WAC - Grey Area Fish Kill



Have you heard about the problem of the grey bay? No, well I’m here to talk to you about it.
All over the grey bay there have been fish found dead and the people are eager to find the culprit.Autopsies on the fish have been done but we’ll talk about that later. There are many factors in this conversation, such as chlorine, oil spills, sediment in the water, phosphates in the water,etc. I think that based on the results of the autopsies (which were 14 killed by oil, 21 insufficient oxygen, 8 by chlorine and 7 others, out of fifty fish.) that the people from the golf course who have been putting phosphates in the water are killing most of them.
Phosphates are a problem but the people at the golf course are also releasing sediment when there is erosion. If the river is murky, fish will be unable to see. This can cause them to starve because they will be unable to find their prey, and it will also cause them to breathe in the sediment. Another thing is that the sediment settles to the ground covering the rocky river bed. This causes the fish to be unable to lay eggs, therefore, lessening the fish population. The golf course waters their lawns so very often that the sediment (with phosphates in them) travels down the side of the hill and into James Pond one of the most populated lakes for fish. Well it was.

Phosphates in the water can cause algal blooms that remove oxygen from the water killing fish from lack of oxygen. Phosphates can harm fish by causing oxygen loss. Phosphates allow algae to grow, but too many phosphates in a body of water can cause algal blooms. Although fish eat algae, and many people would think that it is good for them, it isn't. Algae starts to rot, and then the rotting algae is eaten by bacteria. The bacteria continues to multiply as it eats the regrowing algae. The bacteria then steals all of the oxygen out of the water, therefore, leaving little to no fish and killing lot's of fish. If you're wonder what phosphates are, Phosphates are chemicals that are needed for plants and animals to live and grow. There are always small amounts of phosphates in water but if water contains too many phosphates, it is unhealthy for fish. Plant growth is limited by the amount of phosphates available to them.

The reason the fish are dying is because of oxygen loss. Sediment and too many phosphates in the water cause problems but the main problem and main killer of the fish loss of oxygen.  Water plants make oxygen in the water. But too many water plants can cause oxygen to be taken away; because when they die and rot, the tiny animals (bacteria) that eat them may use up all of the dissolved oxygen in the water.Many fish and water insects cannot breathe oxygen from the air.They breathe dissolved oxygen in water. Some animals (like carp,catfish, sewage worms, midge larvae, fly larvae, and leeches) need very little. Other animals (like trout, pike, salmon, and the larvae of mayflies, stoneflies, caddisflies, and beetles) need a lot. Without enough oxygen, these animals can die. Other animals that depend on them for food may die or leave. One thing that scientists used to see that there was all this oxygen loss were bioindicators. What are bioindicators? Bioindicators are living things that are sensitive to changes in their environment. Different organisms are sensitive to different types of changes. Scientists look for changes in the populations of the sensitive animals and plants to get an idea of the health of the area. Since mayflies and caddisflies will die if there is not enough oxygen in the water, they are bioindicators for lowered levels of dissolved oxygen-if they can't be found in places they usually live, it indicates that there may not be enough oxygen for many kinds of life.

As you can see I have given more than enough evidence to prove how the golf course and golf course owner Sandy Trapp are causing the death of the fish. Sediment,Phosphates and a tyed in oxygen loss all come from the golf course and are the main killers for the fish. With sediment the fish may not be able to see and lay eggs means no repopulation. With phosphates if their are too many there will be not enough oxygen and the fish will die. Oxygen loss ties in with the other two but it is the most cause of death of fish. The Grey Bay was in big trouble and our team over the past few weeks did research and have finally found the culprit. If the Grey Bay wants to thank us, well, just tell them that we were happy to help.

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