• About Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
Sunday, February 28, 2021
48 °f
Platte
43 ° Tue
48 ° Wed
49 ° Thu
47 ° Fri
The Platte County Landmark Newspaper
  • Home
  • Local News
  • Opinion
  • Landmark Live!
  • Looking Backward
  • Home
  • Local News
  • Opinion
  • Landmark Live!
  • Looking Backward
No Result
View All Result
The Platte County Landmark Newspaper
No Result
View All Result

Levels of fecal bacteria an issue in Houston Lake

Valerie Verkamp by Valerie Verkamp
July 3, 2020
in Headlines
Houston Lake beach area

There's no swimming at Houston Lake in southern Platte County after testing has revealed high levels of fecal bacteria in the water.

12
SHARES
293
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare via Email

No swimming until problem is addressed

For residents living near a 17-acre lake in southern Platte County, there are many perks.

There is plenty of fresh fish to eat. A place to cool off when the sun is really high in the sky. Sounds of wildlife to lull residents at the end of the day.

RelatedNews

Northland Soccer complex approved by KC

Attorney general probing Parkville on Sunshine

City ‘finds’ 2,300 records, gives them to Jason Maki

Viewed from this perspective, who wouldn’t want to live near a lake? But as temperatures recently rose and rain fell, residents of this lakeside community were informed they would not be able to enjoy their biggest asset until the water quality is improved.

Houston Lake’s beach was closed on Sunday, June 21, due to “extremely high fecal” bacteria levels. No swimming is allowed at this time.

“When we received the test results on Tuesday, June 16, the fecal came back at 520 (fecal colonies per 100 millimeters of water). We immediately took another water sample. That came back with fecal at 870, so we closed the lake,” Kerry Hallowell, president of the Houston Lake Homes Association, wrote in a letter to Houston Lake residents.

Sharron DeLaFuente, who tested the water on a monthly basis, said levels are the highest she has seen since testing began in 1990. DeLafuente said testing has been turned over to the Houston Lake Homes Association for further analysis.

High fecal bacteria levels could be the result of human or animal waste, including a sewage leak.

Hallowell has teamed up with the superintendent of sewage overflow with the Kansas City Missouri Water Department to “identify the source of contamination.”

“We took four additional water samples in four different locations. Those results came back even worse, with higher fecal and E. coli,” wrote Hallowell.

Dye was deposited into several manholes on Monday to locate any leaks or cracks in the sewer lines.

“We must identify the source before we can fix this very serious problem,” added Hallowell.

The Department of Natural Resources has been notified about the situation and is actively working with local officials to help identify the source.

A spokesperson with the Department of Natural Resources said the levels are higher than what animal waste could cause.

“If those levels are still that high over the holiday weekend, I would not recommend getting into the water,” the spokesperson said.

Jake Allman, a fisheries management biologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, said fish from the lake are still safe to eat.

“E. coli doesn’t affect fish and wildlife the way it does humans,” said Allman.

When it rains this time of year, lakes sometimes have high E. coli levels, he added.

Houston Lake is an aging lake. Its once 35-ft. depth has slowly dwindled down to an overall single-digit depth.

Over decades, the lake has been inundated with silt from upstream development. The silt has trapped a lot of sediment.

Last year, the lake was dredged near the north side peninsula, where sediment washes heavily into the lake. The effort did improve the lake’s depth in certain problematic and shallow areas.

Houston Lake has a population of about 250 residents.

Tags: Houston Lakeplatte county
Valerie Verkamp

Valerie Verkamp

Valerie decided she wanted to be a newspaper reporter when she was 28 years old and she successfully convinced the editor of the Platte County Landmark to give it 30 days. It was a unique period of her life when she exuded confidence while fearing she missed her calling after stints as a waitress, bank teller, hotelier, and educator.

Over nearly a decade she has written countless stories on local government, education, lawsuits, community news, crime, and the prison system.

Valerie hails from Park University with a BA in Elementary Education and a post-baccalaureate degree in paralegal studies from Penn Valley Community College. She has received honorable mention for Best Government News Story and joined her Landmark colleagues as recipient of the General Excellence Award in the Better Newspaper Contest sponsored by the Missouri Press Association.

Related Posts

45 Years Ago–February 27, 1976

by Ivan Foley
February 26, 2021
0

Mr. and Mrs. Allen Buxton of Weston announce the birth of their daughter, Valerie Sue, on Sunday, Feb. 22, 1976 at St. John Hospital in Leavenworth. Mrs. Buxton formerly worked at Bobbi's Hair Fashions in Platte City. Doug Hunt, Platte...

30 Years Ago–March 1, 1991

by Ivan Foley
February 26, 2021
0

The Platte City Chamber of Commerce Thursday heard Mayor Steve Wegner deliver a "State of the City" address. The KCI Conference of Schools, hosted by Smithville R-2 School District and Parents as Teachers, will present "The Power of Positive Parenting"...

15 Years Ago–February 23, 2006

by Ivan Foley
February 26, 2021
0

The call to serve his country has come once again for State Rep. Jason Brown of Platte City. Brown, a member of the United States Army Reserves, told The Landmark that he has been called to fulfill a one year...

Praise for local road district

Praise for local road district

by Landmark Digital Staff
February 26, 2021
0

EDITOR: One of the best examples of taxpayer dollars at work has to be credited to the Parkville Special Road District  for providing excellent road cleaning during the lethally frigid weather. Against continued below zero temperatures, even more bitter wind...

Next Post
Kolt Allen Wiss and Aubrianna Suddarth

Violent robbery at Humphrey Access

Popular News

  • Vaccine shot

    Around 1,700 shots to be offered in the next week

    15 shares
    Share 6 Tweet 4
  • City ‘finds’ 2,300 records, gives them to Jason Maki

    15 shares
    Share 6 Tweet 4
  • County health department eases restrictions

    13 shares
    Share 5 Tweet 3
  • Attorney general probing Parkville on Sunshine

    8 shares
    Share 3 Tweet 2
  • Investigations, rolling outages and building south

    7 shares
    Share 3 Tweet 2
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
Call us at 816-858-0363

Copyright © 2019-2020 The Platte County Landmark Newspaper - All Rights Reserved

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Subscribe Online
  • Local News
  • Opinion
  • Landmark Live!
  • Looking Backward

Copyright © 2019-2020 The Platte County Landmark Newspaper - All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Create New Account!

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist