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the tempe messy yard cops will site home owners for having the slightest bit of alge in their pool but hey tempe town lake has 30 percent of its surface covered with alge and duck weed and the zoning inspectors aint going to do anything. also the lake is covered with trash and litter. the duck weed traps the litter. of course the tempe messy yard inspectors aint going to write the city of tempe a ticket for have a lake cover with garbage like they would write a home owner for having a pool covered with garbage. there clearly is a double standard here. the city of tempe doesnt obey its messy yard yards, while it enforced them with an iron fist on home owners who break the same messy yard laws
Tempe Town Swamp?
Katie Nelson Tempe Town Lake is growing greener by the day. This summer, duckweed has exploded across the water's surface. In the last few months the tiny floating plant it has gone from dotting the shoreline to creating a thin green film across acres of the lake. It's a harmless plant, experts say, that's not hurting the dozens species of fish, beaver and birds that live in or near the city's section of dammed up Salt River. But as the alfalfa sprout-like greenery multiplies it's becoming a growing concern for Tempe. While the rapid growth of duckweed isn't hurting the animals, it is proving to be an annoyance for people who use the water every day. "It's a pain to paddle through," said Joe "Okie" O'Connor, who rows daily for recreation and as part of his job overseeing the city's small boat-craft programs. "It doesn't really hurt you if it get on you, but you don't really want to have it splashed on you. You can't wash it off. It clings to you rather than just going away." The weed does not have an annoying smell, but it's an eyesore to some people. About a dozen inquires have come into the city about the lake's leafy appearance. And trash is accumulating on top of the weeds. So starting late this week, the city will start to spend about $5,000 to have the duckweed sprayed with a bluish-black herbicide. It's made of a chemical combination lake managers hope will stick to the waxy leaves of the tiny plants long enough to kill them, turning them from shamrock green to camel brown. They'll use about a gallon and a half of the spray on each of the about 25 acres of the lake that are covered with duckweed. The lake covers 220 acres. They city has tried other methods to get rid of the pesky plant, such as skimming it off or lowering the western dam in hopes the downriver current and wind would push it out. So far, none has been successful. It's the first time the lake has had duckweed since the river was dammed nearly six years ago. But Eric Swanson, a game ranger in charge of Arizona's urban fisheries, said the plant was expected sooner or later. Although it's a plant typically found in smaller bodies of water - ponds and shallow backwater inlets - it's natural that as water flows into Town Lake from upstream, the duckweed comes too, Swanson said. It might also be coming from the storm drains flowing into the Salt River. As a result, the heavy water-flow from the current monsoon season is compounding the problem. "With all the rain, it's reproducing rapidly," Swanson said. "It has gone from covering 10 percent of the lake a week ago, and today it's covering 15."
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