Management Alternatives Report on the Diagnostic Feasibility Study for Medicine Lake, Hennepin County, Minnesota

摘要

The results of the Medicine Lake Diagnostic Study indicate that lake water quality suffers from: inputs of high levels of nutrients via urban stormwater runoff which lead to increased algal growth and decreased transparency; hypolimnetic oxygen depletion and subsequent sediment phosphorus release (internal loading); and an imbalance in the biology of the lake which contributes to internal phosphorus loading and poor water quality. The study suggests that a lake restoration project including hypolimnetic aeration in combination with watershed management (wetlands improvements) and biomanipulation (fisheries renovation) would benefit Medicine Lake water quality most cost-effectively. Additional watershed management activities in the future are also recommended and are expected to preserve and to improve lake water quality as the watershed develops.