With the summer months in progress and high temperatures on the rise, many locations are having problems with algae and duckweed growth. Learn  how to Naturally control Algae and some proper solutions:
Typical Problem areas to control Algae in wastewater systems:
Wastewater Treatment plants
Drinking Water Plants
Clarifiers
Aeration lagoons and Ornamental Ponds
De-Chlorination contact chambers
Lakes, Rivers and Oceans

Bacteria can be used to clean the water which may help clean up water overgrown with algae and is safe and effective towards an environmental friendly algae solution

The use of non-toxic, environmentally friendly biological products like MicroClear^® 101 in lakes and ponds has become very popular recently to help clean up water overgrown with algae, because it is natural and involves no use of herbicides or  algaecides. Bacteria reduce nutrients and carbon and clean up the water.

If the proper environmental conditions are there, bacteria can grow quicker and more efficiently.

The pond is cleaner and no toxic chemicals or residuals result. Bacteria are then added on a maintenance dosage to keep the water clean and clear. Soft, natural  solutions for controlling unsightly and help meeting permits.

   Click this link or Product Picture for Product Bulletin Pdf information on this Pollution Control Product

Algae Case Histories

Blue-green algae, red algae, yellow and brown colored algae in many ponds and lagoons has been more widespread than in previous years due to higher temperatures and less oxygen transfer in ponds and lagoons, lowered rainfall, and runoff interference.

Algae or tetrads growing in any aerated lagoon systems, ponds or wastewater treatment plants can increase both the TSS and the CBOD₅ of the effluent. This can cause false high BOD and TSS levels in final effluent permits. Excess algae can also create nuisance surface scum, poor water clarity, and noxious odors. If the algae makes its way into the drinking water source, it also can impact taste.
 

Algae Control AND Solutions for Wastewater systems:    Algae production is many times correlated to the levels and ratios of excess nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) in the water. Generally, a phosphate concentration of 0.01 mg./l will support plankton, while concentrations of 0.03 to 0.1 mg./l phosphate or higher will likely trigger algae blooms (USEPA, 1986; Dunne and Leopold, 1978).

Not all algae are alike though. Many times the algae or cyanobacteria and tetrads that grow in wastewater ponds and lagoons are often times due to an excess of BOD instead of excess nutrient levels. We have worked with papermills that actually are limited by nutrients, most often Nitrogen. This impacts the floc forming bacteria. Tetrads and cyanobacteria can fix nitrogen from the sunlight, so they will then overtake the lagoons and cause serious TSS problems. Addition of nitrogen to these lagoons based upon BOD loading made the problems disappear quickly. Normal floc forming bacteria can then grow, consume excess BOD and out-compete and starve out the algae and tetrads in wastewater treatment systems.

ORNAMENTAL LAKES, PONDS AND RIVERS Algae are a source of food and energy for fish and other lake organisms and a vital part of all lakes. How do you balance too much or too little? Too much algae or the wrong type of nuisance algae, however, can interfere with lake uses by clogging the filters in water treatment plants, inhibiting the growth of other plants by clouding the water so that it shades them or out-competes with natural plant life. As the natural plant life then decays--more oxygen depletion occurs and fish kills increase. Some species of algae can also release toxins.

Excess algae can interfere with the simple pleasure of looking at a lake for its beauty. Unsightly scum is usually caused either by tangled masses of filamentous algae or by "blooms" of certain planktonic algae that float on the lake surface forming scum. The regular occurrence of visible algae blooms often indicates that nutrient levels, especially phosphorus, are too high. Excess Carbon and nitrogen can also cause some specied to grow.

Excessive plant growth can physically prevent mixing of oxygen through the water, plant die off can occur and fish kills can occur also with too much algae.

Cyanobacteria, better known as blue-green algae are often responsible for these phenomena.
Some health problems have been linked to these occurrences in many lakes and ponds where people and animals swim or cattle and animals that drink the water. They can absorb nitrogen from the atmosphere and transform it into ammonium or nitrates. At the end of the growing season the cyanobacteria die and release nutritive salts back into the water.

Algae is not always bad. Algae have been used to provide food for people and livestock, to serve as thickening agents in ice cream or shampoo, and can be used as drugs to ward off diseases. More than 150 species of algae are commercially important food sources, and over $2 billion of seaweed is consumed annually by humans, specifically in Japan.

Seaweed and kelp also are applied to soils as a fertilizer and soil conditioner, as their high concentrations of potassium and trace elements and micronutrients improve crop production, animal feed lots add them as a vitamin supplement, wastewater treatment plants add them as a micronutrient source for the bacteria.

Ponds at a tree farm in California where bioaugmentation was used to control water pollution.          Wetlands at a Gunpowder plant were bioaugmentation solutions were used to controlpollution.
Click this link for Bioaugmentation Product to Control  Algae.

So, how do you determine what type of algae or cyanobacteria you have? Is it blue-green algae or one of the more common types?

More importantly what is causing it and how do you control Algae and implement solutions to control the Algae?

Testing of the pond, river, lake or lagoon parameters can narrow down the cause. Microscopic analyses can narrow down whether it is algae or cyanobacteria. Duckweed can be visually identified.

Mixing, aeration, sunlight, CO₂, nutrients, excess BOD are all factors in algae growth in ponds, lagoons and wastewater treatment plants. Retention time is an influential factor controlling algal growth. As photosynthetic organisms, algae require light to grow, so sunlight and depth of the lagoons or ponds are also a factor.

Excess BOD can be a main component since the carbon often is a food source for some of the cyanobacteria and algae that grow. Run- off from animals, pollution, leaves and plants decomposing are some of the sources of BOD. In industrial facility wastewater ponds, high BOD comes from the process side. A simple COD/BOD or TOC can tell if this is causing your problems. If BOD is over 5-10 ppm, then more than likely high BOD is the cause for some of the problems. If you have a treatment pond, or aeration basin, increase MLSS in order to consume any excess BOD.

Duckweed is relatively large and can be visually identified.  It can grow in ponds, clarifiers, lakes, rivers, etc.

Nutrients: Phosphorus and nitrogen
Plants require phosphorus and nitrogen for growth. The concentration of these substances in water and sediments control the total amount of plant matter that can grow.

In most lakes, phosphorus is the least available nutrient; so its abundance--or scarcity--controls the extent of algae growth. If more phosphorus is added to the lake from sewage treatment plants, urban or farmland runoff, lawn or garden fertilizers, septic tanks or other watershed or outside resources, or even if it is released from phosphorus-rich lake bottom sediments from plant die-off, more algae will grow. A simple test can be performed to measure the phosphorus concentration or nitrogen levels to determine if this is your problem in your lagoon. Another important parameter to check also should be pH.

Dissolved oxygen is critical in ponds and lagoons. Available oxygen is consumed through decomposition of plant and animal material. Oxygen transfer is also lower with higher temperatures. Drop a D.O. probe into the lagoon or pond and measure the Dissolved air.
Under certain conditions, especially when oxygen is absent from bottom waters, phosphorus is released from bottom sediments into the overlying water. In turn, algae clouds water clarity and decreases the depth of light penetration. If D.O. is too low, increase mixing and aeration with mechanical aerators, or you can use Mazzei venturi injectors in the lines to increase D.O. Chemicals such as sodium nitrate can be added as an alternate oxygen source when mechanical options are not practical if allowed.

Low Rainfall and high temperatures are often times a contributor to increased algae in ponds. Rain can tend to be a good dilution factor for pollutants. If there is no rain and high temperatures and high levels of evaporation, what normally is not considered polluted or high BOD becomes more concentrated and thereby, increases chances for algae growth.

Animal droppings from birds, geese, ducks etc can impact nutrient levels and increase growth of algae.

Cold lime softening- even equipment inside buildings that have windows or lights- algae can grow on surfaces if excess nutrients are present

Algae build up in clarifier weirs can cause short circuiting, or even carryover into the final effluent and give false BOD results.

Solutions for Algae Control-Traditional solutions

· Herbicides and Algaecides, Copper Sulfate and Bleach are traditional chemical methods that have been used in the past.

· Fountains and Aeration help increase mixing and aeration and increase normal biological activity, thereby lessening the chance for algae to grow.

· Mechanical cutting and removal of aquatic weeds or harvesting of duckweed is common, but are high on manpower costs

· Mechanical spraying or brushing of clarifiers, weirs and surface areas will significantly help with treatment plants and algae removal

· Weir covers on clarifiers are now being used as opposed to full clarifier covers

· Physical covers of clarifiers

· Bacteria to remove excess pollution that may cause algae is safe and effective towards an algae solution - The use of non-toxic, environmentally friendly biological products in lakes and ponds has become very popular recently to help solve problems with algae, because it is natural and involves no use of herbicides or algaecides. Bacteria remove organics and nutrients that algae need for excessive growth. If the proper environmental conditions are there, bacteria can grow quicker and more efficiently. The pond is cleaner and no toxic chemicals or residuals result. Bacteria are then added on a maintenance dosage to keep pollution under control. Soft indirect environmental friendly safe solutions for controlling algae.

Aeration and mixing are required too.

· Surface growing plants such as duckweed can provide natural cover. Duckweed, if kept from the effluent by inserting surface baffles in front of the effluent weir, is very effective toward reducing algae in the lagoon. It is a high maintenance solution though and not used very often. Water Hyacinths also help with BOD reduction.

Algae Control & Solutions:
Places where Environmental Leverage has used bioaugmentation to  reduce excess nutrients which helped overcome Algae and Duckweed growth. With algae in control and resulting in lowering BOD and TSS problems.
This is a papermill that had serious problems with BOD, TSS and duckweed overgrowth. A biological program was implemented with some process control changes. The majority of the duckweed has disappeared and BOD and TSS are the best the plant has had in its history.

Papermill lagoon and Winery lagoon where bioaugmentation was used to control algae - photos prior to bioaugmentation

Click this link for information on: Bioaugmenation in Rivers and Lakes to control algae.

Call Environmental Leverage^® today to learn more about an Algae control program! Call 630-906-9791 or email us at: admin@EnvironmentalLeverage.com

MicroClear^®101 for Algae Control and Solutions

Microscopic analyses of your system for Algae control and solutions

Algae in Wastewater Lagoons

Algae in various parts of a treatment plant

Algae in Ornamental or small ponds

Algae in Lakes

Algae in Large Lakes

Algae in Clarifiers

Algae Species

Algae Photomicrographs

Algae Removal- Bioaugmentation

Algae Problems and solutions

Algae in Various parts of the Plant

Mystery bug of the Month- Algae

Salton Sea Diatoms

Salton Sea Algae

Salton Sea Free swimming ciliates

Wastewater Training Classes

Wastewater Training CD's