Enhancing A Farm Owner's Large Pond
Aquatic Weed and Algae Control Case Study
Location and Acreage:
Hellertown, PA | .25-Acers
Project Timeframe:
2016 to 2017
Project Managers:
John Phelps, Environmental Scientist & Senior Business Development Consultant
Key Staff:
Wes Allen, Territory Leader
Gavin Ferris, Ecologist
Todd Prater, Aquatic Specialist
Site Description:
The property is a gentleman’s large farm located in Hellertown, Pennsylvania. The property includes a quarter-acre spring-fed embankment pond. The pond was filled with cattails and other invasive plants. Over time, detritus accumulation had reduced the pond’s volume. The ailing pond also needed minor structural repairs.
Scope of Work:
Wetland Delineation, Bathymetric Study, Vegetation Clearing, Detritus Removal, Structural Repairs, Aeration Installation, Beneficial Planting, Fish Stocking
Project Description:
Starting in the spring of 2016, SOLitude Lake Management completed wetland delineation on the property to collect data points, inventory vegetation and determine the boundaries of the aquatic ecosystem.
SOLitude then mapped the pond’s contours and structural components to quantify accumulated detritus volume. Throughout the process, SOLitude partially dewatered the pond, cleared and removed all cattails and other unwanted vegetation surrounding the pond, and made structural repairs including; embankment fortification, outlet riser stand replacement, emergency spillway rock installation and creation of mulch walking paths surrounding a portion of the pond’s perimeter.
In the spring of 2017, Aquatic Specialists installed 1,100 two-inch plugs of beneficial aquatic plants, perennial grasses and flowers within the pond littoral shelf and surrounding the pond’s terrestrial perimeter, creating a healthy vegetative buffer to filter pollutants from stormwater runoff and prevent future bank erosion. A Vertex Air One compressed aeration system was also installed to provide adequate pond turnover and increase dissolved oxygen. Last, Fisheries Biologists stocked the pond with minnows and Largemouth Bass.
Map of Wetland Area:
Bathymetric Map of Pond:
