For Immediate Release:
August 5, 2015
Officials join forces to resolve Sunset Lake decay
City, County and State seek solutions
ASBURY PARK, NJ – Monmouth County officials joined local and state officials at a meeting earlier this week at Sunset Lake to discuss the conditions on the western side of the Lake and the potential for the Lake’s revitalization.
“The western portion of the lake is visibly overgrown with algae and vegetative grass, creating an unmanageable situation for the City,” said Freeholder John P. Curley, liaison to the Monmouth County Health Department. “The County realizes impact to the public health in the community if degradation of Sunset Lake were to continue.”
Neighbors of the Lake also attended the meeting and expressed concern regarding the unpleasant odors due to the dying vegetation in the Lake.
“Current conditions are lowering the dissolved oxygen levels in Sunset Lake and creating conditions that are conducive for a fish kill,” said Christopher Merkel, Monmouth County’s Public Health Coordinator.
“Two solutions were discussed during the meeting, one long-term and short-term,” said Curley. “All the people and the agencies involved are working together to come to a solution for this coastal lake.”
The short-term solution proposed is to have the Asbury Park Fire Department use fire hoses to pump water into Sunset Lake several times a day to temporarily freshen the western at part of the Lake and eliminate foul odors.
The long-term solution proposed is to draft a plan on how to address this situation moving forward. The City of Asbury Park will start the permitting process with NJDEP to dredge the Lake. If approved, the dredging would most likely occur in the fall, when the air and water temperatures are lower and there is less likely to be any rapid growth of algae in Sunset Lake.
The meeting, which took place at Sunset Lake in Asbury Park, was attended by Freeholder John P. Curley, County staff, Asbury Park representatives, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) representatives and members of the public.
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