Thread: NCDEQ says it will remove SolarBees from Jordan Lake

If they would have talked to Monk, they would have known they did not work. If you do some research on phytoplankton, you will see they need nitrogen and phosphorus to grow. What some folks see as pollution is the source of life for shad, which is the main food-source for our crappie.


RALEIGH —

The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality announced Thursday that it will remove the controversial water-churning devices known as SolarBees from Jordan Lake because they aren’t working.

The move came as the department faced mounting scrutiny for how it has handled reports about the SolarBees and dealt with water quality advisers who have questioned their effectiveness.

The General Assembly turned to SolarBees in 2014 as a cheaper water-cleaning alternative to establishing strict construction and development restrictions on upstream communities such as Greensboro.

Donald van der Vaart, secretary of the state environmental agency, said Thursday that he’ll recommend that state lawmakers find an alternative to the SolarBees in Jordan Lake because they haven’t significantly improved the water quality after 21 months in operation.

Jordan Lake, which provides drinking water to 300,000 Triangle residents, has been designated as impaired under the federal Clean Water Act. It often exceeds state standards for chlorophyll a, the green pigment in algae and plants that thrive off nutrient pollutants like nitrogen and phosphorus entering the lake.

The state spent $1.3 million to maintain 36 leased SolarBees on Jordan Lake and will save an estimated $1.5 million by removing them.

“I appreciate the work our staff has done over the last two years to evaluate the potential of the SolarBee technology to improve water quality at Jordan Lake,” van der Vaart said. “I’m discontinuing the SolarBee project after reviewing nearly two years of scientific data that show it will not yield the intended results.”

SolarBees are floating devices equipped with solar-powered pumps that churn the water in an attempt to reduce the effects of algae. DEQ reports they can make a difference in small-to-moderately-sized water bodies but have yet to improve the water in Jordan Lake and have even floated away from their anchored positions.

Read more here: NCDEQ says it will remove SolarBees from Jordan Lake | News & Observer

Oh well. Guess it bought the developers some time.