Meeting on Fernan Lake plan to improve water quality scheduled Tuesday
BILL BULEY | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 11 months, 1 week AGO
People sit on a dock at Fernan Lake on a sunny Friday afternoon.
BILL BULEY/Press
Bill Buley covers the city of Coeur d'Alene for the Coeur d’Alene Press. He has worked here since January 2020, after spending seven years on Kauai as editor-in-chief of The Garden Island newspaper. He enjoys running. | January 25, 2025 1:09 AM
The final draft of a Fernan Lake management plan is scheduled to be reviewed Tuesday at the Coeur d’Alene Public Library Community Room.
Ray Watkins, mayor of Fernan Lake Village, said it offers a multi-pronged approach to improving the lake’s water quality.
“It will get us headed in the right direction,” Watkins said Friday. “It’s a path forward.”
The meeting of the Fernan Lake Village City Council is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. Public comment is welcome.
The plan addresses short- and long-term challenges and solutions for the 400-acre lake, currently iced over, just east of Coeur d’Alene. It does not offer a definitive course of action, but rather, several options.
The plans adddresses “the reduction of phosphorus and other mitigation techniques needed to maintain and restore Fernan Lake to secure its beneficial use.”
“We don't have all the answers just yet,” Watkins said.
The city hired EutroPhix and AquaTechnex in 2023 to prepare a management plan for the lake that officials said flushes well winter to spring but reduced summer flow leads to an increase in nitrogen and phosphorus, which causes algae blooms comprised of toxic cyanobacteria.
“These blooms further degrade water quality, produce toxins that put humans and wildlife at risk, and have negative impacts on recreation, property values, and the local economy," according to the plan’s summary.
Public health advisories were issued for Fernan Lake in the past two summers. The lake is popular for boating and fishing.
"The lake has experienced poor water quality for decades," an outline from EutroPhix said.
According to plan, the city of Fernan Lake Village and stakeholders can accelerate water quality restoration by gaining consensus on a lake management plan, developing projects and going after grants.
It said short-term efforts should focus on wetland aquatic plant management, dealing with deep sediments and routine monitoring and data resources.
“There are some things we can do that are not that expensive short term that will help,” Watkins said.
The plan also calls for “rescoping the Fernan Restoration Alternatives of the Fernan Creek delta and floodplain for wetland enhancement while maintaining cultural uses.”
The majority of the watershed drains into Fernan Creek, which flows into Fernan Lake.
Previous possible solutions included rerouting Fernan Creek to slow the water and perhaps filter it better; aerate the lake with oxygen; replace lily pads in the wetlands with cattails and using chemicals that inhibit phosphorus release.
According to the plan, long-term efforts should be focused on continued watershed management to reduce phosphorus loading and assessing if additional in-lake management is needed to maintain reduced phosphorus concentrations in the dry season.
“Coordination with other stakeholders will be vital to gaining consensus, accessing funding pathways, and implementing projects through partnerships,” the plan said.
Either way, it is expected to be a costly fix.
“We’re in the millions for sure,” Watkins said.
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