Unalaska Lake Needs Help

Annie Ropeik, reporting for KUCB:

Wanetta Ayers

Wanetta Ayers

Residents ask the City to fix lake pollution. The Unalaska Lake watershed is prime spawning ground for salmon in the heart of the city’s historic downtown. It’s also some of the least healthy habitat in the Aleutian Islands.

But residents’ concerns went beyond the scope of the grant. They say it’s the city’s push for development that’s harmed the lake. And city manager Chris Hladick said after the meeting that’s not a problem he can solve with just a million dollars.

”We realize that the money isn’t going to be a huge amount ... so the planning effort is really important for the long-term,” he says. “We’re heightening this issue to another level to let contractors or whatever know, hey, we’ve gotta get our act together.”

Hladick’s hoping the grant will spur some planning for stormwater management that the city should have done years ago.

Already know you that which you need. Blaming each other does not get the work done. Each must do their part. Stormwater management and restoring shoreline vegetation and wetlands. Save you it can.