2005 Results:
In 2005 Lake George had good water quality for this region of the state (NCHF Ecoregion), receiving an overall B grade. In monitoring since 1980 the lake has gotten nine A letter grades and three B’s. So, 2005 was not as good as most other years, but was still good. The primary difference was slightly higher TP in 2005, not differences in Ch-a or Secchi depth. The lake is mesotrophic. Conditions only slightly deteriorate throughout summer. Subjective observation by ACD staff were typically that “some algae” was present and there were minimal water quality issues that would affect swimming or boating.
Trend Analysis:
Eleven years of water quality data have been collected by the Metropolitan Council (between 1981 and ’94, and 1998) and the Anoka Conservation District (1997,’99, 2000, 2002, and 2005). Water quality has not significantly changed from 1980 to 2005 (repeated measures MANOVA with response variables TP, Cl-a, and Secchi depth, F 2,9= 0.19, p>0.05).
Discussion:
Lake George remains one of the clearest of Anoka County Lakes. Lake George and nearby East Twin Lake are especially valuable resources because of their condition, size, suitability for many types of recreation, and ample public access. Both will be under continued or increasing stresses from recreational usage and/or development. Continued efforts are needed to maintain the lakes’ quality including monitoring, education, and lakeshore and nutrient best management practices. One example is residential lakeshore restorations which have occurred on several properties. Because of the number of shoreland homes, failing septic systems may be a threat to the lake and a cooperative effort with the Lake George Conservation Club to conduct a shoreland septic survey is advised.Two exotic invasive plants are present in Lake George, but neither is causing intense p roblems. Curly leaf pondweed causes only a brief impairment in the spring. Eurasian Water Milfoil is also present, but does not matt to the water’s surface in most areas, perhaps partially due to control efforts orchestrated by the Lake George Conservation Club. Other aspects of the aquatic vegetation seem to be diverse and healthy, but not so prolific as to be a nuisance. In fact, a healthy native plant community may be serving to limit invasive species.