A County crew member recently working to fish the algae out of Ashley Pond. Photo by Greg Kendall

With its cascading waterfall, flowering plants and swimming ducks; Ashley Pond is a picture-perfect postcard of serenity.

But there has been some trouble brewing beneath its waters. If walking on one of its curved wooden boardwalks, you can see the culprit to this trouble wafting lazily in the current. Algae has infiltrated the pond and the County is working to combat it.

Parks Superintendent Jeff Humpton said the warm summer temperatures and the shallow waters in Ashley Pond have helped spur algae growth. He added it’s an issue the County has faced for two years, although this year the algae is not as out-of-control as it was last year.

To deal with the issue, Humpton said Wildcat Environmental, a pond management company in Albuquerque, was hired to administer an algaecide in Ashley Pond. Humpton said the chemicals are not toxic and are environmentally friendly. Additionally, at the end of last summer, 30 sterile grass carp were released in the pond. As they mature, the fish should help reduce the amount of the stringy plant material growing in the pond.

The problem with algae is mainly its aesthetics; although Humpton said it poses the threat of robbing the pond of oxygen. Still he noted, “It’s a great environment for the fish; they’re thriving in there.”

In addition to the carp, there is bass and bluegill fish in the pond.

“Testing shows everything is great. The water is healthy for the fish,” Humpton said.

The treatments also are helping; Humpton said, “actually quite a bit. The amount of algae on the surface is down at least 75 percent from last year.”

The public can help in the effort to maintain and improve Ashley Pond. Humpton urges the community to avoid feeding bread to the ducks and fish at the pond. The bread is unhealthy for them and most of it goes uneaten and pollutes the pond.

“The best they can do if they want to feed them is buy fish food and duck food,” he said.

Humpton also encourages coy or goldfish owners to not dispose of their fish in Ashley Pond. If they do, the County needs to hire someone to catch them and relocate the fish. He mentioned when Ashley Pond was drained and re-constructed, 170 carp and goldfish were captured.

So far the County has budgeted $8,000 to combat the algae. Humpton said eventually the County hopes to have some of their staff trained to do the applications to fight the algae problems in-house, do some in-house training and fight the algae problem themselves.