United States                 EPA-600/3-81-01 6
               Environmental Protection           April 1981
               Agency
vvEPA        Research and
               Development
               The Dilution/Flushing
               Technique in
               Lake Restoration
               Prepared for

               Office of Water Regulations and
               Standards
               Criteria and Standards Division
               Prepared by
               Environmental Research Laboratory
               Corvallis OR 97330

-------
                                                EPA-600/3-81-016
                                                April 1981
THE DILUTION/FLUSHING TECHNIQUE IN LAKE RESTORATION
                        by
                    E.  B.  Welch
          Department of Civil Engineering
             University of Washington
             Seattle, Washington 98195
                  Project Officer

                Spencer A.  Peterson
                Freshwater Division
    Corvallis Environmental Research Laboratory
       U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
              Corvallis, Oregon 97330
    CORVALLIS ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LABORATORY
        OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
       U.S.  ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
              CORVALLIS, OREGON 97330

-------
                                  DISCLAIMER

     This  report  has  been  reviewed by  the Corvallis  Environmental  Research
Laboratory, U.S.  Environmental  Protection  Agency,  and approved  for publica-
tion.   Approval  does not signify  that the  contents necessarily  reflect the
views  and  policies  of the  U.S.   Environmental  Protection  Agency,   nor  does
mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recom-
mendation for use.

-------
                                   ABSTRACT

     Dilution/flushing has  been documented as an  effective  restoration tech-
nique for Moses and Green Lakes in Washington State.   The dilution water added
in both  lakes  was  low in nitrogen and phosphorus content relative to the lake
or normal  input  water.   Consequently, lake nutrient  content  dropped predict-
ably.   Dilution  or  flushing  rates  were  about  ten  times normal  during  the
spring-summer periods in  Moses Lake and three times normal on an annual basis
in Green  Lake.   Improvement  in quality (nutrients,  algae,  and transparency)
was  on  the  order of 50 percent in  Moses  Lake and even greater in Green Lake.

     The facilities for supplying dilution water were largely in place for the
cited lakes; thus,  costs  for water transport were minimal.   Available facil-
ities,  and  therefore costs,  for  water transport would  usually vary greatly,
however.  Achieving  maximum  benefit from the technique may be more limited by
availability of  low  nutrient  water  rather  than  facilities  costs.   Quality
improvement may occur from physical effects of washout and instability if only
high nutrient water is available.
                                      m

-------
                                   CONTENTS



Introduction 	  1



Theory and Predictions 	  1



     Short Term	2



     Long Term	2



Case Studies of Dilution/Flushing	3



     Moses Lake	3



     Green Lake	9



General Application	10



Summary	11



References	13

-------
                                 INTRODUCTION

     The technique  of dilution/flushing can achieve  lake  quality improvement
by  one  of  at  least  two processes.  On  the one  hand,  the  concentration  of
limiting nutrient  can be reduced,  and  on the other  hand,  the  water exchange
rate in the  lake  can  be increased.  Both  changes  can result in reductions  in
the biomass  of plankton algae  because  loss  rates exceed  algal  growth  rate.
The effect of  dilution  is  to primarily  reduce the growth rate and of flushing
to  increase  the loss rate,  but when increased inputs of  low  nutrient  water
occur,   both  effects can result.   Other effects of adding  dilution  water are
also possible, such as increased vertical  mixing and a decrease in the concen-
tration  of  algal   excretory  products,   which  can  influence  the  kinds  and
abundance of algae.

     The technique  is most  appropriate  where large quantities of low nutrient
water are  available for  transport  to the lake needing restoration.   The  lower
the concentration of  limiting  nutrient  in the dilution water relative to that
in  the   lake,   the  greater  will  be the  treatment  effectiveness.   In  some
instances,  improvements  may be  achieved  by adding water of  even moderate  to
high nutrient  content;  however, results  would  be less certain  than  with low
nutrient water.

     Dilution  has produced  striking improvements in the quality of Green Lake
in Seattle (Oglesby,  1969)  and in  Moses Lake in eastern Washington (Welch and
Patmont, 1979;  Welch, 1979;  and Welch and Patmont,  in  press).   The technique
has been  used  intentionally  in at  least  one other  situation; Lake Bled  in
Yugoslavia was flushed  with water  from  River  Radovna  (Sketelj and  Rejic,
1966).   It  has been  proposed  or  considered  for four other  lakes:   three  in
Washington State  and Clear  Lake  in  California (Goldman,  1968).   Relatively
high natural rates  of dilution/flushing maintaining low phytoplankton concen-
trations is  a  commonly  observed phenomenon (Dillon,  1975;  Dickman,  1969; and
Welch,  1969).

     The  theoretical   basis  for  the  dilution/flushing  technique  will  be
discussed  followed  by a summary of results  from Moses Lake and Green  Lake.
Finally, some  suggestions for  application of the technique in general will  be
given.

                            THEORY  AND PREDICTIONS

     The mechanisms  involved in dilution/flushing techniques for the control
of algal  biomass  in lakes are  in  many  ways analogous to those in  continuous
culture systems.  By  adding  low-nutrient  dilution water to  a culture system,
the inflow  concentration of  limiting water is  reduced,  the maximum biomass
concentration  possible in the  reactor vessel is likewise reduced and,  at the
same time,  nutrients and algal  biomass are more  rapidly- washed from the

-------
reactor vessel since the  water  exchange rate is increased.   Concentration  of
limiting nutrient is the  critical  parameter that determines  algal  biomass  in
lakes  as  well  as  continuous  culture  systems.   Therefore,  the  controlling
factor can be analogous in the two environments.

     There is  a  significant  difference  between  the effect of  "dilution"  and
"flushing."    Flushing  emphasizes what  goes  out  of  the  lake  and  can  be
described as  loss  of  biomass  without consideration  of the  concentration  of
nutrients and their subsequent effect on growth.   Dilution,  on the other hand,
emphasizes what  is  left  in  the  lake  and  implies  a  reduction  in  nutrient
concentrations to limit further growth as well  as a  washout of biomass.

     There is an additional  factor that greatly influences the lake concentra-
tion  and  that  is  sedimentation,  which  is  not  considered  in  continuous
cultures.   At  very high  rates  of water exchange,  the  sedimentation  loss  can
decrease and  result in higher  lake  concentrations  than  at moderate  exchange
rates where sedimentation  loss is greater.

Short Term

     The transient  reduction in  lake  concentration of  a nutrient by  adding
dilution water in  rather  large  quantities can be reasonably  predicted  in the
short term by a simple continuity equation:


                           r  = c  +  (C  - C ^
                            t    i   *• o    i;


where C. is the concentration of time t, C.  is  the concentration in the  inflow
       t                                  I
water,  C   is the initial  lake  concentration,  and p is the water exchange  or

flushing  rate.   This  equation  assumes  that the  lake is well  mixed, that  no
other sources of nutrients exist, and that the  limiting nutrient "percent lake
water" can be treated as conservative.   Since this  equation does not include a
sedimentation term, it is  really only useful in the  short-term as a tracer for
nutrient behavior and with rather large water exchange rates,  that is, several
percent per day or more.  It allows one to estimate  the potential for reducing
lake  concentrations  with  a  given  source of water and  the  time necessary for
that reduction.

Long Term

     To predict  long-term changes in  the  concentration  of  limiting  nutrient
from adding rather small quantities of low-nutrient  dilution water, a term for
sedimentation  should  be  included.   That requirement  is  best approximated_by
Vollenweider's (1969,  1976)  equation for steady-state phosphorus content (P):
                                 p = 	b	
                                     Z(p + a)

-------
where  L  is  the area! loading rate for P, Z is mean depth and p and a are rate
coefficients for flushing and sedimentation, respectively.

     Uttormark and  Hutchins  (1978)  have evaluated the use of that and similar
equations  for estimating  the  long-term effect  of dilution  water  addition.
They noted  that  adding  more water with  lower  nutrient content also increases
nutrient  loading,  while  the  resulting  increased  flushing   rate  can  also
decrease the loss through sedimentation.  The processes could be counteracting
in  some  instances,  since "a reduction  in the  influent concentration tends to
reduce in-lake concentration, but a reduction in phosphorus retention tends to
increase  in-lake concentrations."   Figure  1  (from  Uttormark and  Hutchins,
1978)  illustrates this  phenomenon for a dilution water  concentration  that is
40  percent  of  the normal  inflow  concentration.   An  increase   in  combined
flushing  rate  (p2)  obtained by adding  low-nutrient water could theoretically
increase  the  lake  nutrient  concentration  if the  original  rate  (px)  was low
enough—0.1 yr-1 or so.   If the flushing rate is large initially (> 1.0 yr-1),
a reduction  in  lake concentration will  result,  but large quantities of water
will be necessary.

                       CASE STUDIES OF DILUTION/FLUSHING

     Two  lakes  where dilution  is in  use can  be used as guides  to  apply the
technique,  and  both  are  in  the  State of  Washington.   Moses  Lake  lies  in
Eastern Washington,  has  an area of 2,753 ha and a mean depth of 5.6 m.  Dilu-
tion water  from the  Columbia River  has been  added to  it  during the  spring-
summer periods of  1977-80  and that practice will continue.   Green Lake has an
area of 104 ha and a mean depth of 3.8 m.  It has received dilution water from
the city domestic supply beginning in 1965 and continuing to the present.   The
suitability of dilution  water for the restoration  of  these lakes is apparent
from the  large  differences between lake and inflow nutrient concentrations as
a result  of  adding  dilution water.   The ratios  of  lake:inflow concentrations
range from 5 to 10.

Moses Lake

     Dilution water  from the  Columbia River has been  added to Parker Horn in
Moses  Lake  through  the  U.S.  Bureau of  Reclamation's  East Low  Canal  and Rocky
Coulee Wasteway  (Figure 2).   Plans  by Brown and Caldwell  Engineers  call for
the addition  of  dilution water to Pelican  Horn  as  well  as to  the upper  main
arm (see  inset  Figure  2) in two remaining project phases.  Although a variety
of  input  patterns was  desired for experimental  purposes during  the  spring-
summer periods,  those desires  have  been only partly  attained.  Three  periods
of  dilution were  provided  in  1977 and  1979, but only one in 1978.  The total
number of  days of  dilution  ranged from 60 to  138, and  the average exchange
rates during April-September  for  Parker Horn,  where the  water  enters  (Figure
2),  ranged  from  0.07 to 0.13 day-1.   The normal  summer  exchange  for that arm
is  0.01 day-1.   For the whole lake,  the Parker Horn inflow (excluding ground-
water  and  flow  from  Rocky  Ford Creek into  the  main  arm)   represented  an
exchange rate of only 0.06  to 1.0 percent per day.

-------
                                         o w
                                         c .c
                                         •r- O






/
, A 1
CM 1 _ 1 O • iS-

o ' oj «• / |2
II
r?
Q.

r
ly
j "cvjj "CM, / "cvj
1 1 H * -
1 ' //
1 / //
/ "
i
(/, , ,
o o o o o o
^- CM CM ^ CO
- ° d
    Q
                                  I'l
                                         ro
                                         Jt
                                         _
                                         C
                                         O
                                  CD
     X
     CO
     •D

     U_
NOIlVdlN3DNOO d
    NI  39NVHO lN30d3d
                                           IN
                                           Q.
           c
           •i- -0
            0)

           o re
           •i- U
           •»-> T-
           re T3
           i- C
           -P •!-
           c
           Q> ,«
           g.S
           o
           U a)
           11
           si
                                         •r- T3
                                         T3 
           o u oo
           
           I— o i—
                                         0)

                                         3
                                         cn

-------
       MOSES  LAKE, WASHINGTON
LAKE OUTLETS
                                              FROM
                                              EAST
                                              LOW
                                              CANAL

                                            ROCKY
                                            COULEE
                                            WASTE WAY
    MOSES LK.
    STATE PARK
                                          4 MILES

-------
     The suitability of Columbia River water for dilution can be seen in Table
1.   Because the  P  and N concentrations in  Crab  Creek  are so high,  relatively
large quantities  of Columbia River water  (25  pg I-1)  are needed to signifi-
cantly  lower  the composite  inflow  concentration which is necessary to lower
the  lake  concentration.   This  results  in larger  exchange  rates than  would
otherwise be necessary without the Crab Creek inflow.   Unfortunately, however,
the diversion of Crab Creek is economically infeasible.


TABLE 1.  INFLOW CONCENTRATIONS TO  PARKER  HORN DURING  MAY-SEPTEMBER, 1977 AND
          1978 (ug I-1)


                                   Total P      Total N       P04-P       N03-N
Inflow Without Dilution
East Low Canal Dilution Water
148
25
1,331
308
90
8
1,096
19

     As a short term phenomenon, the addition of dilution water to Moses Lake,
Washington predictably and  rapidly  replaced  lake water as judged  by  specific
conductance  measurements  (Figure  3).   Values  for  percent  lake  water  were
calculated assuming  that 100 percent  was represented  by the conductance  of
Crab Creek and  0  percent by the conductance  of Columbia River water.   Percent
lake water reached  values  of 20 in Parker Horn (where the water enters),  much
less than  in  other  parts of the lake.   This  was expected because the average
dilution rate during  the April  to June dilution period described here was 15%
day-1  for  Parker  Horn,  which  is  a  small  (8  percent)  portion of  the  lake
volume.  The  dilution  rate decreased,  of  course,  as  more  lake volume  was
included.  As the  dilution water  input declined in  June,  the percent  lake
water quickly rose to between 50 and 60 percent.  Part of that increase was no
doubt caused by wind pushing lake water into  Parker Horn.

     Because  Moses  Lake  is rather dissected and most  of the  lake's  volume
(63%) appeared out of a direct path of the inflow, dilution water was  expected
to  have  little effect other than  in  Parker Horn and  the lower  lake, which
together  represent  29   percent  of  lake  volume.    However,  the  lake  water
residual decreased  similarly in  the  whole  lake as  well  as  the  lower lake.
Lake water residuals  reached levels between  50 and 60 percent in late May and
early June and  then began the more gradual return to normal  as dilution input
declined.  In fact,  there  was  little difference between  actual  and  predicted
removal of lake water in the whole and lower  lake (Figure 3).

     Improvement of  lake quality  in 1977-79, compared to 1969-70, was near or
in  excess  of 50  percent for P  and N  as well as chlorophyll a  for  not  only
Parker  Horn,   but  also  most  of the  lake  (Table  2).   Visibility   was  also
substantially  improved.   Of  course,   improvement  was  better in  Parker  Horn
where  the  fraction  of  dilution  water  was  greater,  but most  of   the  lake
responded  almost  as  well.   As  noted earlier,  the  dilution water was distrib-
uted  throughout the  lake,  largely  due  to  the wind  and probably the large

-------
T 40
'o
O)
nT 2°
r^
1 1
^T DILUTION WATER

1 — 1

          100 r
           80
       LU
       LU
       h-
       z
       LU
       O
       tr
       LU
       Q.
           60
40
           20
            0
                                        8«   !
                                                        O
O
                                o
              APR
                     MAY
   JUN
Figure 3.  Residual  percent  lake  water  in  Parker  Horn  (Station  7,  open
          circles),  the lower lake (Station 9, closed circles), and the whole
          lake  (triangles)  compared to that predicted  (based on an  average
          inflow) for the whole lake and  Parker Horn in response to dilution
          water addition in 1978.  Parker  Horn, the lower lake, and the whole
          lake  represent 8,  21, and 100 percent of the lake  volume.  Dotted
          lines represent predicted values.

-------
TABLE 2.   AVERAGE APRIL-SEPTEMBER DILUTION RATES AND MAY-SEPTEMBER CHLOROPHYLL
          a, TOTAL PHOSPHORUS,  AND SECCHI VISIBILITY FOR TWO PORTIONS OF MOSES
          LAKE  DURING  THE  SPRING-SUMMER PERIODS OF  1977-79 COMPARED  TO  THE
          CONTROL YEARS 1969-70.   PERCENT IMPROVEMENT IN (0-100%)

Years
Dilution Rate,
% Day-1
Total P,
ug I-1
Chi a,
|jg I-1
Secchi ,
m
1969-70
1977-79
No Dilution
    10.0
       PARKER HORN

8 Percent of Lake Volume

          158
           71 (54%)

58 Percent of Lake Volume
71
26 (63%)
0.6
1.3 (54%)
1969-70
1977-79
No Dilution
10.0
158
71 (54%)
71
26 (63%)
0.6
1.3 (54%)

volumes introduced  (Welch  and  Patmont,  in press).   Part of the improvement in
areas away  from  Parker Horn is considered to  be  due to the natural depletion
of usable fractions of nutrients with time.

     Presentation  of  means  for  the  May-September  period obscures  the  high
quality conditions,  such as visibility reaching  a maximum of 3 m  in June in
most  of  the  lake  as well  as poor  quality  such as  maximum chlorophyll  a
reaching  peaks near 50 ug I-1  in  late  July-August after water input had been
curtailed  for 2-4 weeks.   Unless water  was  continually  added, blooms  would
return  as the fraction  of dilution  water  left  in  the lake  declined.   This
"boom and bust" situation promoted by large inputs followed by no input at all
has  prompted  the  proposing of  continual input at  low rates  throughout the
summer, employing  similar  total  amounts  of water.  The large quantities added
over a  short  period of time,  that exchanged  water in Parker Horn at the rate
of about  20 percent per day and  in  most  of the lake  at  2-3  percent per day,
are  probably  unnecessary  considering  the  general  response  of   the  phyto-
plankton, particularly the blue-greens, to dilution water  addition.

     The  exact  cause(s) for  the improvement  of  Moses Lake  quality from the
addition  of Columbia  River water  is not entirely clear.  Several possibilities
exist,  and  these  have been discussed elsewhere (Welch and Patmont,  in press;
and Welch,  in press).  Of the  nutrients  and  particulate fractions  that could
account for the decreased biomass, total  N appears most important.   Soluble N,
rather  than P, has always been the nutrient that most  frequently limits growth
rate  in  Moses  Lake.   Although  soluble  N  was   not  appreciably  reduced by
dilution,  total  N was and appeared to  set  the limit  on average chlorophyll a
and  probably  biomass  as  well.   One  lake N was decreased below  about 600 ug
I-1, chlorophyll a  likewise decreased (Welch,  in press).

-------
     Other factors contributed  to  the biomass decrease as well.   The physical
loss of algal  cells  by washout no doubt affected biomass in Parker Horn where
high rates  of exchange  (20-25% day-1) existed.  However,  instability  of the
water column,  as  indicated by decreased vertical temperature  gradient,  prob-
ably contributed to  the  crash and/or prevention of  blue-green blooms there as
well as elsewhere  in the lake (Welch, in press).   Because the flotation capa-
bility of  blue-greens provides  them with advantages over  greens  and diatoms
when mixing  is poor,  decreased stability may  hinder the  dominance  of blue-
greens.

     There  are yet   other  factors  resulting  from  dilution  that  may  have
contributed  to reduced  biomass of  algae and  reduce  contribution  by  blue-
greens.    Some of  those  considered  are:   iron limitation  of the  N  fixation
process in blue-greens,  a  reduction  in free  C02  favoring greens  and diatoms,
and  the  dilution  of  excretory  productions   of blue-greens  decreasing  their
inhibition of  diatoms  and  greens (Patmont, 1980;  Welch and Patmont, in press;
and Welch, in press).

     Although  the  specific  cause(s)  for the  improvement is unclear, attaining
a  lake  water  residual  of  50  percent or  less  provided desirable  results  in
Moses  Lake.    Dilution  of   lake  water  to  fractions  between 40  and 65% was
attained during mid-summer  in various areas  of Moses Lake during 1978 (Figure
2), along with mean chlorophyll a values of about 14 |jg I-1, when the exchange
rate in Parker Horn  was  0.07 day-1.   Therefore, a conservative estimate of an
adequate dilution rate for Parker Horn would  be around 0.05 day-1  or a flow of
dilution water of about 6  m3  sec-1.   That would represent  a  3:1  dilution of
Crab Creek,  which  flows  at about 1.52 m3  day-1 in  summer.   Such a flow would
represent about 87 x 106 m3 of dilution water for the entire summer.  In 1978,
about 112  x  106  m3 of dilution  water entered the lake,  but  over  a two-month
period.   Thus, slightly  less  total  water volume  spread  evenly  over the whole
summer  should provide  for ^  50 percent  lake  water remaining by mid-summer
throughout Parker Horn and the lower lake.

     Although  not  specifically  tested,  it seems that a continuous  low-rate
input would  be preferable  to a high rate input for  a relatively short period,
followed by complete cessation of input.   This "low-inflow"  procedure will not
reduce the lake water fraction as quickly as  the large spring output "boom and
bust" approach, but  it may, nonetheless, more  effectively  restrict the large
blooms of blue-greens during mid and late summer.

Green Lake

     The dilution  of  Green  Lake beginning in 1962 represents another case for
the  benefits  of  this  technique of  restoring lakes.   Sylvester and  Anderson
(1964)  proposed   the  manipulations,  and  Oglesby (1969)  reported the  water
quality changes.   The technique  applied to   Green  Lake was  one  of long-term
dilution at  a  relatively low rate.   The average  combined water exchange rate
was  increased  from an estimated 0.83 yr-1 to 2.3 yr-1 as  a  result of  adding
low-nutrient water from the Seattle domestic  supply.   The addition of dilution
water over 13  years  of data during 1965-1978 produced a flushing rate for the
dilution water only that ranged from 0.88 yr-1 to 2.4 yr-1.

-------
      A striking  improvement in the  chlorophyll  a,  P,  and Secchi  visibility
 depth resulted from  the dilution.   Only one pre-dilution  measurement  existed
 and post-dilution three years  of  monitoring was  not begun until  1965 in spite
 of  dilution  starting  in  1962.   Based on  these  limited data,  summer  water
 clarity  increased nearly   four-fold  and  chlorophyll  a  decreased  over  90%.
 Total P declined  to about 20 ug I-1 from a summer mean of 65 ug I-1.   A marked
 decrease  in  the  fraction of  blue-green algae was seen,  particularly  in the
 spring and early  summer.

     The percent decrease in  P concentration  is  about  what would  be  expected,
using Vollenweider's  equation for   steady-state P  and a = VP  (Uttormark  and
Hutchins,  1978).   The  expected P concentration in  Green Lake prior to dilution
and based  on  external  loading  should have  been about  80 ug I-1,  but in fact,
the  P content  was about  65 ug  I-1.   Following dilution, the  steady-state
concentration should have been  about 35 ug I-1, but it actually declined much
lower, to  about 20 ug I-1  by 1967.   The concentration decrease (45 ug I-1) is
the same,  however,  for  actual  and  expected.   The reductions in P and chloro-
phyll a in  Green  Lake occurred over  several years,  and  were closely related.
This  is  in  contrast  to  the rapid,  more  short-term  response in Moses  Lake
resulting in marked improvements in blue-green algae and chlorophyll  a content
that begin to wane when dilution is curtailed.

     The Moses  Lake and Green  Lake  cases  illustrate  the  difference  between
short-term  and  long-term dilution  schemes.   Both  have  attained  greater than
expected results in lake quality.

                              GENERAL APPLICATION

     Dilution is  frequently  used  synonomously with flushing as a restoration
technique.   In fact,  the effect of dilution includes  both  a reduction in the
concentration of  nutrients   and a  washout  of algal cells,  while  flushing may
only cause the latter.   For dilution, or a  reduction in nutrient concentration
to  occur,  the inflow water  must be  lower in concentration than that  of the
lake.   Effectiveness  will,  of  course, increase as  the  difference  between
inflow and lake concentrations becomes greater.   For washout of algal  cells to
be  an  effective control on  algal   blooms,  the  water exchange  rate must  be a
sizable fraction of or preferably approach  the algal growth rate.

     The ideal dilution scheme would be one to attain a long-term  reduction of
the  limiting  nutrient content  through  low-rate  input of low-nutrient  water.
Where  there  is  an existing high   nutrient  input,  it  should  be  diverted if
possible in order for the low dilution rate to be  most effective.   This scheme
would provide for  reduction  in  biomass primarily  through nutrient limitation.
If  diversion  is  not  possible,  one  is  faced with  high-rate  inputs   over the
short-term  in order to  sufficiently reduce the inflow nutrient concentration.
If  only  moderate  to  high-nutrient  water is available,  a short-term dilution
may work well because the loss rate of cells  is sufficiently great relative to
the growth  rate and washout  becomes significant.   Also,  the blue-green blooms
may be discouraged by decreased water column stability.
                                       10

-------
     Costs will be  highly  variable depending upon the presence  of facilities
to deliver  the water  and  the availability  of  water.   If  the  lake  is  in an
urban  setting  and  domestic  water  is  available,  then  improvement  may  be
possible  for  less than  $100,000  for construction and first  year maintenance
and operation.  If near a free-flowing river and diversion of a portion of the
flow through  the  lake during  the  summer is feasible, then the  costs involve
that  of  facilities,   pumps  and  pipes,  operations,  and  prevention  of  side
effects (entraining fish).

     The  advantages  for  using dilution water are primarily:   (1) relatively
low  cost  if water  is  available;  (2) immediate and proven  effectiveness;  and
(3) may be  successful  even if only moderate-to-high-nutrient  water  is  avail-
able  through   physical  limitations   to  large  algal   concentrations.    The
principal   limitation   for  use is,  of  course,  that  the availability of  low
nutrient  dilution  water,  the  effect  of  which  has  been  demonstrated,  is
probably poor in most areas.

                                    SUMMARY

     Two examples  of the  use of dilution water for lake  restoration are in the
State of  Washington—Green  Lake  in Seattle and Moses  Lake in the eastern part
of the  state.   Green  Lake  received nutrients from urban  runoff and subsurface
inflow.    Domestic water, low  in  P, was added by the  City of Seattle beginning
in 1962.  The amount added  raised the water exchange  rate to an annual average
of 2.4  yr-1  from  0.83  yr-1.   After five years of treatment, the summer Secchi
visibility had changed from 1  to  4 m, chlorophyll  a  from  about 45 to 3 ug I-1,
and total  P  from  about 54  to 20 |jg  I-1.   The treatment  has  continued to  the
present.

     Moses  Lake has received low-nutrient dilution  water  from  the  Columbia
River via an irrigation canal  during  the  spring-summer periods  of  1977-79.
The average total  P concentration  for the whole lake  during spring-summer had
been normally  about 150  ug I-1 and  chlorophyll  a 45 ug  I-1  before  dilution.
Although the dilution water addition quickly reduced  the  P to about 50 ug I-1,
a much  greater  improvement  was seen in chlorophyll  a to less than 10 ug I-1.
Average post-dilution spring-summer values for P and  chlorophyll  a were 86 and
21 ug I-1.   Secchi  visibility improved from 0.9  to  1.5  m.   Dilution addition
reduced the biomass of algae  as  well as the blue-green  fraction in Moses Lake
by presumably a combination of reducing total N, decreasing  the water column
stability,  limitation  by iron, and  reducing the free C02  content, which  are
discussed  elsewhere  (Patmont, 1980; Welch  and Patmont,  in press; Welch,  in
press).

     Dilution/flushing  can  be  considered  as   an   effective  technique  for
restoring  lakes,  especially if a  supply of  low  nutrient  water exists.   The
costs involved  are the  facilities  to  deliver  the  water and  maintenance  and
operation.  In  the  case  of the two  lakes mentioned here, the facilities were
largely in  existence.   While the  irrigation  water  had  a cost,  the  Bureau of
Reclamation was able  to  deliver the water  to users  via  the  lake.   For  Green
Lake, a domestic  supply  was  used,  and with the  facilities,  the dilution  water
has  been  added since  1962  with  little  operation cost.   Thus,  the  costs  for


                                       11

-------
this  technique  may  not limit  its  use as  much as  the  availability  of  low-
nutrient water.   Even if a supply of such  water is  not readily available,  high
nutrient water may provide improvements.
                                       12

-------
                                  REFERENCES

Dickman, M.  1969.  Some effects of  lake  renewal  on  phytoplankton  productivity
     and species composition.   Limnol. and Oceanogr.  14:660-666.

Dillon,  P.  J.    1975.   The phosphorus  budget of  Cameron Lake, Ontario:   the
     importance of flushing rate relative to  the  degree  of eutrophy of a lake.
     Limnol. and Oceanogr. 29:28-39.

Goldman, C.  R.   1968.   Limnological aspects  of Clear  Lake,  California  with
     special reference  to the  proposed  diversion  of Eel River water through
     the lake,   report to  Fed.  Water  Poll. Cont.  Admin.

Oglesby, R.  T.   1969.   Effects of  controlled nutrient dilution on  the eutro-
     phication  of  a  lake.    In  Eutrophication:    causes,  consequences,  and
     correctives,  National Academy of Science,  Washington,  D.C.,  p.  483-493.

Patmont, C.  R.   1980.   Phytoplankton and nutrient responses to  dilutiion  in
     Moses Lake.  M.S. Thesis,  Univ.  of Washington,  100  pp.

Sketelj,  M.  and  M.  Rejic.    1966.   Pollutional  phases of  Lake  Bled.   Ln
     Advances  in  Water  Pollution Research.    Proc.  2nd Intl.  Conf.  Water Poll.
     Res., Pergamon Press  Ltd., London, England  1:345-362.

Sylvester, R. 0. and G. C. Anderson.  1964.   A lake's  response  to  its  environ-
     ment.   ASCE, SED 90:1-22.

Uttormark, P.  D.  and M.  L. Hutchins.   1978.   Input-output models  as  decision
     criteria  for lake restoration.   Wise.   W.R.C.  Tech.  Rept. 78-03,  61  pp.

Vollenweider,  R.  A.   1976.  Advances in  defining critical  loading  levels  for
     phosphorus  in  lake eutrophication.   Mem.   1st.  Ital.  Idrobio. 33:53-83.

Vollenweider,  R.  A.   1969.    Possibilities   and  limits   of  elementary  models
     concerning  the  budget  of  substances  in   lakes.   Arch.   Hydrobiology
     66:1-36.

Welch,  E.   B.    1969.   Factors  controlling  the   phytoplankton   blooms  and
     resulting  dissolved  oxygen in  Duwamish  River estuary,  Washington.   U.S.
     Geological Survey Supply Paper 1873-A, 62 pp.

Welch, E.  B. and C.  R.  Patmont.   1979.   Dilution effects in Moses  Lake.   EPA
     Ecological Research Series, p. 187-212.

Welch,  E.   B.   1979.   Lake   restoration  by  dilution.    In  Lake  Restoration,
     Proceedings  of  a  National  Conference, U.S.  EPA,   EPA-400/5-79-001,  pp.
     133-139.

Welch,  E.  B.  and C.  R.  Patmont.   1981.   Lake restoration by  dilution; Moses
     Lake, Washington.  Water Research,  in press.

Welch,  E.  B.   1980.   Effectiveness  of  the  dilution technique  in  Moses Lake,
     Washington.   Proceedings,  Internet.  Symposium  for  Inland  Waters  and Lake
     Rest.,  September 1980, Portland, Maine.
                                       13               « US GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1961 -757-064/0317

-------