Who Cares About a Green Lake Anyways?

I did not have the clearest idea of algae blooms prior to the LAKES research program. Based on pictures and descriptions of eutrophic lakes and my own creative thoughts, I imagined that a lake with algae growth would be surrounded with caution tape and that fish with five eyes would peer out of the water at you if you got too close. Now that I am experiencing the algae bloom season myself, I recognize that my assumptions were a bit over dramatic and that the algae is definitely bad, but not as bad as I thought. While that statement sounds contradictory to the work I am performing to de-green lakes, there is no doubt that the lakes should still be much cleaner. However, my work with other students of the program has taught me that cleaning the lakes may not be the largest problem at hand. The perception of a lake covered in algae is key in identifying how the lake should be cleaned, who it should be cleaned for, and why.

The general theme of my studies thus far this summer has been wild rice- where it grows, what allows it to grow, how it affects nutrient content in water and sediment and so on. While it has been exciting and challenging in attempting to quantify these questions, I have paused from time to time in asking myself why wild rice is the plant of choice for my studies and who would actually grow it. These questions especially came to mind after spending a day on Lake Chetek last week helping distribute surveys with Monica and Elle, two other members of the LAKES Program. The focus of Monica’s research work is to understand how algae growth on a lake may affect the use of the lake. In order to accomplish this task, Monica, Elle, and other members of the program have travelled to different lakes in the Red Cedar Watershed to pass out surveys to community members and visitors of the lakes to better understand how they spend their time on the lake. From what I’ve experienced by helping out with this project, the over-arching question of their research seems to be: does anyone really care that the lake is green?  After watching people enjoy their weekend pontoon rides on a lake with a nice glossy green cover, I saw that my overly imaginative thoughts about the creatures that may lurk in a eutrophic lake were not true and that people still can enjoy a lake that is green. While many would probably be opposed to swimming in the water, most do not mind spending time on the lake with the protection of a boat. I think the research work that Monica and Elle are performing for this project is extremely critical in identifying how others perceive the lake because it sheds light on a huge question of this research which is: why are we trying to clean the lake?

After taking part in Monica and Elle’s project, I understand that a green lake is not as scary to some people as I initially imagined. This presents a predicament in my research work in identifying who I am cleaning the lake for. Despite how willing people are to enjoy a green lake, I know that my research work is significant in restoring an environment that existed before human activities like logging, damming, and farming. The growth of wild rice provides a culturally important and natural solution to decreasing nutrient levels in the lake. While I believe strongly in these reasons, I am aware that they may not be good enough for financial investments from civilians to plant the wild rice itself.

While I would love for this blog post to say that my research work on wild rice growth will save the lakes, I know that that is far from the truth, which can make research work disheartening at times but also proves the value of looking a problem from all angles. I am very excited about my research work on the growth of wild rice, but after seeing my work from a social, economic, and community-based perspective, I recognize that knowing how wild rice grows is only one piece of a larger picture to clear the lake of the green. There is difficulty in incorporating such great concepts like community and funding into my scientific studies but I know there would be little value to my work without addressing these fields. I am grateful to be working with members outside of the engineering and scientific community to understand that research work does not always give you the answer you are seeking, but helps to advance thought. If the lake is going to be less green, it is going to take much more than patches of wild rice. Rather, any change to the future of the lakes will require commitment, understanding, and a lot of communication. People from all fields of study and members of a community need to keep talking.