The problem at “Carson Lake and Pasture” is poor water quality. Adverse effects on fish and wildlife due to irrigation drainage were identified in 1983 at Kesterson National Wildlife Refuge (Tuttle and others, 2000, p. 2). There, high concentrations of selenium in the water reaching the refuge resulted in widespread deaths of aquatic birds and fish, embryo deformities, and reproductive failures. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Geological Survey consequently initiated studies at other National Wildlife Refuges to screen for similar problems. Concentrations of arsenic, boron, mercury, selenium, and TDS (“dissolved solids”) in water in or near Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge were found to be high enough to “likely pose a threat to human health, fish, and wildlife” while concentrations of lithium, molybdenum, and “perhaps” uranium were other “contaminants of concern” (Tuttle and others, 2000, p. 2). Although not a refuge, “Carson Lake and Pasture” has been included in many of these studies because its flora, fauna, and hydrology are similar to those at Stillwater Marsh, it is close by, and it was until recently controlled by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which, like the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, is under the Department of Interior.
The Problem at “Carson Lake and Pasture” is described in the following web pages.
From “Carson Lake” to Newlands Sump
Carson River Mercury Superfund Site
How EPA Ducked the Mercury Risk of Ducks at “Carson Lake”
Toxicity of Newlands Drain Water