SUN JOURNAL • December 2, 2022
A capacity crowd attended Tuesday’s workshop by the Select Board to discuss an algal bloom in Middle Range Pond this summer, which prompted questions about the cause and concerns about water quality on the three Range ponds. Scott Williams, retired executive director of Lake Stewards of Maine, said there were two likely causes to the algal bloom. He cited the warmer-than-normal water temperature (mid-80 degrees) and moderate to high concentration levels of phosphorus nutrients. Phosphorus is a component of most fertilizers. Williams noted that in early to mid-July a significant rainstorm triggered a fair amount of stormwater runoff from the watershed, which likely carried phosphorus into the lakes.