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CITY COUNCIL <br />WORK SESSION STAFF REPORT <br />ITEM NO. 1 <br />STAFF ORIGINATOR: Andy Nelson, Environmental Coordinator <br />WORK SESSION DATE: March 4th, 2024 <br />TOPIC: Centerville Lake Aluminum Sulfate Treatment <br />______________________________________________________________________________ <br />BACKGROUND <br />Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD) has been awarded grant funding to be used for <br />improving water quality in Centerville Lake. The majority of these funds will be used for alum <br />treatments that will address internal phosphorous loading that has been responsible for algae <br />blooms and other water quality issues. <br />Matt Kocian, Lake and Stream Manager with RCWD, will be present to discuss the project and <br />answer questions from the Council. <br />Centerville Lake is an approximately 474 acre lake that has shoreland in Lino Lakes, Centerville, <br />and Rice Creek Chain of Lakes Park. The lake was added to the Minnesota Pollution Control <br />Agency’s impaired waters list in 2002 due to high levels of phosphorous and chlorophyll-a. <br />While this lake is used for boating, fishing, and swimming, recent water quality issues have <br />been impacting these uses. One symptom of the poor water quality has been blooms of toxic <br />blue-green algae fueled by high levels of phosphorous. Through a series of diagnostic studies, <br />the RCWD determined that internal phosphorus loading (i.e. recycling) from lake sediments was <br />a major driver of the algae blooms. <br />RCWD has been awarded grant funding in the amount of $954,500 from the Clean Water Fund <br />to address water quality issues in the lake. The Clean Water Fund is used to protect, enhance, <br />and restore water quality in lakes, rivers, and streams, and to protect groundwater from <br />degradation. The majority of the grant amount will be used for an aluminum sulfate (“alum”) <br />treatment to address internal phosphorous loading. Alum is a commonly used tool for <br />managing internal phosphorus loading, and has been successfully used on many lakes in <br />Minnesota and across the country. Additional funds may be used for monitoring, engineering, <br />and potentially reestablishing some native species in the lake. The alum treatments could <br />begin as early as spring 2024. <br />2