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Vegetation Bloom Not So Ducky

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 3, 2008

TAMPA - Lake Roberta is a lime-green shade these days, covered with tiny floating duckweed. To many residents, the vegetation is an unexpected outcome of the lake's recent cleanup.

"My friends refer to it as 'Swamp Roberta,'" said Wesley Warren, who lives along the lake in Hampton Terrace.

He wants to turn volunteers loose to scoop up the pesky plants in nets. Once cleared, the duckweed could return, but Warren said it can be scooped every two months or so.

City officials have been reluctant to grant permission. They see a health and safety issue if residents wade into water that is filled with runoff from Nebraska Avenue.

The duckweed is an outgrowth of installing a new sediment trap, stirring up the lake's sediment and removing debris. Stormwater director Chuck Walter said the lake should clear within a year or so.

In the 1880s, the spring-fed Lake Roberta was a cattle watering hole. In the 1930s, the state installed a pipe to drain stormwater into the lake from Nebraska. The city added Roberta to its retention pond system, and over the years, debris, oil, fertilizer runoff and exotic vegetation choked and polluted the lake.

Warren said he is working with city officials to get an OK to sweep out the duckweed.

Kathy Steele

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