Skip to content

Eliminating the smell of Jessie Lake

Now that the Lakeland Industry and Community Association (LICA) knows where the smell is coming from, they need to do something about it.
The LICA is putting their plan in motion, and will be conducting further tests on Jessie Lake this summer.
The LICA is putting their plan in motion, and will be conducting further tests on Jessie Lake this summer.

Now that the Lakeland Industry and Community Association (LICA) knows where the smell is coming from, they need to do something about it.

Colin Hanusz, manager of the LICA said the odour coming from Jessie Lake is a top priority, but how they plan on tackling the issue isn't set in stone.

"We're looking at doing a multi-pronged approach for Jessie Lake. Aeration is part of it; education is another, because we need to start reducing the toxins that go into the lake. That's just getting town residents to buy-in and reduce their impact on our local watershed," he explained.

This summer, the LICA plans on conducting further water testing after air quality samples taken by the organization last year revealed high levels of Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) gas coming from the lake.

"We're also going to be doing some riparian restoration around Jessie Lake. This part is a go for sure. We've been working with the Town of Bonnyville to do some planting of trees along the riparian area, that will be a big part of it, and that can help restore water quality," Hanusz said.

Using data from last summer's water samples, the LICA is brainstorming possible solutions to the problem.

"We are using that data to come up with some potential options to resolve the smell of Jessie Lake," stated Hanusz.

One option that seems viable is aeration. This is a process used by other municipalities with storm pond issues similar to that of Jessie Lake.

For them, it has proven successful, but the LICA isn't sold on the idea quite yet.

"The issue at Jessie Lake is it's so large. Most of the storm water from the Town of Bonnyville does drain into Jessie Lake, so it has become storm water storage for the town. Overland pollutants that come from the town end up in Jessie Lake and they stay there because Jessie Lake is a lake that has no outflow streams, essentially becoming a storm water pond," Hanusz explained. "The potential solution to this is aeration, which has shown to improve this issue, but it hasn't been done on a water body as large as Jessie Lake."

The LICA isn't sure if aeration is the solution to their scented-woes, but the association is willing to give it a shot.

Their plan is to run a pilot project, but first they have to get the proper permit and funding in place.

"The big part will be the funding of it, because it could end up being quite expensive to resolve that issue," Hanusz added.

Before they can get started, the LICA will be conducting further water sampling of the lake.

This will require manpower, said Hanusz.

"This process includes five samplings throughout the year. We actually need to get a fishing boat onto the lake where we can do a depth profile and oxygen contents, just so we can get a full profile of data, which will help further resolve the issue."

The LICA is hoping a volunteer will step forward and offer not only their time, but also their boat.

Until they acquire the proper permits, the LICA can't move forward with testing out their aeration theory.

Hanusz noted, "The sampling that we have done with both the air and the water has shown the cause of the problem. We have identified some potential solutions that we're still doing some studies on... Our long-term objective is to restore the water quality in Jessie Lake through a number of ways."

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks