

Metro manages the popular 130-acre park on the lake’s north shore and cooperates with homeowners on the south shore over lake regulations. It split the $150,000 cost for the three SolarBee water circulation devices with the homeowners

Open Request to DLWID Board

Dear DLWID Board Member:

I would like to provide input on a important issue on this month’s agenda. In the interest of making the best use of the board’s time, I am submitting you written comments prior to the meeting.  I intend to attend this month’s meeting.  Please take these written comments as my contribution to the Public Comment agenda item for the April Board meeting.

Whole Lake Circulation

In this month’s Manager Report the Lake Manager has asked the Board to provide direction as to how they would like to proceed or not proceed in this matter. The Board should modify the direction previously provided by the resolution made in June 2009. I would recommend that the Board provide the following guidance in response to that request.

The Board should defer any further actions toward pursuing SolarBees.  The district should continue to seek more information regarding the nature, extent and effects of cyanobacteria and their impact on the health and recreational use of Devils Lake.  The district should continue to investigate methods for controlling all aspects of water quality, assessing their effectiveness and appropriateness for application on Devils Lake.

This action should result in the removal of the section entitled “Whole Lake Circulation”, pages 31-35 from the Devils Lake Draft Plan as well as the removal of the agenda item for Whole Lake Circulation from the monthly Board meeting agendas.

Metro Assessment of Solarbee Performance on Blue Lake

In October 2009, Metro released the 2009 Blue Lake Water Quality Summary Report researched and authored by Whitney Temple.  The report provided a review of the two-year trial of three Solarbees placed on Blue Lake and an assessment of the third year that followed the purchase of the units.  Elaine Stewart, Senior Natural Resources Scientist for Metro shared the report with NoSolarBees and elaborated that the report is “neither peer reviewed nor conclusive”.  She continued that she thought, “it points out the complexities of lake systems and the remedies we implement.”

Download the entire report.

SolarBee Assessment of Trial on Blue Lake

In March 2009, Joe Eilers of SolarBee released An Assessment of Circulation Technology Applied to Blue Lake, Oregon.  The report was the conclusion of a two-year trial of three Solarbees placed on Blue Lake.  Purchase of the three units was contingent on the success of the trial as access by Solarbee, Inc.  The report concluded that the units improved water quality and based on the report Metro and the local residents purchased the three Solarbees installed for the trial.

Download the entire report.

For a more detailed summary of the trial and the specific conclusion read on.

SolarBee Study Shows Circulation Suppresses HABs

A new report has been published which suggested that current studies demonstrate that solar powered circulation of the top-most layer in a thermally stratified lake strongly suppressed freshwater harmful algal blooms (FHAB’s) even in nutrient-rich waters. The report states that the mechanism(s) through which solar powered circulation suppressed FHABs remains unknown, the evidence indicated that the magnitude of suppression increased over time. The study was authored by H. Kenneth Hudnell, Head Scientist for Solarbee and reviewed by Joseph Eilers also of Solarbee, Christopher Jones, Bo Labisi, Vic Lucero, Dennis R. Hill; each employees of the three SolarBee installations reviewed in the report.

Download the entire report.

The official press release announcing the study read as follows;

Invasive weed not fazed by ‘Weed Bee’ water pumps

GREGORY CROFTON
BONANZA NEWS SERVICE,

Water circulators designed to eliminate a problem weed from the Tahoe Keys Marina don’t appear to work.

Four solar-powered machines, called SolarBees, have been anchored in the Tahoe Keys Marina since last spring in an effort to slow or eliminate the growth of Eurasian water milfoil. But since the machines were installed, the invasive weed has continued to grow.

“The growth seemed to be little more intense this year,” said Richard Horton, co-owner of the Tahoe Keys Marina. “I can’t see any (change), unhappily.”

AQMD Issues Violation To Local Water District

The Mission Viejo Dispatch recently referenced the comments of Joel Bleth, President of Solarbees,  posted on the No Solarbee website on November 9, related to the water problems on Oso Reservoir.   The entire article is posted as follows.

by MissionViejoDispatch.com on November 19, 2009

The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued a Notice of Violation (NOV) to the Santa Margarita Water District on November 11 for causing a public nuisance as a result of the numerous complaints received due to odors from Oso Reservoir.

In a 6-page report dated yesterday, the AQMD reviewed its findings regarding the odor and the remediation efforts taken by the Water District.  Many residents contacted the AQMD.  Complaints included the odor and related coughs, throat irritation, asthma episodes and other symptoms during the period from October 28. Although recognizing the presence of sulphur compounds, including hydrogen sulfides, the report categorized health effects as “temporary:” 

Based on ambient air sampling and analysis done in the residential and commercial areas, AQMD believes that although the type and concentration of odorous compounds released from the Reservoir have caused the residents around the Reservoir some discomfort, irritation, nuisance and other temporary symptoms, the health effects should be of a transient or temporary nature and are not considered alarming or a long-term health concern.

Last week the general manager of the Santa Margarita District, John Schatz, told the Dispatch there was concern that new equipment installed in March 2008 may have contributed to problem.  Four “Solarbees” were placed in the water then for aeration, and the District wants to investigate whether they contributed to a water quality problem at the bottom of the reservoir.  A letter from the President of Solarbees, Joel Bleth, posted the Company’s view of the Oso situation on the No Solarbee website on November 9:

SolarBees Inc Comment on Oso Reservoir

We recently received a comment from Joel Bleth, President of SolarBees, Inc that provided additional information related to recent events at Oso Reservoir. Since comments are not displayed as promently as posts we have created this post which contains Mr. Bleth’s comments provided on November 03, 2009 related to the post entitled “Algae Stink No Health Risk In Oso Reservoir“.

Joel Bleth Says:

November 9, 2009 at 2:41 pm e

Hello, Devil Lake stakeholders.

As president of SolarBee, Inc. I have been meaning to send you a note from time time to time. This is the first one, and it will be a short one on Lake Oso problems.

Basically, in a nutshell, you should know that Lake Oso, mentioned above, is not a “lake” in the regular sense of the word. Since 2008, instead of being supplied with fresh water as it was for years, Lake Oso now serves as a large “wastewater reuse pond” for irrigation. It now receives and discharges about 5-8 mgd of treated wastewater per day, from 2 plants, typically at < 10 mg/l of Carbon BOD, < 10 mg/l of Nitrogen, < 1 mg/l of Phosphorus.

Depending on the season and lake elevation, this body of treated wastewater can range from over 100 surface acres and 65 ft deep, to 35 acres and 30 ft deep, or anywhere in-between.

For SolarBee, Inc. this is a new, fascinating and important project, because wastewater is virtually never stored in a large and deep reservoir such as Lake Oso. In these reservoirs there can be huge problems with low oxygen throughout most of the water column, the cost-prohibitive ongoing waste of grid energy if aeration alone is relied on to solve the problems, algae bloom issues due to high nutrients as with all wastewater ponds, and the production of sulfur-based odorous compounds at the sediment which can escape at turnover.

The use of Lake Oso to receive and discharge treated wastewater, unique today, may become commonplace in the future. In California, a US leader in water resuse, only about 15% of water is being reused, and that figure needs to rise dramatically if we hope to have enough water to go around in the future. And an important part of the solution will be the knowledge to deal with water quality problems in large deep wastewater reservoirs such as Lake Oso. That’s why SolarBee machines are in Lake Oso. We have had success in hundreds of “normal” shallower wastewater ponds, and have a good chance of solving the problems in Lake Oso. In 2009, despite the November odor event, there were far less water quality problems than in 2008. And in 2010, I think even more progress can be made.

In short, the takeaway point for your group is that if you ever decide that Devil’s Lake water quality needs improving, there is one company in the US that is fulltime tackling the toughest reservoir problems in the country.

Thanks for your interest and for reading this!

Joel Bleth, President, SolarBee, Inc.

Algae Stink No Health Risk In Oso Reservoir

In June of 2008 the Santa Margarita Water District replaced a bubbler aeration system with four SolarBees on Oso Reservoir in Mission Viejo Califorina. The OC Register reported on November 2, 2009 that a “foul odor sniffed by residents of Mission Viejo and Rancho Santa Margarita since Wednesday”… “The stench is the result of an algae bloom in the Upper Oso Reservoir sparked by Wednesday’s cold weather and high winds, said Dan Ferons, chief engineer for the water district.”

Dead fish line the shore of the the Upper Oso Reservoir - LEONARD ORTIZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY

The water district has taken several steps to bring oxygen levels back to normal and eliminate the odor. Mechanical aeration equipment has been used since Friday to pump air to the bottom of the reservoir. Four solar-powered pumps known as SolarBees have continued to aerate the water.

On Saturday, the water district started pumping fresh water into the lake at the rate of 200 gallons per minute; today, the rate was increased to 1,500 gallons per minute. Two boats were being used today to generate waves in order to spur oxygen intake at the surface. An external pump was also being used today to aerate the water. The water district is also considering use of a mechanical device to pump ozone, whose molecules include three atoms of oxygen, into the lake.

For more information visit the orginal articles in the OC Register.

Algae stink no health risk for south O.C., official says

New solar technology keeps water clean

Update on Blue Lake

Source: November DLWID Management Report – Paul Robertson



Blue Lake which has had 3 Solar Bee units installed since 2007 recently had a cyanobacteria bloom that caused a DHS toxin warning. A new property owner on the lake coincidentally called us thinking we had SolarBees on Devils Lake and he wanted to talk about management strategies. Through our conversation it mentioned that in fact a few weeks prior the lake did turn really green, as if green oil had been spilt. He said that it he went waterskiing since, and that it had cleared up. He estimated that it lasted approximately 2 weeks at most. I also solicited information from Joe Eilers at SolarBee who sent this email reply:

Basically, we think the bloom was initiated by a major influx of high- P water. Blue Lake has no surface inlets and loses water from evaporation through the summer. The homeowners like to have Metro request inputs of water from their back-up production wells near the lake. Around the end of August they added about 8% of the lake volume with groundwater containing about 90 ug/L PO4. That coincided with the Anabaena getting going about 10 days later. The in Sept, the lake turned over, releasing another pulse of high-P water. Anyway, we are trying to get the water quality data from Metro so we can better determine the timelines and the lake response. As soon as we have that, I’ll dive into the data and try to sort things out. Joe

Jack Strayer initiated contact with Elaine Stewart, of METRO regarding Blue Lake. She is willing to send their findings once they complete them. I have had two phone attempts at getting a preview of such findings, and anticipate a call back.