A historic Angus landmark’s “ghastly” algae problem could be cleared up next month, The Courier can reveal.
Keptie Pond, once a tourist attraction that drew families from across Scotland to Arbroath to skate and boat on its clear waters, now suffers from an annual build-up of blue green algae.
A £45,000 borehole was installed by Angus Council to remedy the low waters behind the problem, but this has “failed miserably” according to locals.
The first detailed report on potential solutions will be put to councillors at the end of next month.
An environmental consultant has taken on board research from local man George Park, himself a retired council officer, who has proposed his own solution.
Mr Park used websites and local newspaper archives to find Arbroath’s water supply once came from wells on Nolt Loan Road, opposite the park.
He proposed to the council that one well could be cleared and used to top up the pond’s water level, keeping algae at bay.
“The bill for topping up the pond by a foot, using around 1.3 million gallons, is around £25,000, and this is unsustainable,” he said.
“A borehole was sunk recently but this has failed, quite miserably.”
A spokesman for the local authority said: “A report from our environmental consultant is due at the end of September, at which time it will be considered by officers and councillors.
“The report will include consideration of the historical information that has recently been provided by an interested member of the public.”
Contact with the algae can cause harmful effects and the situation has been described by town councillors David Fairweather and Bob Spink as “a disaster, a debacle and an embarrassment” and “ghastly”, respectively.
Mr Park met local elected members during his research, and added: “We agreed that two matters needed to be resolved water quantity in the pond and quality of water added.
“Dealing with quality, the current situation is that we have a stagnant pond, and any injection of water could only serve to improve the situation, however mains water comes at an annual cost, and with unwanted chemical additives, not ideal on two counts.
“We have an opportunity to solve this problem, without resort to experts, by simply restoring something which worked for our forefathers, and which would provide a plentiful supply of fresh water, for little more annually, than the running cost of a pump.”
Councillor Fairweather said yesterday: “The council will consider the report next month.
“I thank George for his in-depth research, and I hope that the report will help us get it right this time.”