The Declination Of Lake Sturgeons

Introduction: The purpose of this research is to determine whether there has been a change in the overall water quality of the Lake Tarpon Basin, and if so, whether the quality has improved or worsened. The variables that will determine whether the quality has changed are: nutrients (phosphates and nitrates) and dissolved oxygen (DO). The expected changes are lower dissolved oxygen levels (from the already low levels), higher nitrogen levels (from the already high nitrogen levels), and the state qualifications still are not met for nutrients and dissolved oxygen (Levy, Flock, Burnes, Myers, Weed, River 2010). This topic relates to environmental management because the changes in water quality would be due to pollution, which relates to the question “How does human activity lead to the pollution of water stores?” The hypothesis that will be tested is that Lake Tarpon’s water quality will have worsened since the last measurements by Levy, Flock, Burnes, Myers, Weed, and Rivera in 2010.

Claim: Pollution could affect wildlife like fish, birds, and others by hurting or killing them due to trash or litter stuck in weeds or floating above the water in the air.

More than 24 billion gallons of untreated sewage waste and storm water are pumped into the lakes annually. Pollution is increasing as well, due to the cottage development, where people enjoy spending their summers relaxing. For many years, the lake habitats have been affected by pollution and habitat destruction. The market for fish is tremendous; so much so, that we have depleted our fishing resources, and have had to market on invasive species.

The Title of this essay is called “What is the Major Problems with Pollutants on the Great Lakes”. The essay explains that there is a problem going on in the Great Lakes with people who live around the Great Lakes area in that what they are throwing into the lakes; whether it would be from trash or fecal matter it is all causing major effects on the ecosystem on the Great Lakes, in turn effecting the fish and water we consume. This is not only a major problem for the lakes but also the humans that depend on those lakes.

The Great lakes have had many struggles throughout the years. Such as, invasive species, pollution, and habitat loss. All of these affected the lake in a bad way and here is how.

Just a few miles away, our Great Lakes are being ravaged by plastic particles being released throughout. Issues around the world regarding water have always been prevalent. Dehydration kills about 2.2 million children every year. We can not stand idle by as a possible solution degrades daily right next to us. Lake Erie is known as the most polluted of the Great Lakes however, Lake Michigan is close behind. Due to the boom in industry in the Milwaukee and Chicago areas during the Industrial Revolution, and the disregard of the environmental impact, Michigan has already absorbed a large amount of pollutants. Only one percent of the water in the Great Lakes leave the

Regier, H. A., Whillans, T. H., Christie, W. J., & Bocking, S. A. (January 01, 1999). Over-fishing in the Great Lakes: the context and history of the controversy. Aquatic Ecosystem Health & Management, 2, 3,

Garbage in the Great Lakes are harming the Earth and making it unhealthy. Garbage is especially harming the animals and the Garbage is polluting the water. How should we prevent people from littering. Also how can we make the Earth more healthy?

What if Long Lake had no fish? Would it still be the same lake? Pretty soon they won't be. Water pollution is rampant in the entire country and humans are the cause. The major contributor to water pollution in Minnesota is contaminants in runoff that make its way to pollute watersheds. Everyday water drainage or runoff that is not redirected causes pollution. Many household products with water usage such as soaps and detergents include phosphorus and also contribute to water pollution.

Bioindicators of stream health include blackfly larvae, caddisflies, and algae. The presence of blackfly larvae indicates sewage pollution. Caddisflies indicate higher  O2 concentrations. The presences of algae can indicate different things. If algae is absent, there may not be enough nutrients to support its growth. Thick algae indicates eutrophication.  Previous studies by the Colorado Department of Health Water Quality Control Commission in 1981 show comparable amounts of dissolved  O2 as well as pH, nitrite, and nitrate levels in both Cherry and Bear creek. The  NH 3 levels were much higher in Cherry Creek at .10 mg/L compared to Bear creek where the  NH 3 levels were at .06 mg/L (Colorado 1981). In today’s society, it is important to find a balance between preserving the natural ecosystem and accommodating the wants, needs, and desires of the humans who affect it. (Meyer 1997). Pollution is inevitable but should be considered and kept as low as reasonably achievable.

Overfishing, dams, and pollution, are the main causes of the decrease in number of this species. Pollution is one of the causes of their endangerment because it causes the fish to get sick and develop deformities. Sturgeon are vulnerable to low oxygen levels. Low oxygen is caused by pollution and algae that

For our research project, we did our project over the Pallid Sturgeon. We researched why Pallid Sturgeons are going extinct and what we can do to restore them. What we had finalized as our final project was to look up the information about the Pallid Sturgeon and why they are going extinct. Our parts were distributed amongst everyone and I did the research regarding the recovery plan for the Pallid Sturgeon. I did all my research using the internet and finding scholarly sources. The main source for a plan that I used was from the fws.gov website. This was a plan from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. This plan was originally approved in 1993 but since then has been revised.

Another form of industrial waste that contributes to water pollution is acid rain. Acid rain is a product of industries burning coal. The burning of coal produces sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide, and when these chemicals combine with the earth’s atmosphere it forms acid rain The Northeastern part of the United States has the worst acid rain levels in the world. More specific, the states with the highest concentration are Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and some boarding parts of Canada and New England area. The falling acid rain can destroy plants and animals in several different ways. The acidification of a lake, river, or stream because of the high acidic levels in the water kills algae. Since algae are the main source of food, for many species of fish, they will also suffer from the high acid levels.

This causes smaller aquatic fish to die off, and this eventually causes bigger aquatic fish who rely on consuming the smaller aquatic fish to die (Jobin, "Dams and Disease"). Before one knows it, a domino effect has occurred. Aquatic ecosystem services are even affected because they die from too many nutrients. Ecosystems can’t thrive without these ecosystem services because they tend the ecosystem such as caring for plants, et cetera (Newell, "The Globalization and Environment Reader").

Water pollution affects plants and organisms living in these bodies of water; and, in almost all cases the effect is damaging not only to individual species and populations, but also to the natural biological communities.