The State Department of Ecology will be collecting fish from Green Lake during the week of Oct. 5, 2015 as part of its statewide Freshwater Fish Contaminant Monitoring Program. The work involves collecting fish using an 18 foot electrofishing boat and will likely be completed in two days. Fish collection will be done in late night hours.
Fish tissue will be analyzed for various contaminants such as: pesticides, PCBs, flame retardants, dioxins/furans, and mercury. Results from laboratory analyses will help state and local health departments assess risks to human health from eating contaminated fish.
The current Fish Consumption Advisory for Green Lake was based on results from sampling by Ecology in 2001. For more information, please visit http://www.doh.wa.gov/CommunityandEnvironment/Food/Fish/Advisories#GreenLake.
As part of a separate project, researchers from the Applied Physics Laboratory at University of Washington will occasionally deploy underwater vehicles through the end of the year in the lake to study toxic algae blooms. The researchers will map phytoplankton concentrations derived from chlorophyll A and phycocyanin and other environmental data. The study should have very little impact on recreational activities at the lake. The small battery operated submarine will only be visible when launched or retrieved. Research results will be shared with Seattle Parks and Recreation.