BENGALURU: There is a need to sensitise people about the lake ecosystem to establish a bond between humans and lakes, said urban experts on Saturday during a session on ‘How is Jakkur Lake Water?’ as part of the ongoing Jakkur Kere Habba 2019.
Lakes in the city have turned into spots for healthy wellbeing and aesthetic value with children’s parks, walking tracks, beautiful flowers and gym installations. But no one looks at the quality of water or questions disappearance of bird species.
Anchoring the session, Ms Seema, an associate of Jala Poshan, and Dr Annapurna S., founder trustee of Jala Poshan, introduced citizens to basic visible parameters that act as indicators to lake’s health and how citizens can contribute to preserve lakes.
Water quality at Jakkur Lake
Participants were shown how to collect samples of water to study the composition of dissolved oxygen, PH value, etc. Ms Seema, who has been checking the quality of water at Jakkur Lake, found the dissolved oxygen level to be hovering in the range of 7 mg/l to 9 mg/l which is good for fish (optimum level is 4 mg/l, according to the Bureau of Indian Standards, 1982).
She said that water at Jakkur Lake has healthy phosphorous and nitrate level which makes it suitable for irrigation. “Though some amount of sewage is getting into the lake, it hasn’t reached alarming levels,” she said.
“Every water body has some amount of bacteria and oxygen that break down organic matter. This is the natural purification process of water bodies. But we should also consider the natural threshold that water bodies have to purify themselves. But with sewage inflow into the lake increasing, it is close to reaching its threshold. As of now, Jakkur Lake is capable of purifying itself,” she said.
Hyacinth is found only along the borders of the lake which filters sewage to an extent. It is an indicator of the quality of the lake that is apparently healthy. The lake is home to a good number of bird species and reptiles. This by itself is a good indicator of the quality of the lake. Setting up reptile species in lakes is the most difficult task, she said.
She said that over the past six months, since her association with Jakkur Lake began, she has come across increased growth of microorganisms which can have direct relationship with the quality of water. But, she said, conclusions cannot be drawn based on this indicator alone due to seasonal influences like monsoons, the source of water in the lake, etc.
“If this growth of microorganisms, like algae, rises for more over 12-14 months, we can be assured of the changing quality of water,” she told Deccan Chronicle.
She attributed the health of the lake to its periodic maintenance through plantation drives, skimming of algae blooms, 24x7 vigilance by citizen groups like Jala Poshan, Nature’s Gurukul, etc.
Citizen squads
“It is sad to see the apathy of citizens towards lake conservation,” remarked Dr Annapurna. “In spite of continuous vigilance of the lake, we still find people throwing garbage into the lake and Rajakaluves. This attitude should change," she said.
She said that citizens can be trained to identify visible parameters and test them with the ‘Do it Yourself (DIY)’ kits and by forming associations and walkers’ clubs. “Our contribution can help the lake survive better,” she said.
