Article printed in the Winnipeg
Free Press newspaper:
Group finds Whiteshell clams dying
:By Lindsey Wiebe
August 7, 2008
A local environmental group is looking for a culprit
after discovering thousands of dead clams washed up
on the shore of a lake in Whiteshell Provincial Park.
"You can't walk on the shore, along the edge of the
water, without stepping on them," said Wilderness Committee
local director Eric Reder, who described a "clumpy and
fibrous" algae bloom on Meditation Lake.
A canoeist told him about the die-off of freshwater
clams and a foul smell on the lake a couple of weeks
ago, and Reder said he went earlier this week to see
for himself.
The shallow lake is accessible only to hikers. Visitors
willing to portage their canoe can use the body of water
to access the deeper Horseshoe Lake, which is popular
for fishing.
Meditation Lake is also close to the site of a logging
operation involving trees that were knocked down in
a wind storm in the park last year.
The Wilderness Committee is unhappy with logging in
the Whiteshell and believes loggers are taking far more
trees than necessary. While the group wonders whether
there's a link between logging and lake contamination
that could have led to the unusual die-off, Reder said
it's impossible to prove.
He said he took water samples and sent them off to
a private lab for analysis, but believes the die-off
likely happened in late June or early July.
University of Manitoba parasitologist Lane Graham,
whose areas of interest include clams, said he's only
aware of one other major clam die-off, tied to cold
temperatures on the Red River.
He said it's impossible to speculate without seeing
the lake, but pointed out that freshwater clams "are
frequently used as indicators of various environmental
toxins" because they bioaccumulate, meaning they build
up concentrations of toxins in their systems.
"Normally if something is strong enough to kill off
the clams, you've normally got something else dead there
as well," like fish or snails, he said.
A government spokesman said Manitoba Water Stewardship
just learned of the dead clams and will investigate.
The article was viewable online at:
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/historic/32983004.html
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