Rheinaue Park Swans wade through a sea of algae
Bonn · The lake in Rheinaue Park is blanketed with algae, making the water thick and murky. A water pump has been broken for months.
One is not so inclined to jump in the water at the Bötchensee (lake) in the Rheinaue. Even the poor swans who muddle through the thick green film of algae deserve better. This is not a new problem and the city addressed it by installing a water pump in 2011. At a cost of 300,000 euro, it was supposed to improve water quality by pumping cooling water into the small lake from the Post Tower – 130 liters of water per second. Somehow, the water never really cleaned up.
Contributing to the problem, the pump has been broken since spring and was only repaired a few days ago. A spokesperson from the city press office, however, sees a cleaner future for the nearly 40-year-old lake, “There will be an improvement in the water quality in the next days, also because of the lower temperatures and less sun.”
Not only do Rheinaue Park visitors and swans hope for clearer water, but so do model boat enthusiasts. At the moment, they can’t let their remote control boats in the water because the propellers are weighed down and stopped by the heavy algae.
One GA reader found a dead cormorant bird on the Südbrücke (south bridge) and believed there might be a connection to the water quality of the lake. The city press office, however said this was only speculation. “As long as there is not an unusually large number of dead water fowl, then such a connection is unlikely.”
Original text: Rolf Kleinfeld
