Waughop Lake is a 33-acre
kettle lake located entirely within Fort Steilacoom Park in Lakewood, WA. Its water
quality has been compromised as a result of excessive internal (from sediments)
and external (farm waste, septic systems, surface water runoff, and waterfowl)
loading of nutrients that feed persistent toxic algae blooms, which are hazardous
to fish, waterfowl, and terrestrial mammals including humans.
The toxic algae blooms
have been identified by the Tacoma Pierce County Health Department as a health
hazard, and thus the lake’s current condition constitutes a “public nuisance”
which city, county, and state law all require to be abated. The entity responsible for
accomplishing the abatement is the “property owner”, which is the State of Washington. For
nuisances involving fresh water, if the property owner fails to complete the abatement,
then the City of Lakewood is empowered under Washington State law to condemn the
property, and perform the remediation.
The primary (internal)
source of phosphorus and nutrients adversely affecting Waughop Lake is from the buildup
of nutrient rich sediments that resulted from the park’s former use as a farm operated by
patients at the nearby Western State Hospital from the late 1800s to 1965. Hospital
records show that waste products from farming, including manure from livestock
barns, were dumped into the lake. Two important secondary (external) sources of
phosphorus are septic system effluent from homes located on the highlands to the west of
the Lake and surface water runoff from the roofs and parking lots of Pierce
College which are discharged directly into Waughop Lake.
With no outlet, the
nutrients that are trapped within the lake are recycled each year to foster subsequent blooms.
Efforts to chemically inactivate the nutrients and make them unavailable to support
algae blooms in area lakes have been unsuccessful. Inactivation of phosphorus
contained in sediments with alum to prevent phosphorus release into the water column is an
expensive and relatively short lived solution for preventing recurring toxic algal blooms, as has
been shown in other area lakes including Green Lake in Seattle.
After consultation with
relevant experts on geology and lake ecology (see section 1.2 below) it is the
conclusion of the authors of this action plan that removal of bottom sediments is the best
management practice (BMP) to prevent toxic algae blooms, and restore the lake to a
healthful condition that is suitable for human recreational use and as aquatic
wildlife habitat.
A plan has been developed
for the City of Lakewood to remove the problematic bottom sediments from the lake
for offsite disposal on behalf of the State, using City and volunteer resources to the
maximum extent possible in accordance with RCW 89.08.450,and funded by the
property owner which is the State. Such removal will result in a less impaired
state for the lake and diminished incidence of algae blooms, in keeping with what
is observed in similar area lakes, and will thereby fulfill the State’s
responsibilities as property owner to mitigate the public nuisance.
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