Along the Ajax waterfront is a growing concern. Parts of the shoreline are covered in algae.
“It smells and it’s gross,” said Ajax resident Rachel Sutton, “I’d love to take my kids swimming here but I don’t necessarily trust it. It’s not nice to swim in.”
A team from Michigan Technological University is collecting the algae for research. They’ve been called in by the town of Ajax.
“We’d like to find out how many metric tons of rotting algae have shown up here,” said Dr. Marty Auer, who has been researching algae in the Great Lakes since 1979.
When asked about the algae in Ajax, Auer said, “This is about as bad as it gets.”
So, what’s behind the algae problem?
“It’s growth has been so stimulated by the discharge of phosphorous that it grows at nuisance proportions,” said Auer.
Auer and other experts believe the Duffin Creek Water Pollution Control Plant is the prime suspect. They say the algae bed is fed by the phosphorous released in treated sewage, which is also called effluent. The algae eventually breaks off, washes ashore and starts to rot.
The plant is jointly owned by Durham and York Regions which believe it isn’t the problem.
“Storm water run-off, the Niagara river, tributaries to the lake,” said Mike Rabeau, with Environmental Services in York Region. “If you look at all the water control plants feeding Lake Ontario, it represents 10 per cent of the phosphorous loading in the lake. If you narrow that plant, it’s only a fraction of that 10 per cent.”
Barry Laverick, project manager for the Region of Durham Works Department added, “One of the big issues is invasive mussel species and invasive species are a big part of the problem. What we have to do is, we have to understand the entire eco-system before we make expensive changes.”
There are plans to increase the amount of sewage treated from 340 million litres a day to 620 million litres in the coming years as York Region’s population is expected to grow.
The mayor of Ajax, Steve Parish, is concerned and wants the Ministry of the Environment to order York and Durham regions to do a full environmental assessment. Parish hopes the regions will be ordered to make changes.
“One is, implant technology that takes phosphorous out before it goes into the lake,” suggested Parish, “The other is extending the diffuser or outfall from the plant to a distance and depth where the phosphorous will be diluted not on shore and will not be close to where the algae grows.”
If action is not taken there are concerns the algae could stretch out on shorelines in Pickering and Whitby.
“It degrades the local economy, it degrades property values, it degrades everything you’re trying to build and create. The implications are quite far reaching” said Parish.
Is the algae dangerous?
“It’s not dangerous for people. It is an aesthetic problem. It can harbour bacteria that can cause disease. It can harbour bacteria that can contribute to avian botulism but this is not a toxic algae at all,” said Auger.
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