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Pocono News Section
DEP says stay out of a Luzerne County lake
DEP says stay out of a Luzerne County lake - Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 5:16PM EST
Tuesday, Jun 16, 2009 @ 05:16pm EST
Imagine settling in to a lake home for the summer, only to be told you can't swim, boat or do anything in the lake.
That's what's happening in one part of Luzerne county.
Sally Miller owns the first cottage ever built at North Lake .
"It was built 140 years ago so it means a lot to my family," says Miller.
Miller hopes this won't be the last summer she can enjoy the water.
The Department of Environmental Protection, or DEP, passed out these fliers asking people to stay out of the lake.
The DEP says it contains unsafe levels of algae toxins.
"I was concerned because it just means further deterioration. We just really need to get on a sewage system. I think that's the big problem," says Miller.
Sewage could be the problem says lake improvement association president Carmen Paternoster.
"We know we have a problem and I think most of the residents here, the people that are here year round know it's a septic issue more than anything else," says Paternoster.
Paternoster says more than 100 people own property at North Lake .
She says it's possible some homes sewage is running off into the lake.
There are measures in place to keep algae at bay at the lake.
Machinery circulates water in the middle of the lake to keep it from becoming stagnant.
Copper sulfate has also been used to attack the algae.
The improvement association says Wilkes University geologists and science professors are suggesting possible remedies.
The lake improvement association will meet with lake residents this Saturday.
A plan to fix the algae problem will likely be mapped out at that meeting. | | |
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