As part of the Jessie Lake Restoration Program, tree planters took to the shoreline to plant over 5,000 seedlings.
Last week, the Lakeland Industry and Community Association (LICA) planted red osier dogwood, Saskatoon cherry, and chokecherry seedlings along Jessie Lake.
Supervisor Emilie Ouellette said the project kept planters busy over two days.
“We started just past the memorial sign, and we went all the way to the little causeway at the water park.”
In conjunction with the Town of Bonnyville, LICA organized the planting to help restore riparian areas at the lake.
“It’s a very important ecotone area,” explained LICA environmental program manager Colin Hanusz. “In addition to stabilizing the shoreline, riparian areas also trap sediments, build and maintain the banks of the lake, help filter and buffer the water, and maintain biodiversity. As well as, reduce the energy of water through overland flow.”
The planting program is meant to reduce the nutrients floating in the water, and cut down the number of algae blooms.
Hanusz blamed the algae blooms for the odour that comes from Jessie Lake in the summer, and hopes the restoration plan will have a positive affect.
“We’re trying to fix these long-term problems with long-term solutions of woody vegetation,” he said.
Originally, the plan was to plant the seedlings along the causeway south of the splash park.
“Due to the high water levels, we just couldn’t plant there this year,” noted Hanusz.
The causeway could benefit from the deep rooting plants. They could help stabilize the shoreline and prevent erosion.
Site preparation began with a weed pull in July. Volunteers assisted LICA with removing garbage and unwanted vegetation.
A final weeding and grass cut was done the week before the planting in order to help the seedlings to grow.
The deep-rooting plants are native to the area. Hanusz said they won’t impact the view for people enjoying the view.
Jessie Lake is one of ten lakes in the area that LICA monitors for quality. They have gone out five times this year with volunteers to get samples of different areas of water.
Hanusz said, “We get really good information on the nutrients, water clarity, dissolve oxygen, and temperature to get a good idea of the water quality in the lake.”
The results will determine the next steps for LICA in the restoration project, and what they can do for Jessie Lake next summer.
The end goal for the restoration project is to improve the water and air quality for the Town of Bonnyville.
Hanusz blamed the algae blooms for the odour that comes from Jessie Lake in the summer, and hopes the restoration plan will have a positive affect.
“We’re trying to fix these long-term problems with long-term solutions of woody vegetation,” he said.
Originally, the plan was to plant the seedlings along the causeway south of the splash park.
“Due to the high water levels, we just couldn’t plant there this year,” noted Hanusz.
The causeway could benefit from the deep-rooting plants, that could help stabilize the shoreline and prevent erosion.
Site preparation began with a weed pull in July. Volunteers assisted LICA with removing garbage and unwanted vegetation.
A final weeding and grass cut was done the week before the planting in order to help the seedlings grow.
The deep-rooting plants are native to the area. Hanusz said they won’t impact the view for people enjoying the lake.
Jessie Lake is one of 10 lakes in the area that LICA monitors for quality. They have gone out five times this year with volunteers to get samples of different areas of water.
Hanusz said, “We get really good information on the nutrients, water clarity, dissolve oxygen, and temperature to get a good idea of the water quality in the lake.”
The results will determine the next steps for LICA in the restoration project, and what they can do for Jessie Lake next summer.
The end goal for the restoration project is to improve the water and air quality for the Town of Bonnyville.
