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“Sun Mountain got tired of occupants who can’t use the waterfront,” Steelhammer said. They’ll broadcast the herbicide with a handgun from boats, with some subsurface application, he said. Kyle Steelhammer, owner of Northwest Aquatic Management, in Rochester, Washington, will be applying the herbicide within 50 to 60 feet of the shoreline, in shallow areas where the milfoil grows. Sun Mountain owns most of the land around the lake, and the reclamation district owns most of the perimeter, according to Charlton. Sun Mountain is hoping to come up with a long-term treatment to keep the milfoil from growing back, Charlton said. The problem has improved - this year was the first in a while when they didn’t have major problems, Charlton said. Sun Mountain has hired a contractor to do minimal spraying to control weeds and clean the intakes the past few years. We’ve been extremely careful,” Charlton said. You don’t want to dump a bunch of chemicals in and kill everything off. When herbicides are used, they test before, during and after the application, as well as from various faucets at the lodge, Charlton said. Sun Mountain’s drinking water is taken from the middle of the lake and treated by sand filtration and chlorine. The tests attributed the problems primarily to algae and manganese, Charlton said. Sun Mountain’s drinking water is tested weekly by Okanogan County. They even dumped thousands of gallons of water until it ran clear. Sometimes the lodge had to buy bottled water for the guest rooms, Charlton said. Sun Mountain gets its drinking water from the lake, and about three years ago lodge employees began noticing a “nasty discoloration” and a bad aroma. “They were quite rightly upset and concerned that they’ll get tangled in this stuff when they get back to land,” he said. The weeds were so thick near the boat dock that guests would complain, and it became dangerous for swimming. Three or four years ago, milfoil started to become a significant problem for Sun Mountain, lodge general manager Brian Charlton said. He uses the milfoil he pulls as fertilizer. You just pull it, like any other weed,” Kutz said. There’s no getting rid of it - that stuff is tenacious. Since he and a dozen other people bought the lot eight years ago - where they put up a small building they call a “yacht club” - he’s seen milfoil multiply. Kutz has recreated on the lake for decades. “Everyone freaks out when stuff gets wrapped around their feet when swimming,” he said. Kutz recognizes that swimming through weeds can be unpleasant, but he’s more concerned about the effects of herbicides on the environment. “Any herbicide is totally unacceptable in my world,” Kutz said. Mike Kutz watches geese, ducks and beavers while he hand-pulls the milfoil in front of the 1/3-acre piece of Patterson Lake shoreline he owns. “If my grandkid was out there swimming, I’d be yanking them out of the water because of milfoil,” she said. Milfoil poses a hazard to swimmers because they can get caught up in the weeds, Lyon said. “The treatment is a safety issue, not just for aesthetics.” “Hybrid milfoil is pretty darn aggressive,” Anna Lyon, manager of the Okanogan County Noxious Weed Office, said. The spraying will occur this weekend, Oct. But others contend that milfoil poses a danger to swimmers and animals, who can become entangled in the dense weeds and drown.Īfter dealing with a worsening milfoil problem for years, Sun Mountain Lodge and the Wolf Creek Reclamation District have contracted with a weed-spraying company to treat a hybrid milfoil that has taken over most of the shoreline. Some say treating weeds in Patterson Lake with an herbicide will harm fish and wildlife. Milfoil treated in response to growing problem
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But others say the tangles of milfoil are dangerous to swimmers.
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Some worry that herbicides will harm fish and other animals.