Conference vicki::boats

225.0. "Some good news.." by RIPPLE::CORBETTKE (KENNY CHINOOK) Wed Dec 21 1988 13:33

    I just thought you fellow boaters might be amused by this article
    that occured in the local rag.....  
    
    EUGENE OREGON--
    
    What bears do in the woods - and in the lakes, too, for that matter
    - became a prime concern for the board of Lane County Commissioners.
                                                            
    The commissioners made bear business their business after receiving
    environmental complaints from residents living near Clear Lake and
    Collard Lake, just north of Florence on the Oregon coast.
    
    Some 100 property owners signed petitions asking the board to ban
    motorized boats from the pristine lake, which serves as a direct
    water source.
    
    Gasoline and diesel leaks from the boats, the residents complained,
    were causing them digestive and other health-related problems.
    
    However, after reviewing a scientific study, the commissioners
    unanimously decided that increasing populations of bear and beaver
    in the rural area were causing a strain of bacteria known as girardia
    to be released into the lake.
    
    Girardia can cause upset stomachs and prolonged cases of diarrhea
    in humans when ingested.
    
    "For once, it wasn't humans who were at the root of the problem,"......
    
    
    
    There was more, but that was the bases of the article.
    
    I just thought it was interesting as we tend to catch a lot of sh*t
    sometimes that is undeserved.
    
    
    Ken
    
    
    
     
    

    Kenny,
    	I heard about a similar condition in Northern Maine lakes a
    few years ago. It was primarily associated with Beaver do-do.
    The condition is quite severe, lasting for weeks. Also it is 
    difficult to purify the water. I heard that the bacteria can survive
    normal purification techniques, including boiling. Prior to learning
    of this I used to routinely drink from the lakes up North, but not
    anymore. I guess my travel light strategy will have to be modified
    to allow for carting drinking water along as well.
    Regards,
    Paul