Thu, Nov 26 2009
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Grand Lake basin gets mixed reviews on bacteria levels The Joplin GlobeRoderick said he stays away from coves and developed areas, particularly in hot summer weather.
"Depends on where you are, I think," said Bill Castles, who said he lives four miles from the dam and also does volunteer testing. "Down-lake, we're in pretty good shape. Up-lake," he said, specifically mentioning Honey Creek and Twin Bridges, where the Spring and Neosho rivers meet, "(there's) more of a problem. The east end of the lake, up to Missouri and Kansas, they do have some problems. The state has really zeroed in on the east side of the lake." Asked if he swims in the lake, he said: "Sure, I do it every day. We're pretty comfortable down on the south end. It is amazing that it stays as clean as it does." 'Not comfortable' But another area resident, Riley Needham, has his doubts. "I have not been comfortable getting in Grand Lake for years," he said. "My children go to a neighbor's pool. They don't go to the creek like I did or the lake like I did." He said clarity is down to 1.5 feet in some areas of the lake. "When I was a kid, it was 10 feet," said Needham, who is active with Concerned Citizens for Green Country Conservation, which formed a decade ago because of water-quality degradation. Asked about Honey Creek, which comes out of Missouri, Needham said: "It has been unsafe for a decade. We have checked ourselves in the past on Honey Creek and those areas, and I can't recall pulling a sample that was safe." Needham also said a "synergism" exists between bacteria levels and "nutrient loading" of phosphates and nitrates. Sunlight kills bacteria, but in areas where excess nitrogen and phosphates cause algae blooms, the sunlight cannot penetrate, resulting in elevated bacteria levels. "We are not seeing enough strong action to reverse the trend we are seeing," he said of the region's water-quality findings. The Ottawa County (Okla.) Health Department also has an advisory against swimming in any unchlorinated water in the county, including the upper reaches of Grand Lake near Twin Bridges State Park. The Delaware County (Okla.) Health Department referred calls to the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality. 'The lake is safe' Bill Cauthron, head of the Water Quality Monitoring Section for the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, said that so far this summer, the state has not found any elevated bacteria levels in Grand Lake. 
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