Every summer, a various assortment of my extremely large clan gather in family-owned houses on Squam Lake. Some of us grew up there, visiting grandparents in all seasons, cross country skiing through the woods or ice skating on sections of the lake we had shoveled clear of snow in the winter. Others came for days or weeks – or some cousins for months of the summer. Because of this gorgeous lake and our family enclave, I grew up with fourth and fifth cousins, with whom I am as close as my siblings. We drank the lake water, we learned to waterski, snorkel, we went tubing and wakeboarding. And we fished.
But Squam is suffering the same issues as the vast majority of fresh water sources in America: pollution and an environment that is dangerous for local wildlife. It is also facing difficulties that are not as common: nutrient loading, increased boats and personal watercraft, and invasive species.
In 2020, I wrote a blog post for this site about the high level of PCBs found in Squam’s water, in addition to DDT and mercury. In 2021, a study that found high levels of PFAS and PFOS – “forever chemicals” in loon eggs and fish flesh. Warnings are posted near public access points of the lake, alerting those who fish of dangerous levels of PFAS in some species of fish. We used to eat the fish we caught. We used to pull mussels from the bottom of the lake and bake them with butter and garlic. Our children cannot take part in this tradition that has been part of our culture for generations.
PFAS are found virtually everywhere in the world and no lake is safe from them. The Environmental Working Group found in the Great Lakes that “freshwater fish across the country have high levels of…PFAS. The levels are so high that eating just one freshwater fish is equivalent to drinking PFAS contaminated water for a month…”
There are companies across the country working to remove PFAS from water, and IX Power Clean Water is among the best. Our molecular sieves can reduce levels of long-chain PFAS to undetectable.
Sources:
https://www.des.nh.gov/sites/g/files/ehbemt341/files/documents/20200413-squam-lake-advisory.pdf
https://www.bridgedetroit.com/high-levels-of-pfas-great-lakes-fish-detroit/
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