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Effect of Lake Management Efforts on the Trophic State of a Subtropical Shallow Lake in Lakeland, Florida, USA

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Abstract

For more than a decade, Lakeland, FL, has invested in restoring its urban Lake Hollingsworth from a hypereutrophic state to its natural eutrophic state. The lake bottom was dredged of nearly 2 million m3 of accumulated organic sediments, and treatment wetlands, storm water curb inlet strainers, and a storm water baffle box were installed within the lake’s catchment area to reduce the loading of dirt, leaves, and trash to the lake. After dredging ceased, the lake was dosed one time with alum to improve water clarity and reduce phosphorus recycling from its sediments. Water quality surrogates for algal biomass— Secchi disk transparency and water column total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll-α concentrations— were reviewed to assess Lakeland’s progress towards its goal. In the years since dredging has stopped, algal biomass concentration in Lake Hollingsworth has significantly declined. Even with these improvements, however, the lake still remains hypereutrophic.

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Acknowledgments

We appreciate the help provided by the City of Lakeland Lakes and Storm Water Division, the City of Lakeland Glendale Wastewater Treatment Plant Laboratory, the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Science, Polk County Extension, and the Polk County Board of County Commissioners Environmental Management Department. This research was funded in part by Chastain-Skillman, Inc. of Lakeland, FL.

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  1. College of Public Health, University of South Florida, 13201 Bruce B. Downs Blvd, Tampa, FL, 33612, USA

    Noreen D. Poor

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Poor, N.D. Effect of Lake Management Efforts on the Trophic State of a Subtropical Shallow Lake in Lakeland, Florida, USA. Water Air Soil Pollut 207, 333–347 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-009-0140-7

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