What happens when a drinking water reservoir serving more than 80,000 people starts experiencing occasional harmful algal blooms and water quality problems? Find out at the next Arkansas Water Webinar, hosted by the Arkansas Water Resources Center on Thursday, June 18, from noon to 1 p.m.

Brewer Lake is a mesotrophic drinking water reservoir serving >80,000 people in Central Arkansas. In recent years, this reservoir has exhibited occasional harmful algal blooms and seasonal nuisance taste-odor issues. Toward an ecological diagnosis of the cause, we have monitored water quality year-round at Brewer Lake since 2019, focusing on lake physico-chemistry, nutrient dynamics, and taste-odor compounds. Complementary research by our group has characterized watershed loading and lake-bottom sediment storage and release of nutrients into lake surface waters. In this presentation, I will describe how the seasonal and annual pulse of Brewer Lake reflects lake mixing and stratification, coupled to changes in lake nutrient dynamics. I will link our research insights to outcomes including improved drinking water treatment and development of a watershed management plan for Brewer Lake. Our work demonstrates how scientists’ collaboration with a water utility can advance source water protection in the long-term.

Speaker: Hal Halvorson, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Biology, University of Central Arkansas, hhalvorson@uca.edu

Dr. Halvorson is an Associate Professor in the Biology Department at the University of Central Arkansas. He and his lab group study the ecological of freshwater ecosystems, with particular focus on the inter-relations among water quality, microbes, and invertebrates. He earned his B.A. in Biology and Chemistry from St. Olaf College in Minnesota and Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Arkansas. He has studied Brewer Lake for >6 years with particular focus on water quality and nutrient cycling. He lives in Little Rock with his husband, Nathan.

Register here!