Keith wrote: "Further, you would not believe the frequency with which the beaches on Lake St. Clair are closed due to high levels of E. coli found in the water. There does not appear to be any rhyme or reason for this since the highest number of beach closings occurred during periods of extended drought. The largest contributing source of the contamination is the subject of much debate but the likely cause is feces from waterfowl." ******************* In the Duluth/Supeior harbor, there are frequent solemn warnings about water contamination and "beach" closings. What we have rather learned is that invariably the pollution is goose or sea gull feces and the "beaches" are places in the harbor where nobody ever swims. And as Keith noted, it usually is not anytime near a heavy rain storm. But I guess such dire warnings gives justification for the pollution control agencies to justify their budgets. In our fair city, muchas millions have already been spent trying to eliminate rain water runoff from getting into the sanitary system. It has almost become a second economy around here building the diversion/holding tanks. We usually find the waters of Lake Superior shortly offshore to be sparkling clear, yet we constantly hear about how polluted the lakes are. Again, it seems that agencies are trying to justify their budgets. On a related note, the topography of Duluth is of high hills rising above Lake Superior. According, it is an everyday occurence to see substantial stretches of the lake from an altitude of about 800 feet. The REAL pollution of Lake Superior locally comes after a heavy rain when the Nemadgi River in Wisconsin dumps bazillions of gallons of literally brown water into the lake. From the heights, it is very visible. Whereas the main lake is blue, the waters on the Wisconsin side are brown, carrying who knows what in its runoff. David Sorenson Duluth, MN ____________________________________________________________ Click now for good looking, long lasting shelving! http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL2141/fc/PnY6rw1xzP67LppPvTlNnblO9JGBvryVNh93HiuAu5jvTeDsxWxo4/

David H Sorenson <davidsorenson@juno.com> writes: >On a related note, the topography of Duluth is of high hills rising above >Lake Superior. According, it is an everyday occurence to see substantial >stretches of the lake from an altitude of about 800 feet. The REAL >pollution of Lake Superior locally comes after a heavy rain when the >Nemadgi River in Wisconsin dumps bazillions of gallons of literally brown >water into the lake. From the heights, it is very visible. Whereas the >main lake is blue, the waters on the Wisconsin side are brown, carrying >who knows what in its runoff. For what it's worth, this is typically suspended silt, not pollution. While suspended silt is harmful in certain fish populations, it's not necessarily harmful to humans. Unlike the E Coli we carry in our gut, which most definitely is harmful to humans. Scott Welch Product Manager, Open Text Collaboration Solutions Group www.firstclass.com "Things turn out best for people who make the best of the way things turn out." - John Wooden