Algae Bloom in Roses Lake; Chelan County and Ecology to begin study and remedial work

Roses Lake, 2024. Considered the worst algae bloom in the Manson lake.

Roses Lake, 2025.

Algae blooms in Roses Lake in Manson and lake residents have gained the interest of the Washington State Department of Ecology and Chelan County Natural Resources Department to find a remedy.

"I think the first obvious step is to try to understand what's going on in Roses Lake, what's actually causing the conditions there, what are the conditions there," said Chelan County Natural Resources Director Mike Kaputa on news of a $50,000 state grant that will pay for the beginning of remedial wok. "Hopefully we'll be able to do enough analysis to make some recommendations on treatments in the future."

Kaputa added that the county will also look for more funding to implement any treatments that are recommended.

"We'll do some (water) sampling," Kaputa added. "We'll also look at land uses around the lake, any storm water input, any irrigation input. Just try an characterize, what is the water balance of that lake. What's going in, where is it going out, what time of year, just so we can understand the full picture of what is happening."

"We want to make sure everybody who lives around the lake and everybody in the immediate vicinity knows that the work (water quality analysis) is taking place and we would love for them to participate," Kaputa shared. "I think what you could expect from here is that there will be a few meetings over the winter getting ready for some significant work next year."

Read more about algae bloom from the state Department of Ecology here.

Aerial view of Roses Lake in the foreground. Wapato Lake, upper right, Dry Lake, left, and Lake Chelan in the distance. Photos courtesy: Jeff Conwell.