It has been a long time between posts……I hope everyone is doing well and that your days are are merry and bright……
The topic of low lake water levels is of strong interest these days. Of course, the main issue is the lack of precipitation, but the less obvious result of this is the drop in the water table, and its effect on the level of Chandos Lake.
A wee analysis and remarks about this issue can be found at:
Thanks to Debra Anthony, Iain Gorman, and Edith Gorman for input into this article.
It is snowing quite heavily in the Kawarthas today. That is good,,,,perhaps not for driving and shoveling, but certainly for helping to replenish the aquifer our lake depends on for input!
As many visitors to this site know, there is a tab discussing the issue of Radon gas being a concern in the Canadian Shield. It is the number one cause of Lung Cancer after smoking, and anyone living on Chandos year round should be aware of the their Radon levels.
In Ontario, new builds are required by the 2024 Building Code, effective January 1, 2025, to include “radon rough-ins” with a subfloor depressurization system, protective soil gas barriers, and a sump pump with a sealed cover to prevent radon and soil gas ingress. These measures provide a system for easier installation of an active radon mitigation fan if future testing reveals unsafe radon levels, reducing risk in new homes.
Anyway, on my “walkabout” today I noticed some workers preparing a base for a concrete slab, and noted that they had installed piping to be used for Radon Mitigation if ever needed.
It involves installing a pipe during construction, a sealed sub-slab membrane, a granular drainage layer, and a capped pipe extending from the foundation to allow for the future installation of a fan-powered system if radon levels are found to be high.
(The thingy with the gauge beside it is preparation to pressure test water and septic lines prior to pouring concrete.)
Three cheers for our Chandos building construction community!
Well, if you’ll indulge me, I have a couple of things to beat the drums on.
The First is Water Bombers. Apparently during WWII Canada built 1 Lancaster bomber a day as part of its war effort. Let’s muster the same sort of urgency and commitment to fight our national forest fire threat!
It is certainly not my idea, but think of the job creation and fire defense capability we would have if there were a NATIONAL fleet of say, 500, water bombers that could be deployed anywhere in Canada. Currently we have about 4000 active fires, and I doubt if there are 75 water bombers in the entire country. Also, along with great jobs, what an incredible export market this would create.
Many fires are in remote locations and are very difficult to access on the ground. These planes could get there quicker, and safer, with less manpower and also be more effective. A water bomber, being able to fly low and slow, is also suitable for Search and Rescue.
I believe we do have a couple of Canadian Manufacturers, eg Bombardier and De Haviland, but they need supercharging in terms of production. We have the technology, but we need the national commitment!
The Second is Potable Water in Remote Communities. It seems a national disgrace that we have so many remote communities having to boil their water year after year after year.
I would like to see a nationally funded development of a modular water treatment plant that could be airlifted and assembled in any community with, say, more than 500 people, that has a sufficient water supply source that can be made potable by conventional means. These plants once installed, would be monitored and controlled remotely by a central command, likely one in each province and territory.
Our Engineering firms and Universities could be challenged (and rewarded) for engaging in a design competition for such a system.
Such an approach is currently being used with wind turbines, in that they are monitored and controlled by a central command that may not even be in the operating country.
Maybe there is something like this underway for Water Treatment Plants, but I am not aware of anything.
The CLPOA Environment Committee is hosting a Fire Preparedness meeting at Gilmour Bay Marina on Sunday, July 6 at 10:00 am. Please see the complete agenda here.
2 different types of personal fire pumps will be demonstrated.
As well, The North Kawartha Fire and Rescue Service (NKFRS) will be in attendance to talk about the FireSmart program.
Glimour Bay Marina also has an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) on site, which is available for emergency use 24/7. NKFRS will also be demonstrating its use.
Come on out, learn a few things, and meet some of your like-minded neighbours!
The survey will be conducted from Thursday July 31 to Thursday Aug 7,2025. One of our aims this time around is to start focusing more on the species caught.
More promotion will occur in the coming days, but please talk it up with your fisher friends.
The situation with Lake Trout is becoming a concern.
Consider the following points:
Chandos is currently a winter sanctuary lake for Lake Trout, meaning that ice fishing is not allowed. Trout like cold oxygenated water and in the summer they are thus found at depth. Chandos is deep (and therefore cold) and fairly well oxygenated at depth throughout the summer. In winter months, however, Trout can find these conditions closer to the surface, just below the ice, and tend to go there looking for food.
Currently the MNRF’s Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) is in draft, but it proposes to remove all winter sanctuaries in Zone 15 (our zone) likely in 2026. Regrettably, ice fishing may result in over harvesting of Lake Trout, whose survival is already threatened by climate change.
During our survey from 2024, of the 79 fish reported only 2 were Lake Trout. Now, there may be many reasons for this but I suspect this is partly due to the fact that being successful with trout requires a lot more skill and perhaps better equipment. They are not going to be caught off the dock, as in the summer they only frequent the deeper and colder waters.
Climate change is resulting in fewer weeks of ice cover and warmer summer waters. Also less oxygen at depth later in the summer. These trends favor Bass and Pike, and disfavor Lake Trout. Lake Trout are being outcompeted, and a tipping point may well be reached wherein they cannot sustain their population. Warm water fish feed upon the Trouts’ eggs and juveniles. The 2024 survey indicates that 83% of the fish reported were Bass and Pike.
I am wondering if we should launch a separate Lake Trout monitoring program that runs all year around. Getting participation is likely a huge obstacle, but we really need hard data to sense whether their numbers are in decline. Anyway, your thoughts on this matter are solicited.
Historically, for the last 40 years or so, we have declared “Ice-Out” based on The Main Lake appearing to be ice free.
It is apparent, especially this year, that it is not a perfect proxy for the entire lake.
As you know Chandos has 3 major bays (Gilmour, South, West) along with what is termed “The Main Lake”.
So the question is, when declaring Chandos to be Ice free, should it be the date that there is no ice anywhere? The short answer is that for reasons of historical consistency we must continue with our observations on the Main Lake, but will be more precise by referring to it as “The Chandos (Main) Lake Ice-Out Date”.
A wee primer on ice formation
Ice begins forming from the bottom, and this first layer is called “black Ice”. It is highly transparent and conductive and continues to form as heat is extracted from the water at the ice-water interface via conduction. The ice that forms on the top of the Black Ice is from a mixture of snow and water and is called “White Ice”. So, between the air and the water is a layer of snow, a layer of White Ice, and a layer of Black Ice.
As the air temperature drops, heat continues to be extracted through the snow and white ice via conduction from the water and thereby more black ice forms.
As snow falls it generally acts as a thermally insulating layer limiting the extraction of heat from the water and thus slowing the rate of formation of black Ice. However, if the wind blows a lot of this snow from the middle of the lake away, usually to the edges, then black ice will form more quickly in the middle and more white ice will accumulate at the edges.
In the spring, when there is a lot of solar radiation, the White Ice acts as a reflector and limits the amount of solar energy entering the ice and water.
Eventually though sufficient solar radiation reaches the ice-water interface that the Black Ice starts to melt from below. Of course, it can also melt from the warm air above, so there are two mechanisms at work.
With all conditions identical, (wind, snow, rain, currents) then in theory the deepest and largest water masses will thaw last, and in our case this means that the Main Lake should be the last to become ice-free. The reason for this is that as the water at the interface warms up, it falls and is replaced by colder water just below. (this is because the density of water is highest at 4 deg C, so as soon as the 0 degC water at the interface becomes, say 2 degC, then the 1 degC water just below it rises to the interface thereby reducing the rate of ice melt. This process continues, and the length of time depends on the depth of the water. If the ice hasn’t melted already then this process continues until the entire water column is 4 deg C. After that, the ice melts very quickly because the warmest water stays at the interface. eg, the 5 degC water becomes 6 degC, etc)
To add greater clarity, in the winter the lightest water is just below the ice, at 0 degC, and the most dense water, at 4 degC is at the bottom. As the water at the interface warms up its density increases and so it falls to be replaced by less dense water, which is cooler. This process continues until the entire column is at 4 degC. Now the density of water above 4 deg C decreases with temperature, and so any water warmer than 4 deg C will just continue to stay near the surface and heat up even more, quickening any thawing that has not yet happened, See the graph below.
So with all conditions being equal, once the Ice is off the main lake, it is usually off everywhere.
Ice-Out date Decision
I expect if one were to plot yearly ice out date for each of the bays and compare their statistics to the main lake, that they would be much noisier, in that the swings would be larger and any trend would be more difficult to detect. This is because they are more sensitive to variations in the affecting variables.
The fact remains, however, that our long-term data has really been based on what is happening in the Main Lake. This year, Cathy Burgess declared the Ice-Out date on The Main Lake to be April 19. (and such was also reported by Clark B.)
In our attempts to extract a trend from the Ice-Out dates, it is important to remain consistent year over year in how that date is measured. So, April 19, 2025 is what our historical graph and data will reflect. However, as mentioned in the introduction, to add a bit more preciseness to the observations we are modifying the title to “Ice-Out Chandos (Main) Lake”.
Over the 40 years of data we have accumulated, on a trend line basis, the ice is now going out on the Main Lake about 4.8 days earlier. Note also that the ice is coming in about 11.6 days later, so that we have about 16.5 fewer days of Ice-Cover.
Getting ourselves organized in any significant way takes a pretty serious commitment from all parties, and apart from the cost, making this a successful venture is far from guaranteed. Consequently, the board, acting in a responsible fashion, is cautious about jumping in too quickly. Consequently, the original plan to get something in place this year has been withdrawn. Hopefully it, or a better plan, will come to the fore in the near future.
In order to at least have some sort of start, I have purchased some equipment for demonstration and evaluation. I hope to place it in a firebox on our property. on Renwick. There will be a lockbox, and any neighbours who have taken some basic training on how to operate it will be given the access code. Trevor Ferguson of Municipal Equipment says he would come out and demonstrate the equipment, but nothing yet has been arranged. Will let you know if and when.
The Muskoka Watershed Report Card, produced every five years by the Muskoka Watershed Council, scientifically assesses Muskoka’s watershed health. It educates residents and decision-makers about water and land conditions, enabling sustainable practices to bolster the strength of our remarkable natural environment. This is essential for our way of life and economy.
The Report Card for 2023 can be found here. Muskoka has significant and varied resources and it shows in this very excellent report.
Thanks so much to everyone who participated in this informal survey. We have received 21 responses to our Fire Preparedness Survey…..
Here are the more significant results:
Regarding a concern about wildfires, the average rating out of 5 is 3.52. 7 were very highly concerned, and 2 had no concerns, with the rest somewhere in between.
11 people would consider buying a pump of their own.
19 think their property is accessible.
Should the CLPOA have some sort of Fire Preparedness in their mandate? The average response was 4.24 out of 5. No one said it should not.
Regarding funding, out of 17 responses 15 said use some of the surplus, and 12 said increase dues. Many felt it should be a combination of both.
5 persons indicated they would entertain a fire box on their property.
Regarding serving on a committee to do the basic planning, only 2 were a flat-out no.
Regarding helping to run the program, 11 said maybe if it wasn’t too onerous
5 of the respondees were full time residents
This is a very small survey, and maybe, as has been suggested, we should put it to the membership as a whole? But certainly there is an overwhelming consensus that something should be done, and that the CLPOA should be significantly involved..
It would be great if many people purchased their own pumps, and that is likely a good idea regardless. But if any fire preparedness is to have some legs, and be sustainable, it must be properly resourced and have a committed organization behind it, similar to the current situation with the marker buoys.
Chandos Lake Science 2 